David Crosby (1941 - 2023)

Just A Song Before I Go, one of CSN's hits, despite having been written by Graham Nash, gets a whole new meaning now the first member of the most superband of superbands has left this earth. Active until the very end, Crosby has, almost, released more solo records in his final years than in the years before. Always full of class and taste; not necessarily new or urgent. Simply beautiful additions to what already existed.

David Crosby had a 60 year career in music, with a breakthrough in 1965 as a member of The Byrds. The band scored an international hit with Bob Dylan's 'Mr. Tambourine Man'. Especially the jingle-jangle got a totally new dimension in The Byrds' version, because of the Rickenbacker sound of, then, Jim McGuinn. The fabulous harmony vocals did the rest. And that was David Crosby's forté.

The Byrds truly were a nest from which members flew away and others in with, then, Roger McGuinn as constant factor. After Gene Clark, David Crosby was the second to leave the nest. Allegedly because of the lyrics to a song called 'Triad'. Jefferson Airplane, especially the tandem Grace Slick - Paul Kantner were friends who regularly sailed with Crosby and his wife Jan on the big schooner, the 'Mayan', Crosby owned, recorded the song on 'Crown Of Creation' (1968), one of the band's most beautiful ballads.

Musical history was altered when Crosby entered a musical relationship with Stephen Stills (ex-Buffalo Springfield) and Graham Nash (soon to be ex-The Hollies). Together they sailed the highest skies of the Woodstock era. Starting with a single called 'Marrakesh Express', the smallest of hits here in NL, that brought inventive sounds, eastern influences and glorious singing to the world.

That was my start and almost end of CSN(&Y). A friend from long ago had the 'Woodstock' album. An illegal copy brought by his father from Taiwan. (Yes, I got mine soon after when my dad sailed there.) It had the incomprehensible 'Suite: Judy Blue Eyes' on it. That Stills song took me many more years, as in two decades, to like. It had 'Sea Of Madness' on it and 'Wooden Ships'. The first was the kind of rock song that really went down well in my young adolescent mind.

Listening now, I hear the fabulous harmonies. Many people have written that David Crosby was the voice you did not hear but if it had not been there, everything would fall apart. This sounds so mysterious but even Stephen Stills is writing it in his tweets commemorating David Crosby.

'Deja Vu' is most likely the album that is liked best in the world. Somehow it is not one of my favourites. I like 'CSN' better and also 'Daylight Again' has its moments.

For many years Crosby was associated more with addiction, negativity, illness and finally the parenthood of Melissa Etheridge's children. Until new music started flowing that slowly but surely restored his reputation as singer and songwriter. Showing what a good singer and songwriter he was in his own right. I'm not his biggest fan but any record goes down well, usually.

More than 50 years have passed since 'Woodstock' and many records made in whatever combination. One fine, personal memory is TV show I ran into by chance around 2000 or something. Crosby was singing with two younger musicians. One turned out to be his later in life recognised son. The performance was magical and I became totally submerged in the music, encountered by chance. Just zapping in a bored moment late in the evening, not wanting to go to bed yet. Zapping is something I never do anymore. There's too much and usually all uninteresting.

With David Crosby an incredibly talented musician has passed away. Bigger than any in his first band The Byrds and high in the pop pantheon with Stephen Stills and Graham Nash, although I think them the better songwriters. (Neil Young has a total place of his own by now, of course.) David Crosby was an even more influential singer, as he must have had an uncanny ear for harmonies that supported, weaved and "disappeared" into the whole. A deep bow from me to you, Mr. Crosby.

Wout de Natris