"He was lovingly surrounded by his wife and soulmate Jan and son Django. Although he is no longer here with us, his humanity and kind soul will continue to guide and inspire us. His legacy will continue to live on through his legendary music. Peace, love, and harmony to all who knew David and those he touched...."
A statement from David Crosby's wife, sent to Variety.
I love David Crosby. The first rock concert I ever saw was The Byrds at Newark Symphony Hall in 1966.
Here he is talking about his health and about dying — to Howard Stern — just last year:
"I am at the end of my life, Howard.... People get old and die. And I'm gonna."
This is from 1974 — somehow the most Crosby Crosby songs that comes into my mind:
Try some of my purple berries:
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44 comments:
A fine guitarist. RIP
One of the greats of Rock and Roll. RIP.
David Crosby always looked older than he was.
Great that he lived to be 81.
"David Crosby always looked older than he was."
When he was first seen on TV, when "Mr. Tambourine Man" was a hit, and he wore that green suede poncho, he looked like a kid. Such a baby face! I remember when he looked truly young — boyish with twinkling eyes, upstaging McGuinn just by smiling charmingly.
Stone cold terminal Byrds fan, here. I had all their LP's back in the day. The harmonies were stellar, primarily because of Crosby. They sound denser than they really are : a lot of the songs have Mcguinn and Gene Clark singing the tune in unison with DC soaring on top, creating jazzy/modern intervals. A gifted and original harmony singer, for sure. The Beatles considered the Byrds to be their peers 65-67'.
Great writer and lead singer to boot :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I7Uh8933Jvs
A great one has passed. RIP
Sorry to hear. Lasted longer than he should have. Good for him. I ended up at CSN shows a few times in the 80s.
Loved his music, but I understand he could be a little difficult to work with.
Yes, my preposition is dangling.
Talented musician but difficult to work with in the Byrds and CSN / CSNY.
CSN doesn't hold up very well with time, especially without Y, but David Crosby certainly was part of my generation's life.
Sorry to hear. To be honest I thought he had already passed.
I think I saw C with SN&Y in 1970 or '71 in Dallas, but I'm not really sure. Might be a case of if you can remember the '60s you weren't really there.
Once in a while, the documentary film David Crosby: Remember My Name is broadcast on cable television.
It's very interesting. I recommend watching it.
The documentary does not sugar-coat Crosby's life. It shows the good, the bad and the ugly.
To the comments that he looked older than he was - drugs are a horrible thing. Stay clean kids.
My entire family -- two parents and seven children -- drove from Eugene to Portland, Oregon, to watch a Crosby, Nash, Stills and Young concert. We all loved the concert.
Maybe that was in about 1970.
Their albums were playing in our home all the time.
Very sad news. I've always thought Crosby was the finest pure singer in rock. Everybody's Been Burned by the Byrds is killer. I agree that Almost Cut My Hair is the most 'Crosby' song in a lot of ways. His albums from this century are well worth the listen. I love his wordless songs (Song With No Words off of If I Could Only Remember My Name or Critical Mass off of the Crosby-Nash album Wind on the Water)
Lisa Marie + Jeff Beck + David Crosby
Suite: Judy Blue Eyes
Rest in peace, brother. Love you.
A few more livers will now be made available to those in need.
I guess he got clean, got his life together and ended up in a pretty good place. RIP and condolences to his friends and loved ones.
Loved his voice and music. CSN and CSNY will always be a fav for me. That’s a big reason I love my Sirius sat radio.
He got some bonus years, that's for sure.
My favorite Crosby tune.
rightguy @ 5:11
You said it.
Music for letting my freak flag fly — Rest in Peace.
First time I saw DC was in the summer of 1964 at The New Balladeer coffee house in Santa Monica. He sang folk/blues songs and played 12 string acoustic guitar. He played most Friday and Saturday nights. His version of Hey Joe is still the best.
We all followed him and the Byrds to Ciro's on the Sunset Strip.
Best of times. RIP
"Yes, my preposition is dangling.
That is something up with which I will not put.
Crosby and his various band mates music was from a time and a place that was magical in many ways.
I still keep "Wooden Ships" in campfire rotation. But it's becoming increasingly difficult finding campfire singers who know the words.
As DC said: "We all die Howard."
Crosby had a liver transplant in '94. Needed it due to Hep and drugs. He was lucky to get it, lucky it worked, and lucky to live almost another 30 years.
RIP, Coz
It seems to me he lived his life
Like a candle in the wind.
His liver gave out long before
The legend ever did.
In 1972 I was in Morocco and took the Marrakesh Express train from Casablanca to Marrakesh. The train was very slow but didn't have any stops - "Express" train.
One of David Crosby's songs from the 4 Way Street live album, Triad: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-lp5Ope65mQ
I ran across David Crosby in Northampton MA in the mid '80's.
He really looked like shit, as if he were a 60-year old drug addict in partial recovery.
Crosby saw how he was lucky.
And how he caused so much of his own bad luck.
I really hope he and Nash were able to find peace.
They protested for peace together in the 1960-70s.
Maybe they saw the irony of that before the door closed?
Long may you run.
I don't like to shit on the dead but Crosby was _anything_ BUT "a kind soul".
I thought when he got clean and sober his assholeyness would go away but no.
Rest in Peace, otherwise.
MarcusB. THEOLDMAN
>>The first rock concert I ever saw was The Byrds at Newark Symphony Hall in 1966.
OK! Althouse rocking it out in Newark at, what, age 16?
I "saw" (sure didn't hear!) the Beatles at the Coliseum in Chicago with one of my older sisters when I was about 12 or 13. She was four years older. I don't remember how we got there, but we just went. Jackie Murphy, a guy who lived across the street from us (not particularly relevant (or is it?), but from a politically connected family) and was I think a year or so younger than my sister was an Andy Frain usher working in the fifth balcony or whatever where we were seated. Nobody gave much of a thought or care back then about us kids going all over the city on our own.
City Life, Coming of Age in Chicago, by John G. Linehan (I have a Kindle version) is a book written by a guy who was in my youngest sister's Catholic grammar school class at St. Justin Martyr on the South Side before the neighborhood "changed" (anyone from Chicago knows what that means). A lot of it's about his being an Andy Frain usher (anyone from Chicago would also know what that means) in his teens, though there's a lot of other stuff that makes me wax nostalgic about growing up on the South Side of Chicago.
--gpm
I saw CSN about 10 years ago and Crosby's voice was better than ever. He sounded clear like a young man. He hit all his notes without effort. The same could not be said of his bandmates.
David's middle name was Van Cortlandt, after his mother's family. His father Floyd was a direct descendant, through his grandmother, of Stephen Van Rensselaer, patroon of the vast family holdings in New York state. These were two of the most prominent of the Dutch families of Old New York. It seems an unlikely background for David, at first blush, but maybe the historic prominence of his bloodlines contributed something to his outspoken personality.
In 1969, home on my first Christmas leave from the Navy, my sister borrowed my car. she came back in a panic that it was making a funny noise. Crosby Stills & Nash's first album coming from the 8-track my Dad paid to install was the "funny noise" *sigh*
I saw CSNY in 1974 at Chicago Stadium, great concert. 3 hours long split by acoustic and electric. I saw them again at Alpine Valley in the 90's sometime IIRC. One of my favorite groups.
Stephen Stills was the biggest talent of the four, writing and singing lead on so many of their hits; Suite: Judy Blue Eyes, Southern Cross, Change Partners, Carry On, Find the Cost of Freedom, Helplessly Hoping, Wooden Ships, Love the One You're With, and others.
"He really looked like shit, as if he were a 60-year old drug addict in partial recovery."
Hahahaha! Good one!
Curious George said...
Stephen Stills was the biggest talent of the four, writing and singing lead on so many of their hits...
I'm kind of Meh on CSN (a wee bit before my time), but Daylight Again is one of my all-time favorites; and it was mostly S & N. Apparently, Stills started an album, Nash joined in, but Crosby was so out of it they weren't even going to call it a "CSN" album, the the record company insisted.
Curious George said...
Stephen Stills was the biggest talent of the four, writing and singing lead on so many of their hits...
I'm kind of Meh on CSN (a wee bit before my time), but Daylight Again is one of my all-time favorites; and it was mostly S & N. Apparently, Stills started an album, Nash joined in, but Crosby was so out of it they weren't even going to call it a "CSN" album, the the record company insisted.
"Anthony said...
I'm kind of Meh on CSN (a wee bit before my time), but Daylight Again is one of my all-time favorites; and it was mostly S & N. Apparently, Stills started an album, Nash joined in, but Crosby was so out of it they weren't even going to call it a "CSN" album, the the record company insisted."
Some very good songs on that Album; Wasted On The Way (Nash), Southern Cross (Stills).
"I thought when he got clean and sober his assholeyness would go away but no."
One of the lessons of 12-step programs is that sobriety does not cure the underlying personality defects. However, assuming one wants to cure them, being sober makes the process easier.
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