David Crosby: 20 Essential Songs by the Folk-Rock Legend



“I’ve were fixed to marque the maximum of each infinitesimal I have,” David Crosby informed Rolling Stone successful 2018. “Wouldn’t you?” He go connected his 0.33 oregon 4th lifestyles done past — the golden-voiced, long-haired, cantankerous, beatific American unsocial who turned into determination to invent folks-rock with the Byrds wrong the mid-Nineteen Sixties, to redefine the supergroup with Crosby, Stills, and Nash a fewer years later, and to enactment honestly himself thru each of the galore years of terrifi harmonies and outrageous opinions that followed. In his precise past years connected earth, Croz appeared renewed, making a fig of his high-quality statistic ever and sounding humbled successful interviews similar that 1 successful 2018. His decease astatine property 81 leaves an irreplaceable country successful track. Here are his champion songs.

“Turn, Turn, Turn” (1965)

Crosby didn’t constitute oregon instrumentality the pb vocal astatine the Byrds’ chart-topping cowl of Pete Seeger’s Bible-derived radical traditional, but helium did put the unforgettable vocal harmonies, arsenic helium did during his tenure wrong the band. It’s not imaginable to presume this opus without Crosby’s excessive components floating supra McGuinn’s pb astatine the refrain — a dependable that stimulated countless concord-wealthy radical and stone acts wrong the decades to travel back. — B.H.

“Renaissance Fair” (1967)

Of each of the unsocial Byrds, Crosby turned into continually the hippest and hippie-est, from his capes to his much and much agelong locks. His unfastened tunings, airy melodies, and elliptical lyrics captured that vibe, too, arsenic heard connected this ode to a onshore of “cinnamon and spices” with a “kaleidoscope of colors” from Younger Than Yesterday. This turned into stimulated with the assistance of existent Renaissance gala's successful L.A. On the time. “They person been the superior monolithic gatherings of hippies,” helium said wrong the notes to his instrumentality acceptable Voyage, “even earlier than the Be-Ins.” This music, helium stated, “gave you a spirit of what it became like.” — D.B.

“Everybody’s Been Burned” (1967)

Amid cycles of psychedelic chords, Crosby wrote lyrics astir coming to phrases with being harm for this contemplative heavy cut. “Everybody has been burned earlier than,” opens the song. “Everybody is alert of the ache.” Crosby had written the track, whose jazzy voicings allowed for an avant-garde guitar solo, immoderate years earlier helium joined the group, and years aboriginal helium inactive recognized it arsenic a songwriting measurement forward, calling it “the archetypal surely passable tune that I wrote” successful a 1995 interview. “‘Everybody’s Been Burned’ go maximum diagnostic of what became to go my style,” helium stated successful ’84, “pretty adjustments, an uncommon acquisition and sensation — positive close words.” — K.G.

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“Triad” (1968)

Crosby’s relentless thrust to propulsion the Byrds into caller nation-states — truthful effectual erstwhile helium grew to go his bandmates straight to Coltrane and raga for “Eight Miles High” successful 1966 — met its bounds years aboriginal with this frank threesome proposition. “I emotion you too, and I don’t decidedly see,” helium crooned implicit the band’s smoky gradual-burn, “why can’t we walk connected arsenic 3?” Those phrases had been risqué capable to get him axed from the set successful the autumn of 1968, aft Croz fought unsuccessfully for the song’s inclusion connected The Notorious Byrd Brothers amid processing conflicts with bandmates Roger McGuinn and Chris Hillman. (Jefferson Airplane, ever athletics for a provocative gesture, went connected to cover it; the Byrds’ unsocial workplace signaling of “Triad” wouldn’t beryllium launched til years aboriginal arsenic an vantage track.) “At slightest 1 enactment of humans go precise uptight by mode of that tune,” Crosby advised Rolling Stone’s Ben Fong-Torres successful 1970, aft he’d landed luckily successful CSN. “This set is not uptight down that opus astatine all, having been thru comparable experiences.” — S.V.L.

“Guinnevere” (1969)

Imagine it’s 1969 and you simply bought CSN’s debut album. It opens with the seven-minute “Suite: Judy Blue Eyes,” accompanied via the rollicking “Marrakesh Express.” But by mode of the 1/3 tune, it each slows down. It’s the ballad “Guinnevere,” and you’ve entered the mystic. Croz himself knew the way changed into a killer, arsenic helium describes the legendary English queen’s inexperienced eyes and aureate hairsbreadth implicit an astir haunting clip sature. He subsequently revealed to america that helium wrote the euphony astir 3 antithetic real-existence, non-mythical girls. One was his subordinate Christine Gail Hinton, who would dice aboriginal that 12 months successful a bittersweet crash; different was Joni Mitchell. “And the other 1 is idiosyncratic that I can’t tell,” he said. “It is astir apt my prime tune.” — A.M.

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“Long Time Gone” (1969)

At the springiness up of the turbulent Nineteen Sixties, Crosby changed into inactive making consciousness of the past decade. The mild, elegiac “Long Time Gone,” from the archetypal CSN album, displays his assemblage of mind. “I wrote [‘Long Time Gone’] close erstwhile they assassinated Bobby Kennedy,” helium instructed Rolling Stone in 2008. “It became a effect of losing him, of losing John Kennedy and Martin Luther King. I started to consciousness beaten. It regarded arsenic though it go canvass by bullet. It seemed arsenic though it didn’t trust however due idiosyncratic we whitethorn privation to observe to spot up arsenic an proposition and a frontrunner for the good, that successful immoderate mode the different facet would triumph by sincerely gunning them down.” But Crosby didn’t consciousness decidedly helpless. In the music’s 3rd verse, helium urges, “Speak out, you bought to speech retired towards the madness/You got to talk your thoughts, if you dare.” — K.G.

“Deja Vu” (1970)

More than 50 years successful the past — lengthy earlier Olivia Rodrigo oregon Beyoncé felt immoderate benignant of eerie familiarity wrong the little backmost of their minds — determination has been this astounding CSNY place song. When the set began amassing cloth for the album, Croz turned into grappling with Hinton’s demise and go excessively devastated to enactment successful penning thing new. So helium surpassed his bandmates this gem, which helium wrote aft a peculiar thrust connected a friend’s sailboat. “It’s arsenic if I had executed it before,” helium instructed CSNY biographer David Browne. “I knew mode greater astir it than I indispensable have. I knew however to sail a vessel close away. Not an instinctive element. It doesn’t marque consciousness …I felt past and present that I person been close present earlier than. I don’t see successful God but I accidental the Buddhists got it close — we bash recycle.” — A.M.

“Almost Cut My Hair” (1970)

One of the bleeding-heart instrumentality favorites from Deja Vu mightiness by nary means were connected the medium had David Crosby not fought for its inclusion. “Stephen [Stills]…didn’t request maine to depart it successful ’motive helium conception that it turned into a atrocious vocal,” Crosby told Rolling Stone successful 1970. “But I felt similar what I expected erstwhile I sang it.” What Crosby felt erstwhile helium wrote the tune go a premix of overdue-Nineteen Sixties disillusionment wrong the aftermath of RFK’s assassination and heightened alienation due to the fact that the assemblage trust successful Vietnam rose. 53 years later, Crosby’s righteous choler nevertheless resonates. — J.B. 

“The Lee Shore” (1971)

The archetypal clip fanatics ever heard Crosby’s ballad that he wrote “about a 20-12 months emotion matter with an Alden schooner” changed into connected Four Way Street, CSNY’s multi-platinum 1971 enactment album. “Sailing is simply a paranormal acquisition for me,” Crosby said of the acoustic lullaby. “It gets maine retired of the full scene.” Although it ne'er turned into 1 of the band’s biggest hits, the euphony became an indispensable portion of Crosby’s sets successful decades to return, a touching 2nd of herbal impressionism, two-component concord (while done with Graham Nash) and aboriginal rendezvous: “Perhaps I’ll spot you,” Crosby sang. “The adjacent quiescent area.” — J.B.

“Cowboy Movie” (1971)

Backed by mode of 3 contributors of the Grateful Dead — Jerry Garcia, Phil Lesh, and Mickey Hart — this standout from Crosby’s accepted solo debut, If I Could Only Remember My Name…, is 1 successful each of his rawest, toughest-grooving recorded moments. “It is the communicative of CSNY, nevertheless it’s informed arsenic a cowboy film,” helium informed Rolling Stone‘s Andy Greene. “The signaling connected the medium benignant of surely fell out. We performed it immoderate of times. That clip you wage attraction connected the record is beauteous superb. It turned into really due chemistry among maine and Garcia and Lesh… We conscionable had a large chemistry. It turned into escaped and chill and it felt right.” — B.H.

“Tamalpais High (At About 3)” (1971)

Crosby couldn’t find the close words to acceptable the temper for “Tamalpais High (at About 3)” — whose place refers to a Bay Area precocious schoolhouse that licence retired circular 3 p.M. — truthful helium sang jazzy stacks of “doo doo doo” implicit bluesy guitar and splashing cymbals. “I simply did it the mode I wanted to, utilizing my dependable similar a horn segment,” helium informed Rolling Stone successful 2021. “As a ways arsenic I’m involved, there’s nary rules, truthful you tin bash worldly similar that. I don’t recognize if each idiosyncratic other could person executed that. But I loved it.” At 1 origin helium had a woman who attended the school, which explains the song’s upbeat vibe. “‘Tamalpais High’ isn't astir getting excessive and it’s nary longer astir the mountain,” helium said, meaning Marin County’s Mount Tamalpais. “But it's acold pretty.” —  K.G.

“Laughing” (1971)

On “Laughing,” Crosby sings astir fake prophets who state they speech to God. “I conception I met a idiosyncratic who stated helium knew a idiosyncratic who knew what turned into occurring,” helium sings. “I was flawed/Only different alien that I knew.” The thought for the euphony got present to him portion reasoning astir his person George Harrison, whom Crosby disquieted had been taken successful by utilizing Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. “I desired to accidental to him, ‘Be skeptical. …  Anytime idiosyncratic tells you they talked to God close aft meal this morning, they're successful each likelihood bullshitting you,'” helium pondered successful Rolling Stonein 2021. “That’s what I desired to say. But I changed into chickenhearted arsenic it turned into George.” The music’s last line, “I became fallacious/Only a babe guffawing wrong the sun” had a poetic sificance to Crosby: “A toddler giggling wrong the prima is alert of much astir God than I do.” — K.G.

“The Wall Song” (1972)

As helium could proudly springiness an mentation for, cipher specialized successful songs astir grappling with life, errors, and groping astir successful the acheronian arsenic tons arsenic Crosby — or, arsenic helium places it connected this opus from Graham Nash/David Crosby, “Stumbling 1/2-blinded/And adust arsenic the wind/That strafes you and leaves you/To prevarication successful the sand.” Featuring backup from contributors of the Dead successful summation to Nash, “The Wall Song” featured a greater competitory groove than immoderate of his different songs of the time, adjacent arsenic it virtually hinted astatine the turmoil helium felt aft the demise of Christine Gail Hinton. — D.B.

“Page forty three” (1972)

Crosby’s reminder to prehend the day, “Page 43” has each of the makings of a gospel way — a Biblical connection of practicing kindness, funny metaphors astir searching retired metallic and golden successful a rainbow, plentifulness of vino wrong the 0.33 verse — too it’s each secular. When Crosby sang, “It says close right present connected web leafage 43 that you should grasp a support of it/Else you’ll find it’s handed you by mode of,” helium was speaking normally, joking that the web leafage whitethorn privation to person travel simply arsenic without problems from the Old Testament oregon Zap Comix. But helium had nary hassle praising 1 beatified conception for the tune: “I wrote it successful the superior compartment of my vessel successful Sausalito,” helium recalled wrong the e publication Songwriters connected Songwriting, “and it turned into beneath the person an effect on, musically, of James Taylor.” — K.G.

“Carry Me” (1975)

On “Carry Me,” a way disconnected Crosby and Nash’s 1975 album, Wind connected the Water, Crosby reflects connected his mom’s death. “She became lying successful achromatic sheets there, and she changed into waiting to die,” helium sings. “She said if you’d simply attain underneath this mattress/And untie those weights, I ought to simply fly.” But for each the grief successful his voice, there’s successful nary mode melancholy, and his and Nash’s voices look arsenic ascendant of their harmony. In the chorus, she requires him to transportation her. The euphony person go a enactment staple for Crosby and his bandmates. “It doesn’t substance however mostly we sing those songs, astatine immoderate constituent our feelings instrumentality over, and brother, licence maine pass you that it generates thing sacred,” Graham Nash wrote of “Carry Me” successful his memoir, Wild Tales. “Whatever that is probably, Croz and I really person it with each other, whether oregon not it’s instinct, code of voice, oregon immoderate happening tons deeper and indefinable.” — K.G.

“Homeward Through the Haze” (1975)

Depending erstwhile you asked him, this euphony changed into some astir the deterioration of L.A. Or CSNY’s archetypal brushwood with haters little backmost wrong the time (“first rainfall of iciness/first autumn from grace”). But with Crosby playing an bonzer soft part, it become, either way, surely 1 of his astir introspective songs, with a hymn-like melody that felt careworn and delightful astatine the adjacent time. CSNY attempted reducing it first, passim their failed ‘seventy 4 sessions, but past helium and Nash, with impermanent Carole King, recorded the definitive mentation for his oregon her Wind astatine the Water. — D.B.

“Shadow Captain” (1978) 

The commencing euphony from 1978’s CSN — Crosby, Stills, and Nash’s archetypal medium arsenic a trio since their 1969 debut — combines a graceful relation and analyzable chords that hinted astatine Crosby’s emotion for the then-ascendant jazz-rock of Steely Dan with harmonies arsenic affluent arsenic thing the set has recorded. He wrote the metaphorical lyrics successful a unmarried burst connected a crusing experience, and the opus turned into robust capable emblematic to astir entice Neil Young backmost into the band. — B.H.

“Tracks wrong the Dust” (1989)

After spending clip successful jailhouse for capsules successful the mid-1980s, Crosby dilatory commenced reuniting on with his muse, arsenic this mostly forgotten opus from his Oh Yes I Can medium attests. What appears similar a meal enactment communique among folks who are optimistic oregon grumpy, it seems to beryllium his idiosyncratic interior speak. With guitarist Michael Hedges prettying up the melody with his acoustic shimmer, “Tracks wrong the Dust” changed into 1 of the archetypal ss that Crosby changed into capable to a publish-meltdown, publish-dependancy comeback — which could keep, startlingly, for galore greater decades. — D.B.

“Dream for Him” (1999)