Rock and roll legend David Crosby has one of the most well-known voices in the history of popular music.
But as one of the founding members of both The Byrds and Crosby, Stills and Nash it’s seldom that his voice is heard on its own.
The multiple Grammy winner and double Rock and Roll Hall of Famer spent the majority of his career working with others. He collaborated with some of music’s most respected artists to create and popularize the richly harmonic folk-rock music that for a time characterized the sound of the 1960’s and 1970’s.
Host Frank Stasio talks with Crosby about partnering with other musicians and Crosby says he likes “collaborative efforts, as opposed to competitive efforts” when creating music.
“It gets magical and the sum becomes greater than the whole. You know? It’s just a wonderful thing.”
But Crosby feels affection for solo work, in part because he began his career as a solo musician.
“You know when you’re by yourself, there’s no lead guitar, there’s no bass and drums and the words get more important and more accessible. And that means you can get more of a story out of [the music]. You get more of a mental voyage."
David Crosby is on a solo tour which includes a performance at the Carolina Theatre in Durham on Tuesday June 16th. The show features performances from Crosby’s entire music catalog including his most recent record – Croz.
Crosby worked on the record with his once estranged son James Raymond. He tells Stasio working with Raymond was a total pleasure.
“It’s a joy. You rarely get to hang out with your kids after they’ve grown up and it’s really a wonderful thing. [James] is really a brilliant musician and I have no trouble saying he’s better than me, because he is. We really had a really good time [working on Croz]. ”
Crosby has never been one to shy away from social activism. Writing about politically-charged topics comes naturally. “I don’t really do it consciously. It’s not like I seek out a cause and say ‘It’s time for me to write a song,’ I write what comes man," he says. "I write about things that I see and wish that I could do something about. Occasionally I write about somebody really awful like our Congress.”
David Crosby’s performs at the Carolina Theatre in Durham at 8 pm on June 16. Tickets are available on the Theatre's website.
Host Frank Stasio talks with David Crosby about the new album, reuniting with his estranged son and touring in his 70s. David Crosby performs at the Carolina Theatre in Durham on June 16th at 8pm.