David Crosby, who was a founding member of both the Byrds and Crosby, Stills & Nash has passed away at the age of 81. His wife confirmed the news in saying, “It is with great sadness after a long illness, that our beloved David (Croz) Crosby has passed away, 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. We will miss him dearly. At this time, we respectfully and kindly ask for privacy as we grieve and try to deal with our profound loss. Thank you for the love and prayers.”
Crosby was originally born in Los Angeles in 1941, and dropped out of college to pursue music. AFter spending time in Chicago and New York, he returned to L.A. and joined the Byrds in 1964 that also included Gene Clark, Jim McGuinn and Chris Hillman. In 1968 he formed Crosby, Stills & Nash, with Stephen Stills and Graham Nash. The next year, their debut self titled album earned a Grammy Award for Best New Artist. In 1997, CSN was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, marking the first band to have all of its members inducted into the hall twice.
Back in 2022, Crosby said, “I’ve got tendonitis in both hands,” he said. “I can’t play well enough for my standards on stage. I could probably get away with it and you’d probably like it, but it’s not good enough for me. It’s possible I might do a residency someplace. We’ll see.”
In total Crosby released eight solo albums, with the latest being from 2021, and featuring collaborations along with Michael McDonald, Donald Fagen and many younger musicians from Crosby’s backing group, the Lighthouse Band.
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