David Crosby

David Crosby biography

David Van Cortlandt Crosby (born August 14, 1941) is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. In addition to his solo career, he was a founding member of three bands: The Byrds, Crosby, Stills & Nash (who are sometimes joined by Neil Young), and CPR. Crosby has been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice: once for his work in The Byrds and once for his work with CSN.

Musical career

Early years

David Crosby was born in Los Angeles, California. His parents were Aliph Van Cortlandt Whitehead and Floyd Crosby, an Academy Award winning cinematographer. He is also the younger brother of musician Ethan Crosby. Growing up in California, he attended several schools, including the University Elementary School in Los Angeles, the Crane Country Day School in Montecito, and Laguna Blanca School in Santa Barbara for the rest of his elementary school and junior high. At Crane, he starred in HMS Pinafore and other musicals but was asked not to return due to lack of academic progress. He graduated from the Cate School in Carpinteria, completing his studies by correspondence. In 1960, his parents divorced, and his father was remarried to Betty Christie Crosby.

Crosby also attended Santa Barbara City College. Originally, he was a drama student, but dropped out to pursue a career in music. He moved toward the same Greenwich Village scene (as a member of the Les Baxter's Balladeers) Bob Dylan participated in, and even shared a mentor of Bob Dylan's in a local scene favorite Fred Neil. With the help of producer Jim Dickson, Crosby cut his first solo session in 1963.

Crosby joined Jim McGuinn (who later changed his name to Roger) and Gene Clark, who were then named the Jet Set (although there is no evidence that they ever performed under that name). They were augmented by drummer Michael Clarke, at which point Crosby attempted, unsuccessfully, to play bass. Late in 1964, Chris Hillman joined as bassist, and Crosby relieved Gene Clark of rhythm guitar duties. Through connections that Jim Dickson (The Byrds' manager) had with Bob Dylan's publisher, the band obtained a demo acetate disc of Dylan's "Mr. Tambourine Man" and recorded a cover version of the song, featuring McGuinn's 12 string guitar as well as McGuinn, Crosby and Clark's vocal harmonizing. The song turned into a massive hit, soaring to #1 in the charts in the U.S. and the U.K. during 1965. While Roger McGuinn originated The Byrds' trademark 12 string guitar sound (which he in turn took from George Harrison on "A Hard Day's Night"), Crosby was responsible for the soaring harmonies and often unusual phrasing on their songs.

In 1966, Gene Clark, who then was the band's primary songwriter, left the group due to stress. This placed all the group's songwriting responsibilities in the hands of McGuinn, Crosby, and Hillman. Crosby took the opportunity to hone his craft, and soon blossomed into a prolific and talented songwriter. His early Byrds efforts included the classic 1966 hit "Eight Miles High" (to which he contributed one line, while Clark and McGuinn wrote the rest), and its flip side "Why", co-written with McGuinn, which showed Crosby at his hard-edged best.

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