David
Crosby
Continued from page 28
makings of a great solo album? When did these
songs tell you it was time?
DC: I think we knew as soon as I did
"Radio." When we wrote that song, we
thought, "Hmmm... this is pretty good."
Then, we started getting songs like James'
very good life. I just did 25 dives in Fiji. I
was there diving with my family. I go sailing probably once a week. I am just a very
happy guy. My life is wonderful. I have a
wonderful wife, we've been together 36
years. I've got another wonderful son,
Django, who happens to be a little smarter
than me, which is tough!
IE: How's your health?
DC: My health is really good. I have been
through a tremendous amount of stuff, but
my health is quite good. I lost about 40
pounds, and I have been working out
Crosby (center) with CSNY, 1970
"Dangerous Night," which both of us
wrote, actually. When we started getting
songs like that, then heads started turning.
It was: "Oh, wait a minute! We are into pay
dirt here; this shit is smokin'." Then, when
we started getting some of the songs by
James, and one of his more recent ones was
"What's Broken," I knew it. I just thought
that was one of the most incredible songs I
had ever heard. I pretty much sang the
spots off it, and then we got that very kind
offer from Mark Knopfler to play on it,
which he did magnificently. It was really a
long shot because we didn't have any
money to make it; we did it all on the generosity of friends. And of course, a great
deal of work by James, who not only produced the record, he played it; sang it;
engineered it. He did everything he could.
He made this record possible. It took us
two to three years to do it, but once we had
a couple of songs under our belt, we knew
we were going to make a really great
record. We just had to be patient.
IE: I recently listened to your 1971 solo album,
If I Could Only Remember My Name, and it
sounds great. But it sounded like David in a lot
of different directions. This album sounds like
David, focused like a laser beam. I am not sure
if that is you, or if that is because of David...
DC: It's both of us. We are a team. It's a
very good team, because he's a much better musician than I am and at least as good
a poet as I am. The two of us go hand in
hand. It's chemistry. Music is always chemistry, but it was a really good one, this time.
IE: Just like Stephen and Graham, you have a
lot of stuff going on at once. There is this solo
project, CPR, CSN, CSNY, Crosby Nash; writing books; personal appearances; and on and
on. Don't you think this is simply a lot to be
doing for one artist?
DC: Yeah, but it keeps it fresh. I balance it
just by following the songs. When I hear a
song I pretty much know where I want to
go with it. I also have a very healthy and
steadily, three days a week. I have been
trying to eat right. I'm pretty healthy,
knock on wood.
IE: There have always been concerns since you
had the liver transplant. The average transplant they say can last about 10 years; yours is
over 18 years old...
DC: Yes, everything is holding up. It is
kind of like Science Fiction, having someone else's body part in me but it works,
and I am extremely grateful.
IE: What else is there left for you to do? You
once called Crosby Stills & Nash your day job
and that you wouldn't dare quit your day job....
DC: Yeah, I like working with them. Hey, I
get to sing Stephen Stills' songs and
Graham Nash songs, come on! It's fun! I
love to do CSNY, if and when Neil would
like to do it. I have been listening to this
CSNY '74 live album that is coming out.
The stuff on it is ridiculous man! No one is
going to believe how good it is. We may
never re-group again, then again, we
might. I just know that this record is going
to knock your socks off.
IE: Are you still as politically active as you had
been in the '60s and '70s, or have you mellowed?
DC: No, not at all. I am still very much
inclined to speak up for what I believe in. I
think that is the way it should be and I am
proud of it, and I am not going to change.
IE: What are you upset about now?
DC: How long a list do you want to go
through? Am I upset about Fukushima
poisoning the Pacific Ocean? ...yeah. Am I
upset about Tepco and the Japanese government lying through their teeth?...yeah.
Am I upset about us sending another
35,000 troops to the Middle East where we
have no place being?...yeah. Am I upset
about politicians not having read a history
book that would tell them NO ONE ever
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2014
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