Legendary folk-rock singer David Crosby dead at 81 years

Legendary folk-rock singer David Crosby dead at 81 years

Veteran US folk-rock star David Crosby has died aged 81, his representatives have confirmed.

He helped set up two bands that became a success in the 60s The Byrds, and Crosby, Stills and Nash. He was famous for his guitar-playing and vocal harmony.

Through his career he achieved so much and later was inducted to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice. His former bandmate Graham Nash expressed his “profound sadness”, despite the two men’s often having a wierd relationship.

His wife told showbiz site Variety that he died from an illness he had for a long time but he was surrounded by family during his last moments.

“His legacy will continue to live on through his legendary music,” she wrote.

David was born in California on 14 August 1941, he was a son of Oscar-winning Hollywood cinematographer Floyd Crosby.

He joined The Byrds in 1964 – a folk-rock group after alot of work scored its first hit with a cover of Bob Dylan’s Tambourine Man.

His tempestuous tenure – a period during which he also briefly dated singer Joni Mitchell – culminated in his being fired from the group three years later.

Crosby, Stills and Nash came together as a group soon afterwards, and performed at the legendary Woodstock festival in 69′.

Later they were joined by Canadian singer-songwriter Neil Young. This band, too, like most bands was brought to it’s downfall by in-fighting and broke up after a few years, though they had periodically reformed for concerts since.

Hits written by Crosby during his time in the band included, the hippy anthems Almost; Cut My Hair and Deja Vu.

He became famous for his countercultural politics and trademark moustache as well as his music which was a six-decade career that finished in his final album, For Free, released in 2021.

The record saw him team up with one of his children, James Raymond, who had been put up for adoption soon after birth and only became acquainted with his father thirty years later.

Off-stage, Crosby had multiple law- breaks with US law enforcement, including one arrest in 1982 on drug and weapons possession.

His substance abuse had reportedly increased after the death of his girlfriend in a car crash when he was a young.

There followed periods of ill health, then a liver transplant in 1994. David Crosby’s reputation for a carefree lifestyle saw him named two decades later as “rock’s unlikeliest survivor” by Rolling Stone magazine.

He however later expressed regret over his addictions and bad relationships with his co-stars, telling the LA Times in 2019 he was “ashamed” of some of his past behaviours.

Following the musician’s death, Graham Nash wrote on social media that his late collaborator was “fearless in life and in music” and left behind a “tremendous void”.

He acknowledged that they had a bad relationship, but said “what has always mattered to David and me more than anything was the pure joy of the music we created together”.

Another tribute came from Beach Boys singer Brian Wilson, who tweeted that he was “heartbroken” at the news as his fellow star had been an “unbelievable talent” and a “wonderful person”.

Tweets were sent from Crosby’s own account the day before his death was announced – with one stating that Eleanor Rigby was his favourite Beatles to song to play on a rainy day. The exact cause of his death was not immediately specified, but later it was said it was from a long illness.