LIVING ON A PRAYER - AFTER HEROIN HELL, A LIVER TRANSPLANT GAVE DAVID CROSBY A NEW LEASE OF LIFE
By Gavin Martin
UK Daily Mirror
Feb 18 2005
He is the first to admit that he really should be dead. In 1965, David Crosby became a star overnight with The Byrds. He proved to be one of the most gifted musicians of his generation in the years that followed and wrote hippy anthems such as Almost Cut My Hair with his cohorts in Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. But Crosby’s appetite for hard drugs eventually took over his life and by 1985 he was in a Texas jail, convicted for possession of crack and firearms.
His remarkable recovery from crack and heroin following his release was not smooth. He was injured in a motorcycle crash and lost his LA mansion to an earthquake. Then, after contracting Hepatitis C, he underwent a liver transplant. But Crosby’s resilience was remarkable. He fathered a son, Django, with his wife Jan in 1995, acted as a sperm donor for Melissa Etheridge and her lover Julie Cypher to have two children, and formed a vibrant musical relationship with his long-lost son James, 40.
Relaxing in his LA home after a day’s shopping, Crosby, 63, is a big, burly, balding man with a grey walrus moustache. The years of hard living are ingrained on his face, but his eyes still twinkle, as well they might. Reunited with long-time friend Graham Nash on his latest pairing Crosby & Nash, he is in fine musical fettle.
“I have millions of regrets,” he admits. “Christ wouldn’t you? My biggest regret is being stoned out of my gourd on hard drugs because I could have made lots more music. If I had devoted the time I spent on cocaine and heroin to playing music I’d have made a lot more. But you can’t do anything about the past, except learn from it.”
So how come he spent so long squandering his talent? “Who knows, man?” he shrugs. “I guess I was stupid. You do it and you get away from it, if you’re lucky. I was.”
In his biography, Chronicles Volume 1, Bob Dylan describes Crosby as someone who could start an argument even if he was the only person in the room.
“That’s true,” he smiles. “I liked what he said. You can tell that he likes me. Dylan is very truthful and it was a compliment for him to include me at all.”
Despite all the damage he’s inflicted on his body, the clarity and strength of Crosby’s voice is still truly astonishing. How has he managed to preserve that?
“I have no idea,” he admits. “After what I have done to myself I shouldn’t even be here, let alone have a voice. All I can tell you is I’m incredibly grateful for it because singing is something I really love. Even in the worst times, music has been the flame that stopped me getting lost in the dark. It was thanks to music and my wife Jan – we’ve been together for 27 years – that I’ve survived.”
A Mancunian now resident in California, Graham Nash, also 63, has been Crosby’s most enduring accomplice
“Making this album was probably the easiest, fastest, most friction-less experience we’ve ever had together,” Crosby says. “We were only budgeted to do 10 tracks, but ended up cutting 20. It was easy as pie. Graham is my best friend in the world and we both want to learn about everything.
“Our families love each other – we’re definitely not your average music biz people. We don’t give a s*** about celebrity. Anyone who comes to see our European tour will be thrilled. We have a great young band and it is going to be astounding.”
Crosby is angrily dismissive of young performers such as Britney Spears. “She can’t sing, write or play an instrument to save her life,” he growls. “I think what happens is that, when they get a little older, kids realise that stuff has nothing to do with music. That’s why we get so many young people at our shows.”
Crosby’s fighting spirit is still a wonder to behold. Does he feel obligated to the person who donated his liver, not to waste the opportunity they have given you?
“Of course, it was a huge gift of life and I want to be worthy of it,” he says. “I’ve gotten 10 years of life out of it. Without it I’d never have seen my son Django born. But you can’t cure Hep C, so in another 10 years it’ll probably kill me.”
It’s a grim prospect, but Crosby is cackling as he speaks. After all he’s been through, a little laughter in the face of death is understandable.
Crosby & Nash play Glasgow Royal Concert Hall on Wednesday.
