Credit: Far Out / Raph_PH
Tue 15 September 2026 22:00, UK
Does anybody have a greater history of collaboration than David Crosby?
One of the first major turning points of his career was when he played with The Byrds. Within this band, by changing the time signatures of one of Bob Dylan’s most popular songs, Crosby essentially managed to invent folk rock. It was this ingenuity that gave rise to the popularity of this newfound genre.
Of course, while the changing of time signatures and rhythm sections might have been Crosby’s brainchild, it wouldn’t have come to fruition without the excellent group of musicians he was playing with. Playing alongside him were the likes of Gene Clark, Chris Hillman, Michael Clarke and, of course, Roger McGuinn. Just having this list of musicians in your back catalogue would be enough for a lot of artists, but it was only the start for Crosby.
One of his next biggest projects came in the form of Crosby, Stills & Nash. The three of them met at Joni Mitchell’s house, and they all started singing together and realised that something magical had just happened. Their singular voices all combined to make something united, and they knew that it was a sound they needed to pursue as much as possible.
Graham Nash recalled the moment they all sang together and knew that he was going to have to leave the UK in order to start a band with these two. “I was born and raised on the outskirts of Manchester, and I heard a magical sound when me and David and Stephen put our three voices together to try and make one voice,” he said, “And when I heard that, I had to go back to England, leave The Hollies and instead go back to that magical sound that we had created.”
Later in his solo career, Crosby continued to work with a range of excellent musicians, continuously lending his creative know-how and talent out in order to make excellent music. He worked with the likes of Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, Jackson Browne, James Taylor, and many more.
How interesting, with this stellar list of names attached to his career, that one of his favourite collaborations came with Marcus Eaton, a singer that Crosby was put in touch with thanks to a mutual friend. Norm Waitt and David Crosby originally connected through working on the documentary David Crosby: Remember My Name, and it was Waitt who put the folk singer in touch with Eaton. Eaton was very much at the beginning of his career, but despite being pretty green in the music industry, Crosby knew he had stumbled upon an excellent artist that had a bright future.
Further reading: From The Vault
“He’s a very, very creative guy, Marcus,” said Crosby, “And he turns out to be a really nice guy. He doesn’t play or sing or write like anybody else I’ve heard. And he’s very, very talented. And he did some very, very beautiful playing and singing on my record (Croz), and I’m going to sing on his record.”
Crosby held Eaton in such high regard that when he performed on Eaton’s album, he felt as though he was a burden more than anything. “He doesn’t need anybody else to play but I’m going to sing some stuff on his record in return,” said Crosby, “But he’s wound up being a good friend, a close friend. He’s a very talented cat.”
