David Crosby, Of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Passes Away

David Crosby, of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young and The Byrds fame, has passed away at 81 years old.

In a statement issued to Variety, his wife wrote, "It is with great sadness after a long illness, that our beloved David (Croz) Crosby has passed away."

She added, "He was lovingly surrounded by his wife and soulmate Jan and son Django. Although he is no longer here with us, his humanity and kind soul will continue to guide and inspire us. His legacy will continue to live on through his legendary music. Peace, love, and harmony to all who knew David and those he touched. We will miss him dearly. At this time, we respectfully and kindly ask for privacy as we grieve and try to deal with our profound loss. Thank you for the love and prayers."

The news arrives as a shock to fans, as earlier this week, Crosby was tweeting and shared the announcement that he would be playing a gig at the Lobero Theatre in California.

The US music legend joined The Byrds in 1964. Four years later, he formed Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young with Stephen Stills (Buffalo Springfield), Graham Nash (The Hollies) and Neil Young. Their eponymously-titled debut album won the group the Best New Artist Grammy Award in 1969. David Crosby was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame twice, once with The Byrds and again with Crosby, Stills & Nash.

Crosby released numerous solo albums, with the most recent, For Free, in July 2021. His 1971 first solo album, If I Could Only Remember My Name, featured Nash, Young, Joni Mitchell, and members of the popular groups Santana, Jefferson Airplane, and The Grateful Dead.

In 2019, filmmaker AJ Eaton directed and Cameron Crowe produced the documentary, David Crosby: Remember My Name. The film was received well by critics, with Peter Travers at Rolling Stone calling it "one of the best rock docs of all time".

To date, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young have sold around 20 million records. Take into account their time as a trio (Crosby, Stills & Nash) and their solo output, and the record sales hit 70 million.

Brian Wilson has said that he's "heartbroken" over his friend's passing, with Stephen Thomas Erlewine, the Senior Pop Editor for TiVo writing "It's difficult to imagine what the music of the 1960s and 1970s would've sounded like without the Byrds or CSNY." Read more tributes below.

I don’t know what to say other than I’m heartbroken to hear about David Crosby. David was an unbelievable talent - such a great singer and songwriter. And a wonderful person. I just am at a loss for words. Love & Mercy to David’s family and friends. Love, Brian pic.twitter.com/Hjht7LeGiv

— Brian Wilson (@BrianWilsonLive) January 19, 2023

Farewell to David Crosby, one of the monumental artists of the rock era. It's difficult to imagine what the music of the 1960s and 1970s would've sounded like without the Byrds or CSNY. https://t.co/UUS2BvQasg

— Stephen Thomas Erlewine (@sterlewine) January 19, 2023

A few years ago I interviewed Crosby over the phone. He called promptly ("Lindsay? David Crosby") but said with real gravitas, "Here's the situation: I really want to talk to you, but I'm at a hotel and my breakfast just arrived." I respected this immensely. RIP, honest king.

— Lindsay Zoladz (@lindsayzoladz) January 19, 2023

For as long as I can remember I’ve loved & listened to David Crosby in all his incarnations. So lucky to have seen him play as CSN & CN. His music’s a constant at home, a constant in my life. Best tache in the biz. We’ve lost a truly exceptional talent. Let your freak flag fly. https://t.co/YLpz5ASawc pic.twitter.com/i708rDocic

— Tim Downie (@TimDownie1) January 19, 2023

One of David Crosby's final tweets from just yesterday pic.twitter.com/SiySrg00Lr

— CONSEQUENCE (@consequence) January 19, 2023