One of the most fun things about having a shop in NYC was the occasional celebrity walk in. I wrote a piece about this in 2012, and here is an excerpt that I revised slightly.
Singer-songwriter Marc Cohn became not only a regular, but a
friend for a short time. I'd go to his house and we'd hang, listen to CDs and talk about
New Orleans. He even liked some of my mixes so much, he asked me to put
one together so he could take it on the road and play it as his walk-on
music before each show.
One afternoon he walks in with a friend. Of all the people that had come through--Ray Davies, Ian McKellen, Peter Buck, Noddy Holder--- it was David Crosby that really blew my mind. I don't really
know why. There are so many factors. I was and still am a huge fan. He's
legendary, for so many reasons. He's one of the great voices of all
time. And it's a wonder he is still with us.
Marc Cohn introduced us, and this icon nodded and grunted a "How ya
doin," turned and walked away. He picked up several different CDs and
had nasty commentary for each.
"I should have been on this session."
"I never got paid for this."
"Why do people like this record?"
This went on for 30 minutes. So much for "fun." I
couldn't accept that Croz was in my store, right in front of me.
It was surreal. That damn moustache! Monterey Pop! The Byrds!
He finally came back to the counter to check out, and hit me with, "Why the hell don't you have my new CD in stock?"
What was I going to say? I couldn't stock everything, and in actuality, I
think I did have a copy. It was in the 99 cent bin. (Even legends end up in the 99
cent bin occasionally.)
I cowered and simply said, "We DO stock it. I'm sure it sold out."
My big mistake was the following:
"It's such a pleasure to meet you. What do I charge such a legend?"
He slammed the CDs down hard on the counter and barked, "JUST CHARGE ME WHAT THEY COST SO I CAN GET THE FUCK OUT OF HERE!"
I did just that as quickly as possible. Marc Cohn looked at me and mouthed, "I'm sorry," and they both left.
I am sure everyone that knew him has a similar David Crosby story. Probably a few with stories a lot worse. But Jeez, what a voice. Take a look at this clip. Crosby nails those hard middle harmonies with his hand in his pocket, like "Yeah, so? I got this."
Fucking Crosby!
12 comments:
This one hurt. I have interacted with him the past few years on Twitter. He has been amazingly prolific, with a bunch of great albums released in the last 10 years. RIP
It's been a bad year for rock & roll--and it's only January.
Bill
oh, for fuck's sake...his music has been a part of my life for over 50 years.
I remember reading your original post about this encounter, and I've thought about it countless times since. Hopefully he is truly resting at peace.
Great story... even our heroes can be dicks sometimes.
Randy
Dear Rock Stars:
Please stop dying.
Thank you.
A friend worked for Bill Graham for a very long time and frequently dealt with musicians. Said there were 2 peope who stood out just because they were complete asses. Jazz trumpeter Freddie Hubbard and Crosby.
That angelic voice remains. RIP
As soon as I heard of his death, the first thing I did was check Burning Wood. What Steve Simels said. PLEASE. STOP. DYING.
Ha! This anecdote captures what an unnecessarily obnoxious bastard Crosby was in real life. Explains so much. Ahh well, the music is great.
It's obvious that Crosby was someone impossible to deal with... Even he himself didn't deny that. But then in the last years he has shown a capacity to work generously with younger musicians. That should count for something.
Just catching up on your blog after four difficult months away - work, Christmas, ill family, PhD thesis completion - thanks for posting about David Crosby, Jeff Beck and Lisa Marie among others. Love the Croz clip and the anecdote - a flawed and often obstreperous man. Keep up the good work Sal, all the best from Blighty
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