“Very rare”: David Crosby names the finest harmony singer in the world
From the beginning of his career, David Crosby was always a connoisseur of how vocal harmonies worked. After all, The Byrds had started out taking the songs of Bob Dylan and pairing them with the kind of Beatles harmonies that drove audiences crazy, so that meant every single person in the group had to sing incredibly well if they were going to get anywhere. But even though Crosby emphasised vocal prowess above everything else much of the time, he knew when he was dealing with a true professional whenever he sang with them.
Then again, Crosby, Stills, and Nash were always going to be one of the biggest vocal acts in the world before they even had a record contract. Since every member of the band came fresh off the heels of another legendary rock act, it was almost expected for them to have the kind of chemistry that knocked people out right off the bat.
But that’s never guaranteed, either. Anyone can put their favourite artists in a room and hope that the magic happens, but no rule says that the most proficient musicians in the world will great music. It’s all about chemistry, and within the first few lines of their first song, Crosby knew there was some magic there that hadn’t been heard before. All that was left was having the right songs to fit it all around.
Although the band did have a signature sound whenever they locked in on the harmonies, though, it was always clear when one person was taking the lead more than others. Crosby’s tunes were far more musically advanced in many respects, and Stephen Stills was the kind of musician who could play virtually anything he got his hands on, but if they were going to have a smash, it was probably going to come from Graham Nash.
“He’s been as good a friend to me as a human being could be.”
david crosby
Outside of his work with The Hollies, Nash had a knack for coming up with the perfect melody on every one of their records. Tunes like ‘Marrakesh Express’ may have been a bit too cerebral for most Hollies fans to get their heads around, but there’s no way that anyone could compete with something like ‘Teach Your Children’ or the domestic bliss heard in ‘Our House’.
For Crosby, though, Nash’s ability to accompany him far outweighed anything else he had to offer, saying, “[He’s] one of the best singer-songwriters there is, and arguably the finest harmony singer in the world. He’s an honourable man, which is rare, very rare. He’s been as good a friend to me as a human being could be. I love him. And rightly so.”
Despite the band’s fairly turbulent relationship throughout their time together, it makes sense why Nash and Crosby stayed so close together for so many years. Even when working with people like David Gilmour, hearing both of them harmonise with each other makes a lot more sense than having Nash add the odd vocal.
Because like all great musicians, Nash and Crosby always knew that they were better together than apart most of the time. Each of them could create fantastic music on their own, but their harmonies have had the same effect on people that John Lennon and Paul McCartney did when they broke off into two-part harmony. It might not have always been pleasant, but you can hear the genuine love and humanity behind every line.
