The David Crosby song Jackson Browne forced him to write
There wasn’t anyone in the 1970s who made more mellow music than David Crosby. While Crosby, Stills, and Nash, as well as The Byrds, had their moments of brevity whenever they went into the studio, Crosby had sculpted himself into the wise sage of classic rock by the end of his life—happy to write songs that conjured images of the lush countryside rather than anything too caustic. Although Crosby may have been striking gold during the 1970s, one writing session with Jackson Browne almost turned violent.
By the time Browne had arrived on the scene, Crosby was already a legend of the rock world. Having been one of the cornerstone writers in The Byrds, Crosby was known as one of the founders of the California sound drifting across the airwaves, clad in his wide-brimmed hat, singing songs like ‘So You Want To Be a Rock and Roll Star’.
When Crosby left The Byrds, another legendary career awaited him when teaming up with Stephen Stills and Graham Nash. Across albums like Deja Vu, Crosby would contribute some of the greatest songs of his career, including the now-famous ‘Almost Cut My Hair’ alongside fellow legend Neil Young.
Even though Crosby was willing to let inspiration come to him whenever the time suited, Browne had a different approach. Being a disciplined writer, Browne was known to pour over every line he wrote, often playing songs for hours until he was finally comfortable with the arrangement.
Once Crosby had come up with a song tentatively titled ‘Delta’, though, Browne insisted that Crosby finish the song as soon as possible. Rather than wait a few days and return to his idea, Browne eventually rushed Crosby into a rehearsal space and sat with him, demanding that the song be finished on the spot.
Recalling the time, Crosby said that Browne came close to violence when he resisted writing the song. Although the CSNY singer admitted that he would have much rather smoked some weed and thought it over, he admitted that he may have had to nurse some broken bones if he hadn’t acted quickly.
As Crosby remembered, Browne was close to breaking his arm, saying, “Jackson wouldn’t let me up or let me at the pipe. He just stood there, looking over my shoulder, holding me at the bench, forcing me, slowly and painfully, to give birth to this song. He kept me into it, threatened to break my arm if I got up”.
After years of waning success, ‘Delta’ would become one of the high watermarks on the band’s 1982 album Daylight Again, standing among fellow classics like ‘Southern Cross’. Browne would also see a resurgence around the same time, gaining a national hit with the song ‘Somebody’s Baby’ from the soundtrack to the movie Fast Times at Ridgemont High.
While Crosby was annoyed at first, he admitted to owing Browne a debt of gratitude, explaining, “It was an act of love and great caring; he showed concern for me, for my work, for seeing my work done. ‘Delta’ was the last complete song I wrote for years”.
