10 September 2018
Newsdesk
On October 26th, David Crosby will release Here If You Listen, his fourth solo album in five years. It’s an unexpected run that proves his musical passion to be as powerful as ever. With Here If You Listen, the 77-year-old singer/songwriter continues the singular creative streak, delivering one of his most joyfully adventurous albums yet in a career that spans six auspicious decades. On Here If You Listen, Crosby again joins forces with the three musicians who helped lend his 2016 album Lighthouse - and the tour in support of the album - its captivating grace: Michael League of Snarky Puppy, Michelle Willis and Becca Stevens (Crosby’s “Lighthouse” band). But in a purposeful departure from Lighthouse, Here If You Listen emerges as a highly collaborative effort, with all four artists trading off lead vocals and bringing their distinct songwriting to the mix.
“If leaving a group like Crosby, Stills & Nash was like jumping off a cliff, then finding the Lighthouse Band was like growing wings halfway down,” says Crosby. “These three people are so startlingly talented, I literally couldn’t resist making this album with them.”
Produced by League and co-produced by Stevens, Willis and Crosby, Here If You Listen bears a stripped-down, acoustically driven sound centred on the band’s stunning harmonies. But despite its sonic simplicity and minimal percussion, the album unfolds in infinitely shifting textures that find each musician tapping into their own carefully honed palette and idiosyncratic sensibilities. “The songs are taking on all of our collective influences, which is kind of crazy if you think about it—hearing the influence of Björk on a song with David Crosby lyrics, for example,” League notes.
With most of the album written collaboratively in League’s Brooklyn studio Atlantic Sound, Here If You Listen matches its intricate arrangements with lyrics both raw in emotion and rich in insight. Attuned to the chaos of the present day but visionary in perspective, the songs question, challenge, and demand self-reflection just as often as they illuminate and soothe.
From song to song, Here If You Listen radiates the palpable sense of joy and wonder each musician brought to the album’s creation. “I love that it genuinely sounds like what happened: four people from different backgrounds with mutual respect and commitment to their work, coming together to create something they found meaningful,” says Willis.
Now into his career’s 6th decade, David remains as engaged and energized as ever, with no end in sight. Here If You Listen follows 2017’s acclaimed Sky Trails and in September he will be playing two rare UK shows, in Manchester and London, where he will be joined on stage by the Sky Trails band. Having performed in the UK with Stills & Nash in 2015, these shows will be the first time for many years that the two-time Rock and Roll Hall of Famer will play solo headline shows.
Speaking about the upcoming tour David says "I've always loved playing in the UK since the first time back in the ‘60s with the Byrds and I can't wait to come over in September with the Sky Trails Band." David’s show promises to be a fantastic amalgamation of past hits with The Byrds, Crosby Stills & Nash and CPR, as well as tracks from his recent purple patch of solo albums that garnered rave reviews from Rolling Stone, Q, Mojo, Uncut and NPR Music.
