David Crosby - Thousand Roads

David Crosby, the reluctant solo artist, made his first solo album, If I Could Only Remember My Name, with an all-star guest list, then waited 18 years to make another. For his third solo album, Thousand Roads, Crosby increased the participation of his guests and attempted to redefine himself as an artist. Where previously, whoever was playing or singing on the track, the song was a Crosby composition, on Thousand Roads Crosby acted primarily as an interpretive singer, penning only one of the 10 songs and contributing to two others. He also brought in eight people to help produce the album, as if this were a Whitney Houston project on which every song was a potential single. The result certainly was a craftsman-like set of songs written by pop professionals -- Phil Collins, Jimmy Webb, Marc Cohn, John Hiatt, Paul Brady, Stephen Bishop -- and produced by the cream of pop producers -- Don Was, Glyn Johns, Phil Ramone. The failings were, first, that Crosby's individuality was lost and, second, that, as the list suggests, his choices were more calculated than inspired. The problem with David Crosby as a solo artist was not how to make him sound more conventional, it was how to make his unconventionality work. Thousand Roads solved the wrong problem, and though Crosby's collaboration with Phil Collins, "Hero," rode halfway up the singles charts (and high into the easy listening lists) largely on Collins's fame and the lyric's winking references to Crosby's jail time, the album was Crosby's least successful in the record stores. ~ William Ruhlmann, All Music Guide

Name Credits Andy Fairweather Low Guitar (Electric) Armen Garabedian Concert Master, Violin Benmont Tench Keyboards Berj Garabedian Violin Bernie Leadon Guitar (Electric), Guitar (Acoustic) Bob Salcedo Assistant Engineer Bonnie Hayes Keyboards Craig Doerge Keyboards, Arranger Dan Bosworth Assistant Engineer Daniel Smith Cello David Campbell String Arrangements David Crosby Producer, Vocals David Young Bass (Acoustic) Dean Parks Producer, Guitar, Flute Dimitrie Leivici Violin Don Was Producer Doug Sax Mastering Ed Goodreau Engineer Ethan Johns Percussion, Drums, Guitar (Electric) Evan Wilson Viola Glyn Johns Producer, Engineer Graham Nash Art Direction, Harmonica, Vocal Harmony Guido Harari Photography Jackson Browne Vocal Harmony Jan Crosby Executive Producer Jeff Pevar Guitar Jeff Porcaro Drums Jeffrey "C.J." Vanston Keyboards Jim Keltner Drums Jimmy Webb Piano John Leventhal Producer, Guitar Kipp Lennon Vocal Harmony Larry Corbett Cello Leland Sklar Bass Luis Conte Percussion Mac Holbert Cover Design Marc Cohn Piano, Producer Maria Newman Viola Michael Landau Guitar (Electric) Mike Kloster Assistant Engineer Nick Davies Producer, Engineer Paul "Wix" Wickens Keyboards, Accordion Paul Dieter Engineer Paulinho Da Costa Percussion Phil Collins Producer, Keyboards, Vocals, Drums, Percussion Phil Ramone Producer Pino Palladino Bass Rik Pekkonen Engineer Rob Eaton Engineer Russ Kunkel Drums Ruth Johnson Violin Scott Haupert Viola Simon Metcalfe Assistant Engineer Stephen Barncard Producer, Engineer Stephen Bishop Vocal Harmony Steve Onuska Assistant Engineer