Credit: Henry DiltzWith his latest solo album, Lighthouse, set for an October 21 release, David Crosby kicks off a new North American tour tonight in South Orange, New Jersey. In a new interview with The New York Times, the notoriously cantankerous singer/songwriter says he’s developed a more positive attitude about life, which he maintains is reflected in the songs on the new record.
“I spent a lot of my life angry, and I don’t want to, because the less life you have left, the more you treasure it, and the more you are trying to use every minute to accomplish something,” the 75-year-old folk-rock legend explains. “That attitude, which comes with age, is all through this record. There’s a choice to be made with every minute that you spend. And I’m spending mine having fun, man, and creating.”
Lighthouse is a collection of acoustic, sparsely arranged tunes on which Crosby collaborated with Michael League, leader of the Grammy-winning modern-jazz collective Snarky Puppy. The album features a number of tunes that look at current social and political issues, including a track called “Look in Their Eyes” that focuses on the Syrian refugee crisis.
Crosby notes, “As songwriters, part of our job is to make you boogie; part of our job is to take you on a little emotional voyage; but part of our job is to be the town crier and say: Look, these are human beings. They’re just like you.”
You can read the full interview at NYTimes.com.
Fans can expect to hear Crosby performing some tunes from Lighthouse during his trek, on which he will be accompanied just by his son James Raymond, who was the touring keyboardist with Crosby, Stills & Nash.
Here are all of Crosby’s tour dates:
8/18 — South Orange, NJ, South Orange PAC
8/20 — Poughkeepsie, NY, Bardavon Opera House
8/21 — Bethlehem, PA, Musikfest Café
8/23 — Alexandria, VA, The Birchmere
8/24 — State College, PA, The State Theatre
8/26 — Greensburg, PA, The Palace Theatre
8/28 — Evansville, IN, The Victory Theatre
8/29 — Kansas City, MO, Uptown Theater
8/31 — Chicago, IL, Thalia Hall
9/2 — Kitchener, ON, Canada, Centre in the Square, Main Hall
9/4 — Toronto, ON, Canada, Danforth Music Hall
9/6 — Thunder Bay, ON, Canada, Community Auditorium
9/8 — Winnipeg, MB, Canada, Burton Cumming Theatre
9/9 — Regina, SK, Canada, Casino Regina Show Lounge
9/11 — Calgary, AB, Canada, Jack Singer Concert Hall
9/12 — Edmonton, AB, Canada, Winspear Centre for Music
9/14 — Kelowna, BC, Canada, Kelowna Theatre
9/15 — Vancouver, BC, Canada, Vogue Theatre
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