David Crosby, Neil Young, Stephen Stills, and Graham Nash were part of maybe the best supergroup of all time, CSNY, but those days are long gone. Now, it seems the quartet is set on in-fighting, specifically its C, Y, and N members. The most recent feud comes via Twitter and from Crosby, who criticized Young’s recent comments about Donald Trump.
Yesterday, after previously having his lawyer file a cease and desist order against Trump for using “Rockin’ in the Free World” at campaign events, Young apparently relented, saying, effectively, that once music is put into the world, it’s right to be used by anyone — though, we’re guessing he’s not including artists or filmmakers in that grouping.
He told Reuters, “He actually got a license to use it,” referring to the ASCAP and BMI music licenses purchased to allow songs to be played at public events. “I mean, he said he did and I believe him. So I got nothing against him. You know, once the music goes out, everybody can use it for anything.” (Both BMI and ASCAP licenses apparently have laws to allow artists to make these C&D demands, though, so Young’s initial actions weren’t necessarily in the wrong, license be damned.)
Crosby bit at Young’s turnaround with the following tweet:
There seems to be some deep-running bad blood among the former members of CSNY, though the band officially broke up only recently. According to Nash, the band was in shambles long before that, probably due to Crosby’s cantankerousness. Aside from Crosby saying pretty gross things about Young’s girlfriend, Daryl Hannah, he seems to have left quite the mark on Nash. Earlier this year, he clarified comments he had previously made. He told Billboard, “Right now, I don’t want anything to do with [David] Crosby at all. It’s just that simple,” going so far as to say “I’m done. Fuck you. David has ripped the heart out of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young.”
Meanwhile, Stephen Stills seems to be doing OK, and is even putting out new music. What is that saying, something about “Stills’ water running deep,” maybe?