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David Crosby returns with new album For Free, hear first single River Rise

The album will arrive on 23 July via BMG.

David Crosby

Image: Scott Dudelson / Getty

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David Crosby has announced a new record entitled For Free, and shared the record’s first single River Rise, which you can hear below.

Joining Crosby on the record will be Michael McDonald, Donald Fagen, Sarah Jarosz, and his son James Raymond, who also served as the album’s producer. For Free also features a number of the musicians who joined Crosby on 2017’s Sky Trails, including saxophonist Steve Tavaglione and drummer Steve DiStanislao.

The album’s title comes from Crosby’s cover of Joni Mitchell’s For Free. In a release, Crosby said of the track, which sees him joined by Jarosz: “Joni’s the greatest living singer-songwriter, and For Free is one of her simplest It’s one of my favourite songs because I love what it says about the spirit of music and what compels you to play.”

The collaboration with Donald Fagen of Steely Dan was also meaningful for Crosby as he explained: “Steely Dan’s my favourite band and I’ve admired Donald a long time, so that was a thrill for us.”

Even visually as well as musically, the album is steeped in collaborations: the cover art has been painted by singer-songwriter Joan Baez.

The album opener, River Rise, features Michael McDonald of the Doobie Brothers, who also co-wrote the song with Raymond. Raymond said of the track: “River Rise came from wanting to write something very evocative of California, but almost with a country-song perspective – something that speaks to the empowerment of the everyman or everywoman.”

You can hear River Rise below.

For Free arrives on 23 July via BMG.

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