David Crosby’s 10 Best Songs: Billboard’s 2023 List

Billboard’s January 2023 editorial selection follows David Crosby across The Byrds, Crosby, Stills & Nash, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young and his solo work. It is a critic’s list rather than a chart ranking, but its ten choices form a concise route through several distinct stages of his songwriting.

The ten songs in Billboard’s selection

1. “Delta” (1982)
2. “Déjà Vu” (1970)
3. “Eight Miles High” / “Why” (1966)
4. “Everybody’s Been Burned” (1967)
5. “Guinnevere” (1969)
6. “Laughing” (1971)
7. “Long Time Gone” (1969)
8. “Shadow Captain” (1977)
9. “Triad” (1967)
10. “Wooden Ships” (1969)

From The Byrds to CSN and CSNY

The Byrds period is represented by “Eight Miles High” and “Why,” “Everybody’s Been Burned” and “Triad.” The list then moves into the harmonies and more open arrangements associated with CSN and CSNY through songs including “Guinnevere,” “Long Time Gone,” “Déjà Vu” and “Wooden Ships.”

“Shadow Captain” and “Delta” bring the selection into Crosby’s later group work. “Laughing,” from his 1971 solo album If I Could Only Remember My Name, is the clearest solo-album entry and connects his songwriting with the wider circle of West Coast musicians who appeared on that record.

How to use the list

The titles are best treated as a starting playlist, not a complete discography. Crosby’s official catalog continues through later solo albums including Croz, Lighthouse and Sky Trails. His official biography also identifies him as a founding member of The Byrds and CSN and notes his separate inductions into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame with both groups.

Sources

• Billboard: David Crosby’s ten best songs
• David Crosby: official biography
• David Crosby: official solo discography
• Crosby, Stills & Nash: official site