My David Crosby story is about inspiration, some wonderful people and a recording project directly related to a 59-ft. schooner that Croz took ownership of 1968; the Mayan. I encourage you to visit the link at the end of my retelling to read, in detail, a quick story of the project history. It was 2012. I was invited to a session spearheaded by The Bugle Boy founder, Lane Gosnay. She had written a lyric about the Mayan, inspired after seeing it in Santa Barbara Harbor (1995). She asked the incomparable Elizabeth Wills to compose a song and lend her incredible voice to the lyric, as well. I came in as a guitarist, a simple colorist, to add my thing, whatever that is. We had one rehearsal to find the vibe, tweak the arrangement and in to Congress House studio we all went with award winning producer, Mark Hallman at the desk. The final result was a lovely dedication; ultimately just a simple gift to David Crosby and the Mayan - a ship that he said had inspired many of his best songs.
I never met the man, but I've witnessed his incredible songwriting and musicianship my entire life. It was very cool for those of us involved to know that he listened to our recording; the busy, legendary artist that he was. Working on the project, "I Am The Mayan", was a simple tribute to what, at one time in his life, seems to have been a muse for some of the songs we all know and love.
David Crosby wrote the following reply to Lane (to whom I am sincerely grateful for this memory): "Lane, thank you for the beautiful song …….wish me luck on finding a good home for her …..I have loved Mayan and sailed all over the world …..lived on her ….written many of my best songs on her…..I very much do not want to sell her …..I love her ……but she is in near perfect shape and I can’t afford to keep her that way …….neither can I bear to let her go downhill on my watch." …..croz
Please find the complete "I AM THE MAYAN" story and watch the videos here https://thebugleboy.org/the-mayan-project/