For Free (album)

For Free represents the culmination of Crosby's late-career creative revival that began in the mid-2010s. The album was produced by keyboardist James Raymond, Crosby's son, who served as his key musical collaborator since the late 1990s in the group CPR. The recording took place between August and December 2020 across multiple studios, adapting to remote production constraints during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The title track is a cover of a 1970 song written by Crosby's long-time friend Joni Mitchell for her album Ladies of the Canyon, recorded as a duet with Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter Sarah Jarosz.

The album incorporates notable guest appearances. The opening track "River Rise" features guest vocals by Michael McDonald. "Rodriguez for a Night" features lyrics written specifically for Crosby by Steely Dan's Donald Fagen^[1]. The album cover art features a portrait painting of Crosby created by fellow folk singer and friend Joan Baez.

More information Aggregate scores, Source ...

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	84/100[2]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[3]
American Songwriter	[4]
The Arts Desk	[5]
Classic Rock	[6]
Mojo	[7]
NME	[8]
PopMatters	8/10[9]
Record Collector	[10]
Rolling Stone	[11]
Uncut	[12]

Close

For Free received universal acclaim from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 84 based on six reviews^[13]. Reviewers praised Crosby's vocal strength, contemplative lyrics dealing with aging and mortality, and the album's sophisticated West Coast rock and jazz-influenced production^[14][15].

• David Crosby – vocals
• James Raymond – acoustic piano (1–5, 7, 8, 10), synthesizers (1–6, 8–10), synth guitar solo (1, 4), synth bass (1–3, 6, 9, 10), synth acoustic guitar (3, 8), drum programming (3), Fender Rhodes (4, 9), percussion (4), horn arrangements (4), Wurlitzer electric piano (6), backing vocals (8)
• Shawn Tubbs – guitars (1), acoustic guitar (6, 8), electric guitar (6, 8)
• Steve Postell – acoustic guitar (2), backing vocals (2), guitars (5)
• Greg Leisz – pedal steel guitar (2)
• Dean Parks – guitars (4), acoustic guitar (9), electric guitar (9)
• Andrew Ford – bass guitar (4)
• Elijah Thomson – bass guitar (8)
• Gary Novak – drums (1, 4–6, 9)
• Steve DiStanislao – drums (2, 10)
• Abe Laboriel Jr. – drums (8)
• Steve Tavaglione – tenor saxophone (4), EWI (10)
• Walt Fowler – trumpet (4), flugelhorn (4)
• Michael McDonald – backing vocals (1)
• Gracie Raymond – backing vocals (3)
• Becca Stevens – backing vocals (3)
• Michelle Willis – backing vocals (3, 6, 8)
• Sarah Jarosz – vocals (7)
• Brian Wilson – count-in vocal (10)

• James Raymond – producer, arrangements, recording, mixing
• Dan Garcia – recording, mixing
• David Crosby – mixing
• Nate Hassely – assistant engineer
• Joel Jacks – assistant engineer
• Jason Mariani – assistant engineer
• Kaushlesh "Garry" Purohit – assistant engineer
• Shawn Tubbs – guitar recording (1, 6, 8)
• Dean Parks – guitar recording (4, 9)
• Bernie Grundman – mastering
• Louise Hendy – artwork design
• Joan Baez – sleeve artwork, original painting
• Mike Chadwick – management

Studios

• Recorded at The Bamboom Room (Altadena, California); Hz Werks (Van Nuys, California); Joel Jacks' Studio (Santa Ynez, California); Groove Masters (Santa Monica, California); Stubbs Recording (Spring Hill, Tennessee); Tomorrow's Sound Today (Memphis, Tennessee).
• Mixed at The Bamboom Room; Sunset Sound (Hollywood, California); Carbonite Sound (Ojai, California).
• Mastered at Bernie Grundman Mastering (Hollywood, California).