Rock veterans David Crosby and Joe Walsh recently announced headlining a benefit concert held at Kent State University, in Kent, Ohio. This will commemorate the 50th anniversary at the very site of the Kent State shootings on May 4, 1970. The concert will be held on the Kent State campus May 2 at the university’s Memorial Athletic and Convocation Center. As previously reported in Rolling Stone, “The concert will honor May 4th, 1970, when 28 National Guard soldiers fired rounds at students protesting the extension of the Vietnam War, brutally killing four and wounding nine.”

Crosby and Walsh are seasoned musicians/singers/songwriters that careers have spanned well over 50 years, successfully cementing their musical mark being a part of legendary acts as well as their respective solo projects. Crosby is a founding member of the Los Angeles-based rock band The Byrds as well as among the famed folk collective Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young. According to the aforementioned Rolling Stone article, “Neil Young wrote the protest anthem ‘Ohio’ for Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young after seeing photos of the tragedy in Life. Crosby sings the ‘How many more?’ call-and-response at the end of the track.”

Walsh has shared the stage with a varied group of accomplished acts such as James Gang, Barnstorm, Eagles as well as his stints with the Party Boys and Ringo Starr and His All-Starr Band. The aforementioned Rolling Stone article furthers that, “Walsh, an English major and music minor, was present at Kent State during the shootings. ‘After that, I didn’t look at college the same,’ he told the San Diego Tribune. ‘Being at the shootings really affected me profoundly. I decided that maybe I don’t need a degree that bad.'”

Crosby has attempted to reunite the remaining members of The Bryds, however his attempts proved to be unsuccessful. As previously reported here on mxdwn, rumblings of a possible Byrds reunion surfaced during comments made in last year’s Cameron Crowe helmed documentary, David Crosby: Remember My Name, where “…Crosby stated, ‘I still have friends, but all of the guys I made music with won’t even talk to me. One of them hating my guts could be an accident. But [Roger] McGuinn, [Graham] Nash, Neil [Young] and Stephen [Stills] all really dislike me, strongly. I don’t know quite how to undo it.”

After making this comment, Roger McGuinn took to twitter to let Crosby know that his statement about McGuinn disliking him is false. In a tweet McGuinn wrote, ‘Hey @thedavidcrosby you’re saying I won’t talk to you and hate you. That’s just not true!’ Crosby responded to his tweet by saying, ‘Thanks Roger ….must have got you mixed up with those other guys …so ..want to do a couple of Byrd’s dates ? I’ll just sing harmony …no talking ….?’”

The Rolling Stone article concludes with the proceeds for the benefit concert are going towards the May 4 Legacy Scholarships, “…which will give four scholarships to students majoring in the Peace and Conflict Studies program. Each scholarship is named after the four students who were killed: Allison Krause, Jeffrey Miller, Sandra Scheuer, and William Schroeder.” Project Manager Rod Flauhaus stressed the severity of the caliber talent both Crosby and Walsh are and their influence on raising awareness through their respective activism. In the aforementioned Rolling Stone article Flauhaus is quoted in saying:

“Artists like Joe Walsh and David Crosby provided the soundtrack for both those that went to fight in the Vietnam War and for those who were against it. Their music was the common thread that helped to raise national awareness, inspire activism, and helped us to heal as a nation.”

To inquire for further information about the benefit concert and to purchase tickets, visit here.

Photo Credit: Mauricio Alvarado