The Story Of David Crosby, Grace Slick, and a Gun

Back in the 1960s, when Grace Slick was young and free, she had a thing for firearms. As the European leg of the Jefferson Airplane tour ended, she acquired a shotgun and discharged it out her window at the trees in Golden Gate Park for fun. Grace was arrested once in 1994 for brandishing an empty pistol at a police officer, claiming that the officer had entered her property without a warrant.

Grace Slick and CSNY’s David Crosby were good pals back in the day. The name of the album Crosby and Slick recorded together in 1973, titled “The Chrome Nun,” referenced Crosby’s affectionate nickname for the vocalist. Also included on the CD is their joint effort, The Ballad of the Chrome Nun. Even years later, Crosby hailed Grace Slick “the queen of rock and a ceiling-shattering feminist counterculture icon,” even though she had withdrawn from the music industry long before.

So, when Crosby died, several famous people spoke well of Crosby, including Grace Slick, who credits him with saving her life by enrolling her in a rehabilitation program. Though Crosby and Slick were close friends for many years, no reasonable person would expect him to keep his calm if Slick put a pistol at his head. However, it turns out he really commended her for that very action.

A 2021 tweet recently resurfaced with Slick saying that she once pointed a gun at Crosby. In her tweet it reads: “In an interview, Grace shared how her home had been broken into: ‘I went upstairs… with the gun aimed at the door. And David Crosby walks in… But Crosby was real cool. He said: ‘Good girl.’ I said: ‘I damn near blew your head off! Whatta you mean, good girl?’”

David Crosby, who saw her tweet, replied: “She was scared but brave.”

So, David Crosby assured Grace Slick that she was a wonderful girl, despite the fact that she appeared frightened, since he could read bravery in her eyes.