A No-Paper Handshake Deal
CSN, who at the time “belonged” to Columbia, proposed a no-paper handshake deal to Geffen, which he initially rejected, but ultimately agreed to. Clive Davis was impressed by Geffen’s shark-like talent and released David Crosby without hesitation. He was actually pleased to rid of “the Bad Byrd.”
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In exchange, Davis got The Buffalo Springfield’s Richie Furay and his new band, Poco. A tougher sell was getting Jerry Wexler of Atlantic Records to release Stephen Stills. Geffen went to see him, which led to a meeting that resulted in a decade of bad blood. You see, Jerry was a well-read jazz fan who despised agents. So, after yelling at Geffen, he physically threw him out of his office.