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Melissa Etheridge Identifies David Crosby As Her Children's Father

Talk about your rock and roll progeny.

After years of secrecy, lesbian rocker Melissa Etheridge has revealed that the biological father of her two children is none other than music veteran David Crosby.

Etheridge announced the news during an exclusive interview with "Rolling Stone" magazine, saying that Crosby helped father both of her two children, a three-year-old daughter, Bailey, and one-year-old son, Beckett, via artificial insemination.

Etheridge's long-time partner, film director Julie Cypher, physically carried and gave birth to the two children, although the couple had until now refused to identify who the children's biological father was.

"We just got so tired of this secret," Etheridge told the magazine, "it wears you out. And keeping this big secret goes against how [Julie and I] are choosing to live our lives -- very openly."

For the issue of "Rolling Stone," due to arrive on newsstands this week, Etheridge, Cypher, Bailey, and

Beckett joined David Crosby and his wife, Jan, for an extended-family cover portrait.

As part of the interview, Etheridge and Cypher say that it was Jan who suggested David as a possible father when the idea was first discussed during a joint holiday during the mid-'90s.

Crosby has managed to overcome various health problems, including liver disease, related to his rock and roll lifestyle in the past few years, and a doctor cleared the use of Crosby's genetic material because he had cleaned up.

Crosby is best known for his work in the '60s jangle-pop outfit, The Byrds, as well as a member of the folk trio Crosby, Stills, and Nash. He has been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice, in recognition of both groups.

Etheridge's newest record, "Breakdown," has been nominated for a 2000 Grammy Award in the category of Best Rock Album.

-- David Basham

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