Although they only attained the huge success of the Beatles, , and the Beach Boys for a short time in the mid-'60s, time has judged the Byrds to be nearly as influential as those groups in the long run. They were not solely responsible for devising folk-rock, but they were certainly more responsible than any other single act ( included) for melding the innovations and energy of the British Invasion with the best lyrical and musical elements of contemporary folk music. The jangling, 12-string guitar sound of leader 's Rickenbacker was permanently absorbed into the vocabulary of rock.
They also played a vital role in pioneering psychedelic rock and country-rock, the unifying element being their angelic harmonies and restless eclecticism.
Often described in their early days as a hybrid of and the Beatles, the Byrds in turn influenced and the Beatles almost as much as and had influenced the Byrds. The Byrds' innovations have echoed nearly as strongly through subsequent generations, in the work of , , and innumerable alternative bands of the post-punk era that feature those jangling guitars and dense harmonies.
Although the Byrds had perfected their blend of folk and rock when their debut single, "Mr. Tambourine Man," topped the charts in mid-1965, it was something of a miracle that the group had managed to coalesce in the first place. Not a single member of the original quintet had extensive experience on electric instruments.
Jim McGuinn (he'd change his first name to a few years later), , and were all young veterans of both commercial folk-pop troupes and the acoustic coffeehouse scene. They were inspired by the success of the Beatles to mix folk and rock; had already been playing songs acoustically in Los Angeles folk clubs when approached him to form an act, according to subsequent recollections, in the style. soon joined to make them a trio, and they made a primitive demo as the Jet Set that was nonetheless bursting with promise.
With the help of session musicians, they released a single on Elektra as the Beefeaters that, while a flop, showed them getting quite close to the folk-rock sound that would electrify the pop scene in a few months.
The Beefeaters, soon renamed the Byrds, were fleshed out to a quintet with the addition of drummer and bluegrass mandolinist , who was enlisted to play electric bass, although he had never played the instrument before. The band was so lacking in equipment in their early stages that played on cardboard boxes during their first rehearsals, but they determined to master their instruments and become a full-fledged rock band (many demos from this period would later surface for official release).
They managed to procure a demo of a new song, "Mr. Tambourine Man"; by eliminating some verses and adding instantly memorable 12-string guitar leads and harmonies, they came up with the first big folk-rock smash (though the Beau Brummels and others had begun exploring similar territory as well). For the "Mr.
Tambourine Man" single, the band's vocals and 's inimitable Rickenbacker were backed by session musicians, although the band themselves (contrary to some widely circulated rumors) performed on their subsequent recordings.
The first long-haired American group to compete with the British Invasion bands visually as well as musically, the Byrds were soon anointed as the American counterpart to the Beatles by the press, legions of fans, and himself. Their 1965 debut LP, Mr.
Tambourine Man, was a fabulous album that mixed stellar interpretations of and tunes with strong, more romantic and pop-based originals, usually written by in the band's early days. A few months later, their version of 's "Turn! Turn!
Turn!" became another number-one hit and instant classic, featuring more great chiming guitar lines and ethereal, interweaving harmonies. While their second LP ( ) wasn't as strong as their debut full-length, the band continued to move forward at a dizzying pace.
In early 1966, the "Eight Miles High" single heralded the birth of psychedelia, with its drug-like (intentionally or otherwise) lyrical imagery, rumbling bass line, and a frenzied guitar solo that took its inspiration from and Indian music.
The Byrds suffered a major loss right after "Eight Miles High" with the departure of , their primary songwriter and, along with , chief lead vocalist. The reason for his resignation, ironically, was fear of flying, although other pressures were at work as well.
"Eight Miles High," amazingly, would be their last Top 20 single; many radio stations banned the record for its alleged drug references, halting its progress at number 14. This ended the Byrds' brief period as commercial challengers to the Beatles, but they regrouped impressively in the face of the setbacks. Continuing as a quartet, , , and would assume a much larger (actually, the entire) chunk of the songwriting responsibilities.
The third album, , contained more groundbreaking folk-rock and psychedelia on tracks like "Fifth Dimension," "I See You," and "John Riley," although it (like several of their classic early albums) mixed sheer brilliance with tracks that were oddly half-baked or carelessly executed.
, (1967) which included the small hits "So You Want to Be a Rock 'n' Roll Star" and "My Back Pages" (another cover), was another high point, and in particular taking their writing to a new level. In 1967, would assert a much more prominent role in the band, singing and writing some of his best material.
He wasn't getting along so well with and , though, and was jettisoned from the Byrds partway into the recording of . , drafted back into the band as a replacement, left after only a few weeks, and by the end of 1967, was also gone. Remarkably, in the midst of this chaos (not to mention diminishing record sales), they continued to sound as good as ever on .
This was another effort that mixed electronic experimentation and folk-rock mastery with aplomb, with hints of a growing interest in country music.
As and rebuilt the group one more time in early 1968, mused upon the exciting possibility of a double album that would play as nothing less than a history of contemporary music, evolving from traditional folk and country to jazz and electronic music. Toward this end, he hired , he has since said, to play keyboards.
Under ' influence, however, the Byrds were soon going full blast into country music, with taking a large share of the guitar and vocal chores. In 1968, , , , and drummer Kevin Kelly recorded Sweetheart of the Rodeo, which was probably the first album to be widely labeled as country-rock.
Opinions as to the merits of remain sharply divided among Byrds fans.
Some see it as a natural continuation of the group's innovations; other bewail the loss of the band's trademark crystalline guitar jangle, and the short-circuited potential of 's most ambitious experiments. However one feels, there's no doubt that it marked the end, or at least a drastic revamping, of the "classic" Byrds sound of the 1965-1968 period (bookended by the and albums). , the main catalyst for the metamorphosis, left the band after about six months, partially in objection to a 1968 Byrds tour of South Africa.
It couldn't have helped, though, that replaced several of ' lead vocals on with his own at the last minute, ostensibly due to contractual obstacles that prevented from singing on Columbia releases. (Some tracks with ' lead vocals snuck on anyway, and a few others surfaced in the 1990s on the Byrds box set).
left the Byrds by the end of 1968 to form the Flying Burrito Brothers with .
Although kept the Byrds going for about another five years with other musicians (most notably former country picker ), essentially the Byrds name was a front for and backing band. Opinions, again, remain sharply divided about the merits of latter-day Byrds albums. was (and is) such an idiosyncratic and pleasurable talent that fans and critics are inclined to give him some slack; no one else plays the 12-string as well, he's a fine arranger, and his -meets- vocals are immediately distinctive.
Yet aside from some good echoes of vintage Byrds like "Chestnut Mare," "Jesus Is Just Alright," and "Drug Store Truck Drivin' Man," nothing from the post-1968 Byrds albums resonates with nearly the same effervescent quality and authority of their classic 1965-1968 period. This is partly because is an erratic (though occasionally fine) songwriter; it's also because the Byrds at their peak were very much a unit of diverse and considerable talents, not just a front for their leader's ideas.
The Byrds' diminishing importance must have stung doubly in light of the rising profiles of several Byrds alumni as the '60s turned into the '70s.
was a superstar with ; , , and (for a while) were taking country-rock further with the Flying Burrito Brothers; even , though he'd dropped out of sight commercially, was recording some respected country-rock albums on his own. The original quintet actually got back together for a one-off reunion album in 1973; though it made the Top 20, it was the first, and one of the most flagrant, examples of the futility of a great band reuniting in an attempt to recapture the lightning one last time.
The original Byrds continued to pursue solo careers and outside projects throughout the 1970s and 1980s.
, , and had some success at the end of the 1970s with an adult contemporary variation on the Byrds' sound; in the 1980s, battled drug problems while enjoyed mainstream country success with the Desert Rose Band. The Byrds' legend was tarnished by squabbles over which members of the original lineup had the rights to use the Byrds name; for quite a while, drummer even toured with a "Byrds" that featured no other original members. The Byrds were inducted into the Rock Roll Hall of Fame in 1991; died several months later, and died in 1993, permanently scotching prospects of a reunion involving the original quintet.
~ Richie Unterberger, All Music Guide The Byrds (formed in , , in 1964) were an band.
influential bands of the 1960s. Throughout their career, they helped forge such subgenres as , , , , , and – on their 1968 classic 1973.
members have launched successful solo careers after leaving the group.
The Byrds were founded in Los Angeles, California, in 1964 by singers and guitarists Jim McGuinn (born James McGuinn III on ) (he changed his name to in 1967, (born Harold Eugene Clark on , , in Tipton, , in ; died , ) joined soon after.
.
He moved to L.A. in late 1963 and began gigging at clubs such as the Troubadour but, after hearing for the first time, saw what he later called "a gap in the market", and resolved to take "Lennon and Dylan and mix them together.
"
Gene Clark, who'd been in the , briefly joined McGuinn in a duo playing at The Folk Den before Crosby, who'd performed with Les Baxter's Balladeers, persuaded them to let him join. The aviation buffs). As such they cut a couple of numbers, "You Movin'" and "The Only Girl.
" They then hired Michael Clarke (who had the right look for the part) to join on drums. Former bluegrass mandolin player Hillman, who'd played with the Scotsville Squirrel Barkers, the Golden State Boys, and the Hillmen, completed the quintet.
B/W "Don't Be Long", under the name "The Beefeaters".
Years later, these World Pacific demos were released as the Preflyte album and even made the lower reaches of the album charts. There have since been two further archive albums culled from the World Pacific sessions, In The Beginning (1988) and The Preflyte Sessions (2001).
In November 1964, the band signed to and a few days later renamed " ", a Bob Dylan song given a full electric treatment, and for its extremely bright tone) was immediately influential, and has remained so to the present day.
The group's complex harmony work became the other major characteristic of their sound (McGuinn and Clark alternating between singing and harmony, with Crosby providing a high harmony based around fourths and fifths). Released in June after a long delay, this debut single reached #1 on the US charts and, a month later, repeated the feat in the UK. At the same time, their debut album was released, also topping the charts.
The album mixed reworkings of folk songs (most notably Pete Seeger's "The Bells Of Rhymney") with several more Dylan covers, as well as a number of the band's own compositions, mainly written by Gene Clark.
Since the band had not yet completely gelled in January, McGuinn had been the only Byrd to play on "Mr. Tambourine Man" and its B-side, "I Knew I'd Want You".
Instead, producer hired " ", a collection of top session men including , and , who provided the backing track over which McGuinn added lead guitar and lead vocal, while Crosby and Clark sang harmony. By the time the album was recorded, Melcher was satisfied that the band were up to scratch, and they were to play on all the remaining tracks.
The group's follow-up single was another interpretation of a Dylan song, "All I Really Want To Do".
Unfortunately for them, adaptation of a traditional melody, with some lyrics taken directly from the Biblical book of , and the song became the group's second US #1 single, also headlining their second album (also Like their debut, the album was characterised by harmony vocal and McGuinn's distinctive guitar sound, highlighted by the bright-sounding production of Terry Melcher. This time they featured more of their own compositions and now had, in Gene Clark, a A Whole Lot Better" and "Set You Free This Time", are widely regarded as amongst the best of the genre.
By the end of 1965, the band had exhausted the folk rock sound, and began to experiment.
On , , they recorded " ", generally considered the first fully-blown psychedelic recording (although many contemporaneous groups, when it was released as a single (US #14, UK #24) has been attributed to the resulting airplay bans on some radio-stations , the record was often referred to as " " - in fact, it was the B-side "Why?" which drew on Indian influences.
Gene Clark left the band in March 1966, partly due to a fear of flying which made it impossible to keep up with the band's itinerary.
He was signed by Columbia as a solo artist and went on to forge a critically acclaimed but commercially unsuccessful body of work.
The Byrds' third album, (5D), released in July 1966, tracks such as "I See You" and Crosby's "What's Happening?!
?!" respectively.
The campaign in US radio to clamp down on "drug again broke new ground musically, featuring a brass part played by the their fourth album, . The LP was more varied than its predecessor, and has been widely praised for tracks such as Crosby's sinister ballad "Everybody's Been Burned", a cover of fully-formed as a songwriter ("Have You Seen Her Face", "Time Between", "Thoughts And Words", "The Girl With No Name"). However, many critics feel that the album suffers in parts from (possibly drug-induced) self-indulgence, especially on tracks such as "CTA-102", a McGuinn novelty song about alien life, and Crosby's lengthy recitation "Mind Gardens".
By 1967 there was increasing tension between the band members, McGuinn and Hillman becoming irritated by what they saw as Crosby's overbearing egotism, and his attempts to jockey for control of the band. In June, when the Byrds performed at the , Crosby sang the majority of lead vocals, and to the intense annoyance of the other members gave lengthy speeches between every song, on subjects such as the JFK assassination and the benefits of giving to "every man, woman and child in the country". He then added insult to his first A-side, "Lady Friend", released in July (US #82).
In October, during the recording of the fifth Byrds album, Crosby other group members fired Crosby, who subsequently received a considerable cash settlement, and soon after began working with successful . Gene Clark briefly rejoined The Byrds to take his place, but left three weeks later, after again refusing to board an aircraft while on tour. Michael Clarke also quit during these sessions, partly due to disputes with Crosby during the recording of "Dolphin's Smile".
Studio drummer Jim Gordon was drafted in to complete his parts. The bluegrass guitarist Clarence White contributed significantly on several tracks, later becoming a permanent band member in 1968.
The resulting album, , was released in January 1968, and despite its troubled genesis, contains some of the band's gentlest, most ethereal music.
The record mixed folk rock, country, psychedelia and jazz, often within a single song, and attempted to deal with many contemporary themes such as peace, ecology, freedom, drug use, alienation and mankind's place in the Universe. Over the years, The Notorious Byrd Brothers has gained in reputation, and is often considered the group's best work, while the contentious incidents surrounding its making have largely been forgotten.
Now reduced to a duo, The Byrds quickly recruited Hillman's cousin as drummer, and then, in a fateful decision for their future career-direction, hired , originally to play keyboards (he later moved to guitar).
With the aid of Hillman, Parsons persuaded McGuinn to change direction again, and take up a style with which they'd previously only dabbled - country music.
ever to do so, and immediately started recording their next album in a wholly Country style with Parsons choosing and singing many of the songs. However, on , Parsons quit the band just before they flew to South Africa because he refused to play to segregated audiences.
At the same time, was released, most of Parsons' vocals being replaced by either McGuinn or Hillman due to legal problems with Parsons' previous record company. The album was commercially unsuccessful on its release (US # 77), but contains the yearning Parsons song which has become a standard, "Hickory Wind", as well as a couple of Dylan tunes from his then-unreleased collection, and more as the first country-rock album, but is certainly the first entirely country-influenced album by an established rock band.
Kelley also quit at this time and McGuinn was left on his own.
He hired guitarist , who had been an uncredited session player on both the and albums. White join on bass. The resulting quartet recorded the album and released it in February 1969 to poor US sales and moderate UK success.
In October 1969 came the album. "Jesus Is Just Alright" from that album was issued as a single which, in a similar arrangement, became a hit for , four years later. The group also recorded a version of 's "Mae Jean Goes to Hollywood" during the recording sessions, but it remained unreleased for some twenty years.
The title track was composed by McGuinn (expanding on a verse line written by Bob Dylan) as the music album sold well off the back of the movie's huge success.
In 1970, The Byrds released the double album which charted well in the UK and acceptably in the US. (Untitled) featured one disc of live recordings and one of studio performances such as "Chestnut Mare", "All The Things" and "Lover of the Bayou".
It also included a 16 minute live version of . Concerts from this time period were incindiary, and are well worth seeking out. The band was playing amazing music, and Clarence White's guitar playing is arguably some of the best of his life.
1971 yielded the album which was a commercial and critical disappointment, 1971 also saw the release of the album. The title track of that album, sung by Clarence White (with the rest of the group harmonizing), would became a prophetic epitaph for both White and Gram Parsons. (In July 1973, White was killed by a motor vehicle while he was loading equipment after a gig in Palmsdale, California.
Soon afterwards, Gram Parsons died, as a result of an overdose of morphine and alcohol, in the Joshua Tree Motel, California.)
McGuinn toured with the Byrds through 1972, with LA session man John Guerin replacing Gene Parsons, before terminating the band. The final recording sessions involving all four of the latter-day Columbia Byrds were for Skip Battin's 1972 album, Skip; Guerin was on drums.
McGuinn appeared only on one track, though, "Captain Video" - evidently Battin's tribute to his erstwhile employer.
opted to call themselves "Gene Clark, Chris Hillman, David Crosby, Roger McGuinn, Michael Clarke" (after the naming style of recorded under the band's name, some fans do not consider Byrds to actually be part of The Byrds' official discography.
Subsequently, there were disputes over which members owned the rights to the "Byrds" name in the late 1980s.
Clarke and Clark toured under The Byrds' name at that time, and from 1989 through most of 1993 Clarke toured occasionally as "The Byrds Featuring Michael Clarke" with former Byrd Skip Battin along with newcomers Terry Jones Rogers and Jerry Sorn. To solidify their claim to the name and prevent any non-original members from using the name, McGuinn, Hillman, and Crosby staged a series of Byrds' reunion Mr. Tambourine Man.
These shows led to McGuinn, Hillman, and Crosby recording four new studio tracks for the boxed set in 1990. During that year, a legal action against Clarke and his booking agent failed, the judge ruling that Clarke's group had toured successfully. Eventually, a settlement was reached, preventing any entity not including McGuinn, Hillman and Crosby from using the name "Byrds".
The band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1991. Gene Clark died later that year and, two years later, Michael Clarke succumbed to liver disease brought on by alcoholism.
Though both Hillman and Crosby have expressed an interest in working with McGuinn again on future Byrds projects, McGuinn is currently committed to his folk music career.
The first four Byrds studio albums were remastered and reissued by in 1996. These releases were successful enough to prompt the reissuing of the rest of the Byrds' studio catalogue, with four more albums seeing re-release in 1997 and the final three (including a much-expanded version of Untitled) appearing in 2000. In the wake of the , the weak-selling Byrdmaniax and Farther Along were deleted from the Legacy catalogue.
They remain in print as Japanese imports in "mini-LP"-style sleeves.
listeners for a Byrds outtake or reunion recording, has covered So You Want To Be A Rock'N'Roll Star and I'll Feel A
S. Senate committee that The Byrds never received the royalties they were promised for their biggest hits, Mr. Tambourine Man and Turn!
Turn! Turn!
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