I have to admit that there is a current glut of new material in my collection to review! When these situations happen, it's always a good idea to cover some remastered selection that you may be interested in discovering. In 1999, Columbia did a very nice job in cleaning up the classic recordings of The Byrds. I always felt that The Byrds and The Doors were two of the better American bands to answer the call of the mid 60's British invasion. Roger McGuinns distinctive Rickenbacher sound influenced many current acts including Tom Petty, The Pretenders, and R.E.M.. "Mr. Tambourine Man" was The Byrd's first album release in 1965, and there is something very pure and real in listening to recordings from this era.
What I've discovered with this cd is the amount of great songs that the late Gene Clark wrote for the band. My favorite of this particular bunch would probably be "Here Without You". The tight arrangement that accompanies the soulful vocals from Clark proves that he was a very solid songwriter. Besides the work of Clark, Bob Dylan was a popular songwriter that The Byrds liked to cover. The title tune, "Mr. Tambourine Man", is arguably the most recognized song that the band ever released (in the liner notes, McGuinn refers to the song as a "spiritual testimony"). From the very first note of Roger McGuinn's jangly guitar, this song firmly belongs to The Byrds. You quickly get to hear the major folk influence on this band by listening to one of the other Dylan selections; "All I Really Want to Do". The style of this song is still very much distinctive Dylan: "I don't want to meet your kin, make you spin or do you in, or select you or disect you or inspect you or reject you". Bands like The Byrds helped to deliver Dylan's music to a much wider audience during this time. What's truly lost with much of today's music is the amazing "sound" that was produced by many of these 60's bands. There was a true art to recording during this time because all they really had to use were the 4-track studios. More care was done to mesh the sounds of guitars, bass, vocals, and drums to achieve a special balance or spacial relationship. This is best noted on "I'll Feel a Whole Lot Better". This is another Gene Clark song that seems to take plenty of influence from the harmonies of The Beach Boys more than anything. The vocals of Clark, McGuinn, and guitarist David Crosby makes you appreciate the vocal chemistry of this band, just as much as the layered and echoed guitars. I don't find this sound dated at all. It just makes me long for the days when more musical acts were trying to pioneer rock music into something more than a basic 2 and 1/2 minute love song.
In regards to bonus tracks, liner notes, and sound quality, this collection scores high marks. The majority of the bonus tracks here are alternate versions of some of the album tracks and b-sides, the strongest being "She Has a Way". Each song is profiled in the liner notes and gives you an even further appreciation for this music. The McGuinn led Byrds of the late 60's and early 70's later became a blend of folk rock and country music, but this period of the band remains my favorite. A cross between psycedelic rock and folk, The Byrds truly stood out as one of the more interesting bands of the mid-60's.
