View Full Version : the byrds
jim simpson
Oct-28-2004, 6:37pm
I love the Byrds and my favorite album is The Notorious Byrd Brothers. What is your favorite?
Jim
SternART
Oct-28-2004, 7:10pm
My favorites are Sweetheart of The Rodeo and Untitled. Clarence's Nashville West on Untitled is a great cut.
I saw them live in that era several times.
fangsdaddy
Oct-28-2004, 7:44pm
here's another vote for untitled (& for the side long version of 8 miles high).
Rick Schmidlin
Oct-28-2004, 8:08pm
Sweetheart of The Rodeo and the Byrds Greatest Hits.
Rick
Jon Hall
Oct-28-2004, 8:29pm
Turn, Turn, Turn and Ballad of Easy Rider
evanreilly
Oct-28-2004, 8:42pm
'Sweetheart" and 'Ballad of Easy Rider'!!
evanreilly
Oct-28-2004, 10:59pm
Clarence's short break on the end of 'Wasn't Born To Follow"!!!
mandocrucian
Oct-28-2004, 11:23pm
Notorious Byrd Brothers
That newly released Live at The Fillmore, Feb 69 is prety hot.
Plamen Ivanov
Oct-29-2004, 4:24am
"Turn, Turn, Turn", "My back pages" and the others too...
Untitled has that great tune "Truck Stop Girl", Clarence had the drawl down!
kudzugypsy
Oct-29-2004, 5:59am
no one voting for Dr Byrd & Mr Hyde?http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/rock.gif?
to me that is the REAL deal.....commercial FLOP, but what a GREAT LP. that one showcased clarence better than any other studio recording imo.
sweetheart is fantastic too, but i got a little worn out when all the .alt country bands started on the whole gram parsons worship thing, completely ignoring clarence and the rest of the SH players, along with the other great pioneers of the genre.
if SH "was" grams project
then Dr. Byrds "was" clarences
Darryl Wolfe
Oct-29-2004, 6:22am
oh heck..don't let "f5loar" find this thread, you'll never shut him up
Dave Caulkins
Oct-29-2004, 10:29am
Hmmm...
"Farther Along"
'nuff said,
Dave
duuuude
Oct-29-2004, 10:56am
8 Miles High http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/mandosmiley.gif
Tennessee Jed
Oct-31-2004, 5:10pm
Mr. Tambourine Man and Sweetheart of the Rodeo
jim simpson
Nov-01-2004, 6:47am
It's great to see all the Byrd watchers. I noticed that many or most of their albums have been released as remasters w/bonus tracks (usually instrumentals w/MOOG or alt takes). I also noticed how quickly I have to put in another CD as most ran around 30 minutes. I kind of wish they would re-release them as two-fers. I bought some Beach Boys two-fers a while back, takes less space on the shelf!
Rick Schmidlin
Nov-01-2004, 10:15am
As much as lengh I still prefer the orignal's on these albums on CD. On a footnote do you know why CD are at the length they are?It was when they designed the first CD they wanted it long enough to fit Beethoven 9th on one CD.In regard to the Byrds I love the Byrds and Clarence also with or without them but Sweethearts at it's orig. length is fine.
Rick http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/mandosmiley.gif http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/coffee.gif
Spruce
Nov-01-2004, 12:05pm
About 12 years ago I attended a party at the Anaheim NAMM show on the occasion of the release of the Roger McGuinn Special Edition Model Rickenbacker 12-string guitar...
It was basically all Rickenbacker employees who were in a very celebratory mood, and McGuinn gave a solo concert that was one of the coolest things I've ever seen.
You Byrds fans would have loved it...
All the hits, and some very obscure ones at that. #Highlights were a (solo!) "8 Miles High", "All I Really Want To Do", "Feel A Whole Lot Better", etc. etc. etc.
The highlight for me was a tune that I've always loved and requested that night-- "It Won't Be Wrong" from the "Turn Turn Turn" LP.
McGuinn just cranked that Ricky-12, and sounded like a full band.
Cool evening that I wish I had a recording of...
Darryl Wolfe
Nov-01-2004, 3:16pm
Spruce
Yea..F5loar has one of those special Rickenbakcers too..I guess he just hasn't found this thread yet
f5loar
Nov-01-2004, 4:57pm
I don't frequent this grouping at the Cafe. But yes Byrds were the best when Clarence was riding high with them so anything he was on from SOTR to Farther Along are my favorites. Also anything live that is out there from the CW era Byrds. CW had this thing of not hitting the same lick twice each show. They were one of the first rock groups to bring Bluegrass music to a young audience pre-Deliverence as CW would do a few numbers each show which had the kids foot-stomping. Gene Parsons would play banjo and CW would switch from guitar to mandolin. He even would strap his vintage F2 over his shoulder and pick a guitar break and then swing around the mandolin for a mandolin break. The saying goes if CW had gone with Monroe in '67 instead of the Byrds and studio work we would be hearing a different Monroe sound. He was asked and declined and brother Roland got the job on guitar with Monroe.
Oh, man the Byrds and the various offshoots have pretty much been my life as far as favorite music.
If I had to pick only a few besides some of the collections and the box set:
Notorious
Fillmore
Untitled
Mr Tamborine Man
Heck, I'd even take Farther Along, and yes I do like Dr Byrds -- some great Clarence White there.
The Reunion Album really isn't bad and it includes a good bit of mandolin.
Saw them several times and have collected Bootlegs for years -- especially Gene Clark.
Just Outstanding stuff and I love the Bonus tracks on the newer CDs.
If you don't know there is a great site: http://users.skynet.be/byrdsflyght/
The site was down for awhile, but it's back up -- great pictures, info, newly available stuff, etc.
Good thread. Thanks.
Saw Mcquinn several months ago -- he played a 7 string Martin guitar the whole show. It sounded really great.
The paired sting is the G string -- he said this allows him to get the drone, but be able to play more blues stuff with bends. It sounded darn good and Martin will supposedly be putting the model out before long.
grsnovi
Nov-03-2004, 12:15pm
Of course, Clarence played on a couple of tracks on Younger than Yesterday.
I think I have a rather good collection of Byrd cd's. The remastered ones with additional tracks are ok, but I find that listening to an alternate mix or alternate take within minutes of the original track to be "odd" - I'd rather have had a box similar to the Beatles Anthology.
I tend to like the original five line-up as the Byrds vocals without Gene and David aren't the Byrds (to me anyway).
jim simpson
Nov-04-2004, 6:18pm
Couldn't resist revisiting this thread again. I saw Chris Hillman and Herb Pederson this past season at Windgap Bluegrass festival. First off they sounded great as a duo. I think the audience collectively got a chill during Chris' take on Turn, Turn, Turn. I felt 8 miles high!
f5loar
Nov-11-2004, 12:03am
The fact that all 5 original members of the Byrds continued to write and perform songs is a testiment to their greatness. Clarke and Clark continued to perform Byrd songs until they died and McGuinn,Hillman and Crosby will do at least one Byrd song every show they do. Their music is so timeless. McGuinn maybe the only artist that has 4 signature models with his name. A Rick, 2 Martins and most recent an Epiphone.
Christopher Howard-Williams
Nov-11-2004, 8:11am
Another one for Sweetheart and Untitled. Clarence still really does it for me. Gene Parsons was in France about ten years ago. It was a privilege to meet him and Meridian Green and see them play.
acousticphd
Nov-15-2004, 6:09pm
Definitely from when they started stretching a little more. You can hear this beginning on the "Younger than Yesterday" album, which is my "early" favorite, especially the Chris Hillman song "Time Between". Does anyone know whether Clarence White guested on that song? It sounds like his playing with the string bending/unbending work. Later, I also like Notorious - which I didn't buy and hear until only a few years ago, and Sweetheart, but my interest dwindles for the albums after that.
Vincent
Nov-16-2004, 10:42pm
F5loar- you wrote that Monroe asked Clarence to be a BGBoy. Where did you hear or read this?
J. Mark Lane
Nov-17-2004, 11:58pm
I had heard that too about Clarence and Monroe. I don't see any reference to Clarence in Smith's biography (checking the index). I wonder where I heard that.
As for Clark and Clarke et al playing throughout their lives... I saw Gene a few months before he died. All I can say is, it was a sad thing to see him in that state. His death was a tremendous loss. And a waste.
My vote: Sweetheart.
Mark
mandocrucian
Jan-07-2005, 1:58pm
I burned a few Byrds LPs (Notorious Byrd Bros, Ballad of Easy Rider) onto CD the other day. "Draft Morning" on NBB has a fair amount of crosspicked mandolin (Hillman) on it, which blends so well with McGuinn's 12-string sound, that you might overlook it as such; now and then there's a little bit of tremolo that is the giveaway as to identity. Can't be sure, but "Old John Robertson" may also have some, though if it does, the instrument has been amped up.
However, as far as the ear is concerned, my outlook is: "If it might be a mandolin, it may as well have been one, for all sonic purposes."
NH
One of my favorite albums on a pretty obscure label called Excitable Recordworks is an album called Doin' Alright for Old People, live, recorded at the Boarding House, SF in '78. Especially good rendition of Chestnut Mare and Knockin' on Heaven's Door.
fangsdaddy
Jan-07-2005, 8:55pm
i may be the only person on the board w/this opinion, but i'd still rather hear the husker du cover of "8 miles high" to the byrds original. it was fairly faithful, however a lot more amped up.
jim simpson
Jan-07-2005, 10:54pm
i may be the only person on the board w/this opinion, but i'd still rather hear the husker du cover of "8 miles high" to the byrds original. it was fairly faithful, however a lot more amped up.
fangsdaddy,
I haven't heard that one but I do like Byrd covers. One of my favorites is Leo Kottke singing and playing 8 Miles High (on Mudlark) and Tom Petty doing So You Wan't To Be a Rock n'Roll Star.
Hans,
Was that release kind of a bootleg label release?
Jim
Could be, Jim, I found it in a used record store for 2 bucks. Best part about it is guitars, bass, mandolin and NO drums! The harmonies are rough but exquisite.
fangsdaddy
Jan-08-2005, 9:03am
jim
here's the link to the huskers version:
http://www.amazon.com/exec....s=music (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B000000M6I/qid=1105196154/sr=1-7/ref=sr_1_7/102-7984700-0475314?v=glance&s=music)
(i have the vinyl 45 from '84) their version of the mary tyler moore theme on this disc is also quite appealing.
if you do the p2p's you should be able to find "8 miles high" quite easily. i encourage you to check it out.
sam
ps: jim, as you like byrd's covers: do you know about the patti smith group doing "rock & roll star"? it's on their disc called "wave" that came out in '79.
Jim Cariello
Jan-08-2005, 12:05pm
Gene Parsons Kindling albumn includes Clarence playing mandolin on 4 cuts, my fav being Drunkards Dream with Ralph Stanley vocals.
Hans CD is a boot, but a very good one that was broadcast live on FM radio. Hillman plays mandolin (not bass), Crosby appears for a few songs with Clark and McGuinn. It's one of the better boots and well worth looking for -- you'll see it on ebay occassionally. No drums, totally acoustic except for the 12 string Ric which is not amped very loud.
Jon Hall
Jan-09-2005, 12:58pm
I keep buying reissues of the Byrds and rediscovering great songs. I've got to learn "Deportee" (Plane Wreck At Los Gatos) from the "EasyRider" and "Bells of Rhymney" from "Mr Tambourine Man".