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The Byrds

Not to be confused with The Birds (band).

The Byrds
A photograph of five young men with moptop haircuts, looking windswept and standing in front of a passenger airplane. The five are all dressed in casual jackets and jeans, and three of them are resting their hands on guitar cases.
The Byrds in 1965
From left to right: David Crosby, Gene Clark, Michael Clarke, Chris Hillman, and Jim McGuinn[nb 1]
Background information
OriginLos Angeles, California, U.S.
Genres
Years active
  • 1964–1973
  • 1989–1991
  • 2000
Labels
Spinoffs
Spinoff of
  • The Jet Set
  • the Beefeaters
Past membersRoger McGuinn
Gene Clark
David Crosby
Michael Clarke
Chris Hillman
Kevin Kelley
Gram Parsons
Clarence White
Gene Parsons
John York
Skip Battin
Websitethebyrds.com

The Byrds (/bɜːrdz/) were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1964.[1] The band underwent multiple lineup changes throughout its existence, with frontman Roger McGuinn (known as Jim McGuinn until mid-1967) remaining the sole consistent member.[2] Although their time as one of the most popular groups in the world only lasted for a short period in the mid-1960s, the Byrds are considered by critics to be among the most influential rock acts of their era.[1][3][4] Their signature blend of clear harmony singing and McGuinn's jangly 12-string Rickenbacker guitar was "absorbed into the vocabulary of rock" and has continued to be influential.[1][5]

Initially, the Byrds pioneered the musical genre of folk rock as a popular format in 1965, by melding the influence of the Beatles and other British Invasion bands with contemporary and traditional folk music on their first and second albums and the hit singles "Mr. Tambourine Man" and "Turn! Turn! Turn!"[6][7][8][9] As the 1960s progressed, the band was influential in originating psychedelic rock and raga rock, with their song "Eight Miles High" and the albums Fifth Dimension (1966), Younger Than Yesterday (1967), and The Notorious Byrd Brothers (1968).[1][10][11] The band also played a pioneering role in the development of country rock,[1] with the 1968 album Sweetheart of the Rodeo representing their fullest immersion into the genre.[12]

The original five-piece lineup of the band consisted of McGuinn (lead guitar, vocals), Gene Clark (tambourine, vocals), David Crosby (rhythm guitar, vocals), Chris Hillman (bass guitar, vocals), and Michael Clarke (drums).[13] This version of the band was relatively short-lived and by early 1966 Clark had left due to problems associated with anxiety and his increasing isolation within the group.[14] The Byrds continued as a quartet until late 1967, when Crosby and Clarke also departed.[15] McGuinn and Hillman decided to recruit new members, including country rock pioneer Gram Parsons, but by late 1968, Hillman and Parsons had also exited the band.[1] McGuinn elected to rebuild the band's membership; between 1968 and 1973, he helmed a new incarnation of the Byrds that featured guitarist Clarence White, among others.[1] McGuinn disbanded that version of the band in early 1973 to make way for a reunion of the original quintet.[16] The Byrds' final album was released in March 1973, with the reunited group disbanding later that year.[17]

Several former members of the Byrds went on to successful careers of their own, either as solo artists or as members of such groups as Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, the Flying Burrito Brothers, McGuinn, Clark & Hillman, and the Desert Rose Band.[1] In 1991, the Byrds were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, an occasion that saw the five original members performing together for the last time.[18][19] Gene Clark died of a heart attack later that year, while Michael Clarke died of liver failure in 1993.[20][21] Crosby died in 2023.[22] McGuinn and Hillman remain active.


Cite error: There are <ref group=nb> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=nb}} template (see the help page).

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Unterberger, Richie. "Biography of The Byrds". AllMusic. Archived from the original on July 12, 2018. Retrieved May 25, 2010.
  2. ^ Ankeny, Jason. "Biography of Roger McGuinn". Allmusic. Archived from the original on January 20, 2023. Retrieved May 25, 2010.
  3. ^ Einarson, John. (2005). Mr. Tambourine Man: The Life and Legacy of the Byrds' Gene Clark. Backbeat Books. pp. 72–75. ISBN 0-87930-793-5.
  4. ^ Menck, Ric. (2007). The Notorious Byrd Brothers (33⅓ series). Continuum Books. p. 44. ISBN 978-0-8264-1717-6.
  5. ^ Smith, Chris. (2009). 101 Albums That Changed Popular Music. Oxford University Press. pp. 32–34. ISBN 978-0-19-537371-4.
  6. ^ Ruhlmann, William. "Mr. Tambourine Man song review". Allmusic. Archived from the original on April 9, 2011. Retrieved May 31, 2010.
  7. ^ Ruhlmann, William. "Turn! Turn! Turn! song review". Allmusic. Archived from the original on December 16, 2010. Retrieved May 31, 2010.
  8. ^ Richie Unterberger. "Mr. Tambourine Man album review". Allmusic. Archived from the original on May 31, 2012. Retrieved May 31, 2010.
  9. ^ "Folk-Rock Overview". Allmusic. Archived from the original on September 3, 2017. Retrieved October 26, 2017.
  10. ^ "Psychedelic Rock Overview". Allmusic. Archived from the original on October 16, 2011. Retrieved January 30, 2010.
  11. ^ Bellman, Jonathan. (1997). The Exotic In Western Music. Northeastern Publishing. p. 351. ISBN 1-55553-319-1.
  12. ^ Fricke, David (1997). "A Trip to the Country". Sweetheart of the Rodeo (CD booklet). The Byrds. Columbia/Legacy.
  13. ^ Buckley, Peter. (2003). The Rough Guide to Rock. Rough Guides. pp. 155–156. ISBN 1-84353-105-4.
  14. ^ Einarson, John. (2005). Mr. Tambourine Man: The Life and Legacy of the Byrds' Gene Clark. Backbeat Books. pp. 87–89. ISBN 0-87930-793-5. Archived from the original on January 20, 2023. Retrieved February 20, 2016.
  15. ^ Hjort, Christopher. (2008). So You Want To Be A Rock 'n' Roll Star: The Byrds Day-By-Day (1965–1973). Jawbone Press. p. 117. ISBN 978-1-906002-15-2.
  16. ^ Fricke, David (2000). "Farther Along: The Byrds at Twilight". Farther Along (CD booklet). The Byrds. Columbia/Legacy.
  17. ^ Connors, Tim. "Byrds". ByrdWatcher: A Field Guide to the Byrds of Los Angeles. Archived from the original on May 25, 2009. Retrieved May 25, 2010.
  18. ^ Einarson, John. (2005). Mr. Tambourine Man: The Life and Legacy of the Byrds' Gene Clark. Backbeat Books. pp. 293–294. ISBN 0-87930-793-5.
  19. ^ Rogan, Johnny. (1998). The Byrds: Timeless Flight Revisited (2nd ed.). Rogan House. pp. 445–447. ISBN 0-9529540-1-X.
  20. ^ Rogan, Johnny. (1998). The Byrds: Timeless Flight Revisited (2nd ed.). Rogan House. p. 510. ISBN 0-9529540-1-X.
  21. ^ Unterberger, Richie. "Biography of Michael Clarke". Allmusic. Archived from the original on January 20, 2023. Retrieved May 25, 2010.
  22. ^ Willman, Chris; Morris, Chris (January 19, 2023). "David Crosby, Byrds and Crosby, Stills & Nash Co-Founder, Dies at 81". Variety. Penske Media Corporation. Retrieved January 19, 2023.

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