History of The Byrds
1973 greatest hits album by the Byrds
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History of The Byrds is a double album compilation by the American rock band the Byrds and was released on May 18, 1973 by CBS Records.[1] The compilation was released exclusively in Europe, peaking at number 47 on the UK Albums Chart, but it was also available in the United States as an import.[2][3]
| History of The Byrds | ||||
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| Greatest hits album by | ||||
| Released | May 18, 1973 | |||
| Recorded | January 20, 1965 – July 27, 1971 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 80:24 | |||
| Label | CBS | |||
| Producer | Terry Melcher, Allen Stanton, Gary Usher, Bob Johnston, Jim Dickson, Chris Hinshaw, the Byrds | |||
| The Byrds chronology | ||||
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Contents
History of The Byrds provides a chronological survey of the band's career from 1965 to 1971, a period when they were signed to Columbia Records.[3] It begins with the Byrds' debut single on Columbia, "Mr. Tambourine Man", and culminates with their final single release for the label, "America's Great National Pastime".[1][4] The album features the first appearance on an LP of the non-album single "Lady Friend" and the 1965 B-side "She Don't Care About Time".[3][5][6]
It was issued to coincide with the reunion of the original members of the Byrds and the release of a reunion album, titled Byrds, in March 1973. However, none of the tracks from the 1973 reunion album were included on History of The Byrds, due to that album having appeared on Asylum Records rather than on Columbia.[1]
At the time of its release, History of The Byrds was the most comprehensive overview of the band's recorded output available.[3] Every variation of the Byrds' ever changing lineup is represented within the album's song selection and, as such, it provides a survey of the band's musical journey from their days as folk rock and psychedelic rock pioneers through to their later exploration of country rock.[7] Many of the band's biggest selling singles are included, along with a number of their best known album tracks. Consequently, the album includes musical contributions from all of the key players in the Byrds' convoluted history, including Gene Clark, David Crosby, Chris Hillman, Michael Clarke, Gram Parsons, Clarence White, and the group's only consistent member, Roger McGuinn.
The album's front cover made use of a David Gahr photograph featuring the last lineup of the Byrds to be represented on the album: Roger McGuinn, Skip Battin, Gene Parsons, and Clarence White.[8] The same photograph had already been used for the cover of the U.S. compilation album The Best of The Byrds: Greatest Hits, Volume II just six months earlier.[8] It is likely that CBS in the UK didn't have access to the original photograph because the cover of History of The Byrds features the same track listing as Greatest Hits, Volume II, with three amendments added in a noticeably smaller font over black bars that cover track names from the earlier compilation. The back cover of History of The Byrds included liner notes by Kim Fowley and the inside gatefold sleeve of the double vinyl LP featured Pete Frame's "Byrds Family Tree".[3] This intricately detailed flowchart traced the group's roots and complicated membership history over the years.[1] The very first pressing of this double LP mentioned the Byrds English fan club's (run by Chrissie Oakes) name and address in the middle of the family tree.
Despite being one of the band's biggest selling compilations in Europe, History of The Byrds went out of print in the early 1990s and has never been released on CD.
Track listing
Side 1
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Original Release | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Mr. Tambourine Man" | Bob Dylan | Mr. Tambourine Man, 1965 | 2:20 |
| 2. | "Turn! Turn! Turn!" | Book of Ecclesiastes/Pete Seeger | Turn! Turn! Turn!, 1965 | 3:49 |
| 3. | "She Don't Care About Time" | Gene Clark | B-side of "Turn! Turn! Turn!", 1965 | 2:28 |
| 4. | "Wild Mountain Thyme" | traditional, arranged Roger McGuinn, Chris Hillman, Michael Clarke, David Crosby | Fifth Dimension, 1966 | 2:29 |
| 5. | "Eight Miles High" | Gene Clark, Roger McGuinn, David Crosby | Fifth Dimension, 1966 | 3:35 |
| 6. | "Mr. Spaceman" | Roger McGuinn | Fifth Dimension, 1966 | 2:08 |
| 7. | "5D (Fifth Dimension)" | Roger McGuinn | Fifth Dimension, 1966 | 2:32 |
Side 2
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Original Release | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "So You Want to Be a Rock 'n' Roll Star" | Chris Hillman, Roger McGuinn | Younger Than Yesterday, 1967 | 2:03 |
| 2. | "Time Between" | Chris Hillman | Younger Than Yesterday, 1967 | 1:56 |
| 3. | "My Back Pages" | Bob Dylan | Younger Than Yesterday, 1967 | 3:05 |
| 4. | "Lady Friend" | David Crosby | non-album single, 1967 | 2:30 |
| 5. | "Goin' Back" | Carole King, Gerry Goffin | The Notorious Byrd Brothers, 1968 | 3:26 |
| 6. | "Old John Robertson" | Chris Hillman, Roger McGuinn | The Notorious Byrd Brothers, 1968 | 1:51 |
| 7. | "Wasn't Born to Follow" | Carole King, Gerry Goffin | The Notorious Byrd Brothers, 1968 | 2:02 |
Side 3
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Original Release | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "You Ain't Goin' Nowhere" | Bob Dylan | Sweetheart of the Rodeo, 1968 | 2:33 |
| 2. | "Hickory Wind" | Gram Parsons, Bob Buchanan | Sweetheart of the Rodeo, 1968 | 3:30 |
| 3. | "Nashville West" | Gene Parsons, Clarence White | Dr. Byrds & Mr. Hyde, 1969 | 2:30 |
| 4. | "Drug Store Truck Drivin' Man" | Roger McGuinn, Gram Parsons | Dr. Byrds & Mr. Hyde, 1969 | 3:52 |
| 5. | "Gunga Din" | Gene Parsons | Ballad of Easy Rider, 1969 | 3:01 |
| 6. | "Jesus Is Just Alright" | Arthur Reid Reynolds | Ballad of Easy Rider, 1969 | 2:09 |
| 7. | "Ballad of Easy Rider" | Roger McGuinn, Bob Dylan | Ballad of Easy Rider, 1969 | 2:01 |
- NOTE: Bob Dylan is not officially credited as a songwriter on "Ballad of Easy Rider".[9]
Side 4
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Original Release | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Chestnut Mare" | Roger McGuinn, Jacques Levy | (Untitled), 1970 | 5:10 |
| 2. | "Yesterday's Train" | Gene Parsons, Skip Battin | (Untitled), 1970 | 3:32 |
| 3. | "Just a Season" | Roger McGuinn, Jacques Levy | (Untitled), 1970 | 3:52 |
| 4. | "Citizen Kane" | Skip Battin, Kim Fowley | Byrdmaniax, 1971 | 2:35 |
| 5. | "Jamaica (Say You Will)" | Jackson Browne | Byrdmaniax, 1971 | 3:25 |
| 6. | "Tiffany Queen" | Roger McGuinn | Farther Along, 1971 | 2:40 |
| 7. | "America's Great National Pastime" | Skip Battin, Kim Fowley | Farther Along, 1971 | 2:56 |
Personnel
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