The Byrds

Formation (1964)

The nucleus of the Byrds formed in early 1964, when Jim McGuinn, Gene Clark, and David Crosby came together as a trio. All three musicians had a background rooted in folk music, with each one having worked as a folk singer on the acoustic coffeehouse circuit during the early 1960s. In addition, they had all served time—independently of each other—as sidemen in various "collegiate folk" groups: McGuinn with the Limeliters and the Chad Mitchell Trio, Clark with the New Christy Minstrels, and Crosby with Les Baxter's Balladeers. McGuinn had also spent time as a professional songwriter at the Brill Building in New York City, under the tutelage of Bobby Darin. By early 1964, McGuinn had become enamored with the music of the Beatles, and had...

Legacy

Since the band's 1960s heyday, the influence of the Byrds on successive generations of rock and pop musicians has grown steadily, with acts such as the Eagles, Big Star, Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, R.E.M., the Bangles, the Smiths, and innumerable alternative rock bands of the post-punk era all exhibiting signs of their influence. Musician and author Peter Lavezzoli described the Byrds in 2007 as "one of the few bands to exert a decisive influence on the Beatles", while also noting that they helped to persuade Bob Dylan to begin recording with electric instrumentation. Lavezzoli concluded that "like it or not, terms like 'folk rock', 'raga rock' and 'country rock' were coined for a reason: the Byrds did it first, and then kept moving,...

If You're Gone

"If You're Gone" is a song written by Gene Clark that was first released on the Byrds' 1965 album Turn! Turn!

Turn!.

Music and lyrics

"If You're Gone" is one of several songs written by Clark whose lyrics reveal his emotional insecurity and vulnerability. Allmusic critic Matthew Greenwald describes the melody as rising and falling gracefully but music critic Johnny Rogan feels it lacks the "melodic grace" of some of Clark's other compositions. It uses a triple meter, with a snare drum accent on the first beat of every other bar.

Recording

"If You're Gone" was recorded on October 20, 1965, at Columbia Recording Studio A in Hollywood, California. Melcher produced it and Hjort suggests that Ray Gerhardt was most likely the engineer.

Reception

Greenwald describes "If You're Gone" as a "fine example of Gene Clark's growth as a songwriter." Fellow Allmusic critic Richie Unterberger describes it as a "strong composition." Clark biographer John Einarson described it as "indicative of [Clark's] expanding poetic vision" and one of the highlights of Turn! Turn! Turn!. Rolling Stone Album Guide contributor Rob Sheffield particularly praised the song particularly for its "devastated drone." Something Else! contributor Beverly Paterson described "If You're Gone" and another Clark composition on Turn! Turn! Turn!, "Set You Free This Time," as "stark ballads aching with regret." The song has also been described as "a song wholly in the conditional tense, a maze of lines that lead...

It Won't Be Wrong

"It Won't Be Wrong" is a song by the American folk rock band the Byrds, which appeared as the second track on their 1965 album, Turn! Turn!

Turn! It was also coupled with the song "Set You Free This Time" for a single release in 1966, resulting in "It Won't Be Wrong" charting at number 63 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Composition and structure

"It Won't Be Wrong" was composed in 1964 by the Byrds lead guitarist Jim McGuinn and his friend Harvey Gerst, who was an acquaintance from McGuinn's days as a folk singer at The Troubadour folk club in West Hollywood, California. The song originally appeared with the alternate title of "Don't Be Long" on the B-side of a single that the Byrds had released on Elektra Records in October 1964, under the pseudonym the Beefeaters. By the time the song was re-recorded in September 1965, during the recording sessions for the Byrds' second Columbia Records' album, its title had been changed to "It Won't Be Wrong". Both the band and their producer Terry Melcher felt that the 1965 version included on the Turn! Turn! Turn! album was far more...

Release

"It Won't Be Wrong" first appeared in December 1965 on the Byrds Turn! Turn! Turn! album. Following its appearance on the album, the song was selected as the B-side for the Byrds' "Set You Free This Time" single in January 1966. However, after initially poor sales of that single, Columbia Records in America began promoting the B-side instead, resulting in "It Won't Be Wrong" charting at number 63 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Legacy

The Byrds performed the song on the U.S. television programs Where The Action Is and Shivaree during 1966, but there is little evidence to suggest that the song was played regularly during the band's 1960s and 1970s live concerts. However, the song was performed by a reformed line-up of the Byrds featuring Roger McGuinn, David Crosby, and Chris Hillman in January 1989.

Set You Free This Time

"Set You Free This Time" is a song by the American folk rock group the Byrds, written by band member Gene Clark. It was first released in December 1965 on the group's Turn!

Turn! Turn! album, and later issued as a single in January 1966.

Composition

According to Clark, "Set You Free This Time" was written in just a few hours during the Byrds' 1965 British tour, after a night spent carousing with Paul McCartney at the Scotch of St James club in London. Clark sings the lead vocal and also plays acoustic guitar and harmonica on the track. The lyrics relate the breakup of a relationship, and Byrds biographer Johnny Rogan has commented that Clark's vocal inflections and densely worded lyrics suggest the influence of Bob Dylan. Critic Matthew Greenwald has remarked that the song also has a vague country rock feel to it, largely due to the song's melody and Clark's harmonica solo. The chord progression and rhythm of the song, however, are atypical of country music.

Single releases

Following its appearance on the Turn! Turn! Turn! album, the song was issued as the A-side of a single on January 10, 1966. However, initial sales were relatively poor, with the single only managing to reach number 79 on the Billboard Hot 100. As a result, Columbia Records in America began promoting the single's B-side "It Won't Be Wrong" instead, which resulted in the single eventually climbing to number 63.

Reception

Despite its lack of commercial success, the single release of "Set You Free This Time" gained mostly positive reviews in the music press. The first edition of Crawdaddy! magazine described it as, "a lovely, moving song with Dylan-like 20-syllabal lines deckful of well chosen words." Cash Box described it as a "laconic, medium-paced woeser essayed in an emotion-charged style." In the UK, Penny Valentine was complimentary in her review of the song for Disc magazine, commenting "On first play, I didn't like it – but now I do. It's rather unByrd-like and very, very Dylan-like. It's slow and gentle and rather sad about never being a person who had much, and though she laughed at him and has now come for help, he doesn't hold a grudge. Ahh!"...

Performances and album releases

During February 1966, the Byrds performed "Set You Free This Time" on the U.S. television programs Hollywood A Go-Go, Where The Action Is, The Lloyd Thaxton Show, and Shivaree. However, the song disappeared from the band's live concert repertoire following Clark's departure from the group in March 1966. During his solo career, Clark often returned to the song in live concerts and consequently, it appears on his live albums In Concert and Silverado '75: Live & Unreleased.

She Don't Care About Time

"She Don't Care About Time" is a song by the American folk rock band the Byrds. It was released on a non-album single as the B-side to "Turn!

Turn! Turn!" in October 1965.

Composition

As was true with the Byrds' first album, the majority of group-penned compositions on "Turn! Turn! Turn!" were written by Gene Clark. The composition's lyrics have been well cited for their complexity by many who have been affiliated with the group. In particular Johnny Rogan stated in his biography Timeless Flight that the elaboration of the lyrics were in anticipation of Clark's later work and were a "fascinating apotheosis in which naturalistic detail and abstraction coalesced". Musically, the recording featured a guitar solo patterned after by Bach's "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring". The Byrds' recording of "Mr. Tambourine Man" opens with a similar and distinctive, Bach-inspired guitar riff played by Jim McGuinn.

Reception

Since its release, "She Don't Care About Time" has been highly praised by fellow Byrd members. When asked about the recording, McGuinn stated: "I love that song ('She Don't Care About Time'), I really do. I don't know why that never got on. That was for the Turn Turn Turn album, right? I think we had enough stuff already – except that I'm not too happy with the last four cuts of that album." David Crosby and Chris Hillman were also big advocates of the song, praising its importance in many interviews since Clark's death.

The World Turns All Around Her

"The World Turns All Around Her" is a song written by Gene Clark that was first recorded by the Byrds for their second album Turn! Turn!

Turn! (1965).

Music and lyrics

"The World Turns All Around Her" is one of several songs written by Clark with lyrics about broken love and the pain of teenage romance. The song has been described as being about "the unrealized potential of womanhood." According to music critic Johnny Rogan, the theme of the song is "understanding through loss." The singer has lost his girlfriend, but doesn't feel jealous or resentful. Rather than expressing the cliche of asking her new boyfriend to care for his ex-girlfriend, he instead asks that he help her realize her potential. The song ends with the singer suggesting that the new boyfriend may eventually recognize that he too must set her free in order for her to become all that she can be.

Recording

"The World Turns All Around Her" was recorded on August 28, 1965, at Columbia Recording Studio A in Hollywood, California. The Byrds also recorded "She Don't Care About Time" at that session.

Reception

AllMusic critic Richie Unterberger describes "The World Turns All Around Her" as a "strong composition." Clark biographer John Einarson described it as "indicative of [Clark's] expanding poetic vision" and one of the highlights of Turn! Turn! Turn!. Pitchfork contributor Joe Tangari describes it as "exquisite pop" and Rolling Stone contributor Billy Altman described it as "thoughtful, original pop." Writer Jeremy Simmonds described it as a "timeless number."