The Byrds
1965
Tracks
1. Mr Tambourine Man
2. I'll Feel A Whole Lot Better
3. Spanish Harlem Incident
4. You Won't Have To Cry
5. Here Without You
6. Bells Of Rhymney
7. All I Really Want To Do
8. I Knew I'd Want You
9. It's No Use
10. Don't Doubt Yourself Babe
11. Chimes Of Freedom
12. We'll Meet Again
Amanda: Wow, that was wonderful.
I knew I would love it. I mean early boy band+competitors of The Beatles=awesomeness. I had previously enjoyed a few of their songs ("She's Got a Way" most notably) but this was incredible. They remade a couple of Bob Dylan songs that I thought were a lot better than the orginals. The album is even named after one of his songs. These guys were like the US version of The Beatles. I, of course, will always be loyal to my British chaps, but I still love The Byrds. A worthy opponent.
RATING:
Brie: When the Byrds released "Mr. Tambourine Man", they gave Bob Dylan his first #1 hit. The success of his song inspired Dylan to make his ever so famous turn to electric music.
I really didn't like the Byrds version of "Mr. Tambourine Man". Maybe it is because I've listen to Dylan's version so many times, but Bob's version is timeless while the Byrds cover sounds stuck in the sixties. I hate to say this, but they kind of butchered one of my favorite songs of all time, "Spanish Harlem Incident". Listen to Dylan's version. It is so much better. I was really curious to see what the Byrds would do with "All I Really Want To Do", just because of the quirky way Dylan sang it, and I am happy to report that I was pleasantly surprised. The song fits the Byrds whole vibe really well. I feel like the Byrds didn't do "Chimes Of Freedom" justice. It is a song of protest and struggles and I think the song just didn't suit their style.
I really don't find anything special about the lead singer, Jim McGuinn's vocals. He lacks a certain... je ne sais quoi. Substance, maybe? The better songs were "I'll Feel A Whole Lot Better", and "Here Without You".
RATING:
Proving once again that you can never have too much tambourine. Impressive how they were able to do Dylan's songs in such a radically different and exciting way. And Gene Clark's are nearly as good, he was quite the songwriter. It seems like a greatest hits collection. Should have been listed before Rubber Soul in the book, I think The Beatles were influenced by this.
ReplyDeleteFavorite track: "The Bells of Rhymney"