A fitting tribute to one of the most influential and respected bands of the rock & roll era, this 4CD box-set may have been superseded since its original release in 1990 by Sony Legacy's systematic reissue of the original Byrds albums complete with bonus tracks, but this box still makes a strong case for the Byrds' place in the pantheon of rock & roll greats. The 90 tracks are enhanced by a well-written booklet chronicling the rise and fall of the Byrds, which includes comments from founder-members Roger McGuinn, David Crosby and Chris Hillman, as well as the band's late publicist, Derek Taylor.The Byrds' story began in 1965 with their electric, jingle-jangle cover of Bob Dylan's "Mr Tambourine Man". In one mighty bound--with a nod to the Beatles and, less well remembered, the Searchers--the Byrds helped invent folk-rock. Dylan was transformed by the song's success--from campus favourite to a chart star who would soon head off on his own electric odyssey; but the 14 Dylan covers included here suggest that the Byrds' debt was far greater. The band's folk-rock roots are most obvious on Disc 1, with inspiration coming from various sources, including the Bible ("Turn! Turn! Turn!") and Welsh hymnbooks ("The Bells Of Rhymney").
After a well-publicised spat in 1967, David Crosby walked, and for the remainder of the Byrds' career McGuinn carried the flame. Not content with their role as folk-rock innovators, the Byrds also pioneered country-rock; their 1968 release Sweetheart Of The Rodeo was a landmark album, introducing the world of rock & roll to that of country & western. And, as if all that wasn't enough, the band then went to work on the soundtrack of the 1969 film Easy Rider, which marked another breakthrough--the use of rock songs as an integral part of a film.
Their final four years together were not quite as glorious, but there were still some exceptional songs--"Just A Season", "Lover Of The Bayou" and "Farther Along" all date from that maligned period. One of the joys of this box-set is discovering the rare and previously unreleased material, notably Gram Parsons' vocal tracks for the Sweetheartalbum, which at the time were erased for contractual reasons. There is also a 1990 live version of "Mr Tambourine Man" on which the Byrds are joined, for the first time on disc, by Dylan--which helps bring the story nicely full-circle. --Patrick Humphries
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