This is the first Dutch release of "The BYRDS - Greatest Hits" and the record label has a solid Orange colour and the CBS "Walking Eye" Company Logo. Later issues of the Dutch release have an orange to yellow colour grading on the label.
A transcript of the original liner notes by: Dave Swaney, dreaming about the first years of "The Byrds" musical career
Things are happening so incredibly fast. Was it really three or four generations ago that The Byrds came along and helped turn the whole pop music scene around?
Were they conservative then? Or now? Whatever, their thing was beautiful and heavy and will be as it is. Lasting. There will be this big nostalgia binge, and because so many people were part of what happened, and because they were an overwhelming part of a larger renaissance, The Byrds will be revered.
It is too early for that now because The Byrds are still happening and very, very valuable. But it is good to be nostalgic, and necessary to find one's rung, and so much good was the start of so many better things happening and about to happen. So why not?
They were five where they are now four, and all of West Coast hippiedom, which is to say Los Angeles because San Francisco was yet to become as it is, was catalyzed by their sound. The Byrds brought them down from their canyon hideouts, in from their beach shelters, from Big Sur camps—and Mexican co-munes, down from Sierra and Mojave anonymities, to dance and be together and realize how strong their numbers were.
They came in rags and velvet, leather and denim, on foot and motorcycle and in Rolls, boots and chains and moccasins, and the LA press was exasperated and delighted. The Byrds played loud, but with beauty and transcendant smoothness.
The dance floor at Ciro's was jammed. Thousands showed up at The Palladium where an enormous caricature of Lawrence Welk slowly waving a giant baton greeted everyone and the rent-a-cops wondered how everyone could be so happy and have such fun on Coca-Cola and lemonade.
McGuinn made someone a lot of money by wearing those funny-looking Ben Franklin glasses; a wonderfully gentle, thoroughly human man named Derek Taylor began to gather a new circle of friends and admirers with his logical perspective on the nonsense swirling around them, and The Beatles were quoted as saying their favorite American group was The Byrds;
Dylan got on stage with them at Ciro's to blow his harp straight into the dancing melee below as David Crosby smiled benignly at the whole scene; "Mr. Tambourine Man," for those who laughed up their sleeves and for those who dug it straight and would never be persuaded then that anyone could get away with that, made number one.
Then there was the first album and a not-so-successful trip to England. The Byrds were there. Someone in the label department at "Billboard" worked overtime to come up with the term folk-rock so that everyone would know what was going down in case they didn't want to think about it too much.
And it stuck because no one ever had the time to try to change the words or pose an organized "Why?" There was just too much else important happening.
Off the hot streets of Los Angeles, even as other revolutions were finally gaining notice a few miles south in Watts, they would scatter themselves in a darkened studio and bend to the task of reaching into millions of homes, cars, dormitories, coffee shops, bars, bordellos, prisons, camps, insane asylums—minds.
Lots, some because of folks like The byrds, has gone down since. With them and with us. The record herein, if you let it, will tell you a great deal.
About The Byrds, about changes, about yourself. But it's really only a sampler, and the title is only to grab your eye in a busy world. So buy the other four LP's—"Mr. Tambourine Man," "Turn, Turn, Turn,- "Fifth Dimension- and "Younger Than Yesterday"—if you haven't already, because you ought to realize that The Byrds and what they have to say mean a great deal to you.
Sometimes things happen so fast that we lose track of what is really the most valuable.
Dave Swaney
Dave Swaney
Barry Feinstein
Folk-Rock, Classic Rock
CBS – S 63107
Record Format: 12" Vinyl Stereo Gramophone Record
Total Album (Cover+Record) weight: 230 gram
1970 Netherlands
Note: The images on this page are photos of the actual album. Slight differences in color may exist due to the use of the camera's flash. Images can be zoomed in/out ( eg pinch with your fingers on a tablet or smartphone )
The Byrds were an influential American rock band that emerged in the mid-1960s, blending elements of folk, rock, and country music to create a distinctive sound that would go on to influence countless musicians in the decades that followed.
Formed in Los Angeles in 1964, the original lineup of the Byrds included Roger McGuinn, Gene Clark, David Crosby, Chris Hillman, and Michael Clarke. They quickly gained attention with their distinctive sound, featuring McGuinn's jangly 12-string guitar and the group's tight vocal harmonies.
The Byrds' early hits, such as "Mr. Tambourine Man" and "Turn! Turn! Turn!", were folk rock adaptations of songs by Bob Dylan and Pete Seeger, respectively. But as the band evolved, they began to incorporate more original material and explore new musical directions.
Their 1966 album "Fifth Dimension" marked a major turning point for the band, featuring experimental songs that incorporated elements of psychedelia and Indian music. The album also marked the departure of Gene Clark, who was replaced by Gram Parsons for the band's next album, "The Notorious Byrd Brothers".
Parsons' influence helped shape the Byrds' sound even further, as they embraced country rock and began to incorporate pedal steel guitar and other traditional country instruments into their music. However, Parsons' tenure with the band was short-lived, and he left to form the Flying Burrito Brothers after recording just one album with the Byrds.
Despite the various personnel changes over the years, the Byrds continued to release innovative and influential music throughout the 1960s and into the early 1970s. Their influence can be heard in the music of countless artists who followed in their footsteps, including Tom Petty, R.E.M., and the Eagles.
In addition to their musical contributions, the Byrds were also notable for their role in popularizing the use of the 12-string guitar in rock music, as well as for their innovative use of studio techniques such as phasing and echo.
While the band officially disbanded in 1973, their legacy lives on as one of the most innovative and influential groups of the 1960s. From their early folk rock hits to their later experiments with psychedelia and country rock, the Byrds' music continues to inspire and influence musicians to this day.
Trivia: The band name "The Byrds" is actually a play on words, as it intentionally misspells the word "birds." The band's founding member and guitarist, Jim McGuinn, came up with the name as a nod to the influence of the Beatles, who had famously misspelled their name with an "a" instead of an "e" in their early days. The misspelling of "birds" as "byrds" was meant to give the band a unique and distinctive name that would set them apart from other bands of the time. Additionally, it has been suggested that the misspelling also gave the band a certain mystique, as it forced people to ask questions about the origin and meaning of their name. Overall, the intentional misspelling of "birds" as "byrds" was a clever and effective branding decision that helped to establish the band's identity and contributed to their success.