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The Byrds speak on

Byrds

 

 

David Crosby - ByrdWatcher 1998

When we got together for the Byrds reunion, I was throwing my weight around too much.
I was definitely throwing my weight around too much, and I'm sure that it pissed everybody off. We made a much better record than we were credited with, but I didn't help. You know, I was sort of, [Goes into blowhard voice] "Well, I'm the guy in the big group and I'll just... we'll do it my way." It was stupid.

BW: Hillman has mentioned in interviews that maybe, in the spirit of detente, nobody wanted to be too tough on anybody else's stuff. Everyone was a little too nice to each other, maybe.

DC: There might have been some of that, yeah. I still think that, you know, Chris and I and Roger have... you know, unfinished chemistry there.

Roger McGuinn - ByrdsFlyght 2000

The outtakes from the reunion album ended up on my first solo album. I don't think there are any other tracks.

David Crosby - Musicangle 2004

DC: I think that's a greatly underrated record (The Byrds reunion album 1973) because I thought there was some beautiful stuff on there. Gene Clark doing the Neil Young song?

'See the Sky About To Rain'.Yea, beautiful. And I thought our version of "Laughing" was beautiful. I thought it was a beautiful record, man. Some people love it, some people don't.

David Crosby - John Einarson 'Mr. Tambourine Man', 2005

Gene's and the Neil Young songs were the strongest on that album. Gene's right. We should have played more together before. There were Byrds on the record but they didn't play together.

Chris Hillman - John Einarson 'Mr.Tambourine Man', 2005

'See The Sky About To Rain' and 'Full Circle' were probably the best tracks on the record. Gene's stuff was the best. The rest of us, I'll be honest, I contributed my worst material because I was getting ready to do a solo record, 'Slipping Away', and I was saving all my good stuff and contributed this throwaway stuff that was awful.. Crosby's stuff was sketchy and Roger had 'Born To Rock & Roll', which was terrible, yuck. But Gene's stuff was strong. His reading of 'See The Sky' was great. But we didn't have any direction, nobody at the helm.

Gene Clark - John Einarson 'Mr.Tambourine Man', 2005

We never really got together, the five of us, and seriously did a Byrds reunion. Never happened. Everyone telephoning in their parts. So it didn't have the essence it really needed. It may never happen again.

Gene Clark - Barry Ballard 1977

(The reunion attempt was like) having a fresh wound. You're still too sensitive. It's like having a divorce and then trying to get back together in six months. The underlying hurt and emotional things are still there and still very fresh.