The Byrds speak on

the  induction to the
Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame 1991

Chris Hillman - Connect Savannah, Jim Reed, November 2008

You brought up John Fogerty, who I respect as a songwriter very much. But I'll say this: when the Byrds were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, we all got up on stage together. Here we all were being honored for a special moment and time in our lives when we were all reaching out for the brass ring -that's the best way I can describe what we did together- and we all sat at the same table and we played together that night. And you know what? I don't think too many bands did that, because there was so much hostility between them. But when it came to John Fogerty, there was an incident where Stu Cook and Doug Clifford from Creedence (Clearwater Revival) got up to play and he wouldn't let them on the stage. Now, it's not really my place to judge, but that just didn't seem right. Our induction seemed more like a fitting closure, even though I hate to use that term. We had a unique sound, and we made it to the top of the charts, and all those years later we played that one last show together. Not long afterwards, Gene Clark and Michael Clarke both died, and it was very sad for me as I was very close to both of them.