The Byrds' The Notorious Byrd Brothers Ric Menck Christopher Hurt 0191091233481 Books
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By the time Roger McGuinn, David Crosby, Chris Hillman, and Michael Clarke entered the studio to begin work on this album, they were basically falling apart at the seams. "Ladyfriend", a song written by Crosby, had just failed miserably as a chart single despite the fact that he lobbied hard to get it released. This - coupled with the fact that he made what the rest of the band considered an embarrassing political speech onstage during their set at the Monterey Pop Festival, and then sat in with rivals the Buffalo Springfield the following day - pushed McGuinn and Hillman in particular to the limits of their patience.
Then, for the Notorious sessions, Crosby presented a song called "Triad", written about a threesome, and although McGuinn and Hillman reluctantly agreed to record it, they later decided to place a less controversial Goffin and King pop number called "Goin' Back" on the album instead. Crosby declared the song banal and refused to sing on it. A few too many studio flare-ups later, McGuinn and Hillman finally screeched up into the Hollywood Hills in their Jaguars and fired Crosby on the spot.
Also brooding during this period was drummer Michael Clarke, who had always borne the brunt of the other band members' rage while recording. He was by far the least accomplished member of the band musically, and when they suggested bringing in a studio drummer to embellish some tracks (Jim Gordon, later of Derek & the Dominos fame), he finally declared he'd had enough and moved to Hawaii to get away from the music scene altogether.
So, McGuinn and Hillman were left to cobble together an album with the help of producer Gary Usher (known for his work with Brian Wilson, the Millenium, Sagittarius and many others). The fact that it turned out to be one of the defining albums of the 60s psychedelic pop experience was either a sheer stroke of luck, or a testament to McGuinn and Hillman's determination to prove that they didn't need Crosby's help to construct their masterpiece.
The Byrds' The Notorious Byrd Brothers Ric Menck Christopher Hurt 0191091233481 Books
Ric Menck has written an excellent book about a brilliant album. Beginning with a brief biographical history of the Byrds and going into some detail about the 4 albums that preceded this one (as well as the personnel shakeups), he discusses the album track by track with a deep knowledge of the sessionography. The only point where I found his knowledge a bit lacking was when, discussing Roger McGuinn's use of a Moog synthesizer on "Space Odyssey", he stated that the only other artist using a Moog at the time was the band the United States of America. Since Menck was so knowledgeable about so much musical minutiae, it's strange that he was unaware of the Monkees and the Doors both using a Moog on their 1967 albums. Aside from that minor flaw, the book is a thorough treatment of the album and a very enjoyable read.Product details
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The Byrds' The Notorious Byrd Brothers Ric Menck Christopher Hurt 0191091233481 Books Reviews
...and by that I mean slight and a disappointment.
I came to this book expecting not a rehash of the Byrds history--I'm pretty familiar with that already--but an in-depth analysis of the recording. It was one of my favorites from the time I first heard it (I had just graduated from eighth grade when it came out). I was hoping for behind the scenes insight, but would have settled for a subjective analysis, as long as it was in-depth and interesting. I mean, this album is captivating, it's full of sounds I had never heard before, and was the first time I was knocked out by stereo separation. I also know how much disarray that Byrds found themselves in at this time, so I expected some anecdotes regarding the climate in which this album was made.
But we don't get any of that. The so-called "analysis" doesn't begin until the last third of the book. The balance of the book is made up of personal reminiscences from the author, and a digest-sized history of the Byrds. Neither is particularly noteworthy.
If you aren't that familiar with the Byrds, the short history is probably useful. But the point here is that most people reading this book will likely be familiar with the Byrds, as "Notorious," while not particularly obscure, is not as well-known as the four previous albums and tends to be appreciated by knowledgeable fans who have been exposed to this information already. Still, the history would have worked if it were more integrated into the makings of the album itself, you know, cause and effect. There is some effort to do that, but it is minimal, and does not justify the number of pages devoted to this rehash. You aren't getting the fruits or original research here. So what's the point?
As for the reminiscences of the author, they are by far the weakest part of the book. They are not particularly colorful or inisghtful or, frankly, compellingly written. Again, if parallels were drawn between this personal experience and the album itself, if you could see how they influenced the author's perspective regarding his evaluation of the album, they might have worked better. But in a lot of cases they are just reminiscences--cul-de-sacs of information that go nowhere. Unfortunately, in this day and age, I can get all the personal reminiscences I want (far more, actually) by reading the thousands of blog entries that now infect the Internet. And I can do that for free.
If you are a die-hard fan, if this album affected you in a way that few other albums have--which is the case with me, you'll probably still pick this up. But I had a hard time getting through it...until the subject of the book--finally--became the album itself.
It's much easier to listen to music than it is to write about it...
In this book Ric Menck documents his passions for one of his favorite albums, The Byrds 1968 recording entitled "The Notorious Byrd Brothers." This fifth album by The Byrds is considered by many to be their greatest record. This volume documents the band's history from early 1964 up to December 1967. The record and it's contents are discussed in great detail, as are Ric's personal accounts of his band, finding this great record, a meeting with Chris Hillman, and group of guys that got into the recording studio while the band was still working on this album.
Recorded between April and December of 1967, "Notorious" was produced as the band was self-destructing and imploding. Roger McGuinn, David Crosby, Michael Clarke & Chris Hillman were The Byrds in April 1967 and by January of 1968 only Roger and Chris remained as Crosby was fired in October, and Michael walked away from the band in December of 1967. Under such Turmoil and strife it is indeed a miracle that this record is the result of of these troubled times for America's greatest sixties rock band.
The style in which Ric uses to tell this tale is very personal and he has uncovered a wealth of information about this timeless recording and the details surrounding it's evolution from start to finish. You'll find out why the tracks that don't feature David Crosby still sound as though he sang on them. You will learn of Roger's plan to release a double record of the history of music from folk through to space ragas. You will learn the details of Gene Clark's short return to The Byrds and why he flew away once again. This is rock history as the pioneers of folk-rock explode like a super-nova during the making of this album.
This is a book for Byrd-Freaks, and if you are not a fan of their music or rock bios in general, stay away from all of this. But, if this record still means something to you and you remember the thrill of first hearing this wonderful music, this document shows how you can explain and entertain a reader about a piece of music over the span of 144 pages. Some of these 33 & 1/3 books miss the point of just what the subject matter is all about, this one hit's the nail right on the head.
Great lil' book for Byrds fans.
Three and a half stars!
I find myself buying more and more of these damn books. The albums chosen to cover are impeccable and most of the books are at least worthwhile. Menck's is one of the best imho
- Great capsule history of the band how they formed and came to cut the album; where they went from there
- Track-by-track analysis of both words and music, with valuable listing of band and session players for each cut
- The writer's own insight---he's a musician who was deeply inspired by the album; he even got to perform one cut for (a confused) Roger McGuinn
- Sheer passion. The guy adores the record and claims to have played it thousands of times
If you love the album or think you might like it, this is a great read. Sadly it's rife with typos and grammatical errors (I counted at least a dozen) but they didn't hinder my enjoyment at all. It's rife with enthusiasm and research---the ingredients of a great 33 1/3 title.
Ric Menck has written an excellent book about a brilliant album. Beginning with a brief biographical history of the Byrds and going into some detail about the 4 albums that preceded this one (as well as the personnel shakeups), he discusses the album track by track with a deep knowledge of the sessionography. The only point where I found his knowledge a bit lacking was when, discussing Roger McGuinn's use of a Moog synthesizer on "Space Odyssey", he stated that the only other artist using a Moog at the time was the band the United States of America. Since Menck was so knowledgeable about so much musical minutiae, it's strange that he was unaware of the Monkees and the Doors both using a Moog on their 1967 albums. Aside from that minor flaw, the book is a thorough treatment of the album and a very enjoyable read.
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