| History of The Byrds | ||||
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| Greatest hits album by | ||||
| Released | May 18, 1973 | |||
| Recorded | January 20, 1965 – July 27, 1971 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 80:24 | |||
| Label | CBS | |||
| Producer | Terry Melcher,Allen Stanton,Gary Usher,Bob Johnston, Jim Dickson, Chris Hinshaw,the Byrds | |||
| The Byrds chronology | ||||
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History of The Byrds is adouble albumcompilation by the Americanrockbandthe Byrds and was released on May 18, 1973 byCBS Records (see1973 in music).[1] The compilation was released exclusively in Europe and the UK, peaking at number 47 on theUK Albums Chart, but it was also available in the United States as an import.[2][3]
History of The Byrds provides a chronological survey of the band's career from 1965 to 1971, a period when they were signed toColumbia Records.[3] It begins with the Byrds' debutsingle on Columbia, "Mr. Tambourine Man", and culminates with their final single release for thelabel, "America's Great National Pastime".[1][4] The album features the first appearance on anLP of the non-album single "Lady Friend" and the 1965B-side "She Don't Care About Time".[3][5][6]
It was issued to coincide with the reunion of the original members of the Byrds and the release of a reunion album, titledByrds, in March 1973. However, none of the tracks from the 1973 reunion album were included onHistory of The Byrds, due to that album having appeared onAsylum Records rather than on Columbia.[1] At the time of its release,History of The Byrds was the most comprehensive overview of the band's recorded output available.[3] Every variation of the Byrds' ever changing lineup is represented within the album's song selection and as such, it provides a survey of the band's musical journey from their days asfolk rock andpsychedelic rock pioneers through to their later exploration ofcountry rock.[7] Many of the band's biggest selling singles are included, along with a number of their best known album tracks. Consequently, the album includes musical contributions from all of the key players in the Byrds' convoluted history, includingGene Clark,David Crosby,Chris Hillman,Michael Clarke,Gram Parsons,Clarence White, and the group's only consistent member,Roger McGuinn.
The album's front cover made use of aDavid Gahr photograph featuring the last lineup of the Byrds to be represented on the album: Roger McGuinn,Skip Battin,Gene Parsons, and Clarence White.[8] The same photograph had already been used for the cover of the U.S. compilation albumThe Best of The Byrds: Greatest Hits, Volume II just six months earlier.[8] It is likely that CBS in the UK didn't have access to the original photograph because the cover ofHistory of The Byrds features the same track listing asGreatest Hits, Volume II, with three amendments added in a noticeably smaller font over black bars that cover track names from the earlier compilation. The back cover ofHistory of The Byrds included liner notes byKim Fowley and the inside gatefold sleeve of the double vinyl LP featuredPete Frame's "Byrds Family Tree".[3] This intricately detailedflowchart traced the group's roots and complicated membership history over the years.[1] The very first pressing of this double LP mentioned the Byrds English fan club's (run by Chrissie Oakes) name and address in the middle of the family tree.
Despite being one of the band's biggest selling compilations in Europe,History of The Byrds went out of print in the early 1990s and has never been released onCD.
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