Greatest Hits

Updated October 20, 2014 All the songs on this album are not "hits" in the accepted meaning of that term. Even so, this is a great collection of early songs by the Byrds and the addition of three new selections to the original album is a plus for the listener, especially "Have You Seen Her Face," a wonderful song by the underrated Chris Hillman. Several of the Byrds' covers of Dylan songs are on this album and "Chimes of Freedom" is one of my favorites as is "My Back Pages." Roger McGuinn gives us some of the roughness of Dylan's style and adds to the mix the signature Rickenbacker guitar sound the Byrds are famous for. Pete Seeger's great adaptation of Ecclesiastes, "Turn, Turn, Turn" is on this album and is a true "greatest hit." This song solidified the Byrds as a musical force to be reckoned with after their initial success with "Mr. Tambourine Man," which begins the CD. A few quirky "hits" are included, like "Mr. Spaceman" and "Eight Miles High." These oddities give the album contrast and seem at first out of place, but grow on the listener, at least this listener, over time. In fact, this CD has great variety. One of the treasures on this CD is Pete Seeger's "The Bells of Rhymney." The Byrds do a great job with this wonderful song, which impressed George Harrison of Beatles fame. Many other artists covered this song. If readers of this review want to hear something special, go to YouTube and type in John Denver Bells of Rhymney. The original Byrds, McGuinn, Crosby, Hillman, Gene Clark and Michael Clarke, did not stay together long. Gene Clark was the first to leave and his picture is not on the album cover. BTW, that was a major loss for the Byrds. Gene was a fine singer/songwriter. Then Crosby left; McGuinn did his best to hold the group together and the reformed band did have some musical, if not commercial success after the initial breakup when Gram Parsons signed on. Listeners who want to follow the entire career of the Byrds are advised to get their Boxed Set of songs to see how far the group progressed before the final breakup. For those people who have heard the Byrds' mentioned as a great band but who have listened to little of their music, this is an excellent place to get acquainted with a sampling of their unique sound. In my opinion, this is a truly classic CD that is one of the greatest "Hits" albums ever recorded. I have given this album as a gift many times and it is always much appreciated.

The first album I ever bought was Mr. Tambourine Man by these Guys. I loved it then, and almost 50 years later I still do. At some point in the last few years I discovered SACD, and jumped with both feet into that format. I snapped up all the multi-channel classic rock offerings, and gradually built my collection. I have bought just about ever multi-channel offering that isn't in the three figures range, and finally turned to the stereo SACD world. The albums come in two types I have found. One is crystal clear, great presence, with the high, mid and low range freqs all there in all their SACD glory. These discs are a pure joy to listen to, and each and every one of these is better by leaps and bounds than its regular CD counterpart. Examples of this are the Dylan stereo SACDs, Blood Sweat and Tears' second album, the stuff by The Band, and The Doobie Brothers. The other version is lacking in high freq, and the mid and low end dominate the disc. Cymbal hits go "thump" rather than "kwissssshhhhhhh". Most of you reading this review know what I am talking about. Examples of this are the Creedence albums, the Pretenders II, and sadly the Allman Brothers Band discs. This Byrds disc is of the first type. The sound is great, clear, and the stereo separation is good, though dated. For example, the drums are just about totally in the right channel. The bass comes through loud and clear in the sub woofer. I haven't heard any other CDs of this album, just the vinyl version bought long ago. But, my SACD version is fine. And, of course, the music itself is great stuff. We can argue over what is and what should be on the track listing, but I just go with what we get. Find it somewhere at a reasonable price, all you SACD folks, and snap it up.

Was in grade school (1960's) when some of the songs on this CD (Mr. Tambourine Man; Turn.! Turn.! Turn.! (To Everything There Is A Season); All I Really Want To Do; and Eight Miles High) was played on the radio (after listening to the CD; found out that more songs were played on the radio). There are 11 songs as well as 3 Bonus Tracks on this CD. Worth the purchase.!!

Alles Bestens! Prima!

Thank you for the LP, Excellent purchase , arrived on time and perfectly wrapped and secure.

Não há o que dizer desta coletânea do The Byrds: excelente! No entanto, a Amazon poderia ter um pouco mais de cuidado com as embalagens dos CDs, esses plásticos comuns não protegem as capas de acrílicos. O meu CD veio com uma trinca, mas a midia estava intacta.

Un greatest hits de los Byrds es complicado porque tienen muchísimas, pero la selección que contiene esta recopilación está muy bien equilibrada en el tiempo. El sonido y la calidad del vinilo son de altura, si no tienes todos los discos esta es una buena opción de tener una buena colección de sus canciones.

One of my favourite vinyls! Only downside is there could have been half a dozen or more songs added. Still impressed though! A must buy for anyone who loves 60’s music