The Notorious Byrd Brothers

Another solid folksy album. It gets a little weird and experimental here and there like the song Dolphin's Smile which was nice. Gave it a little extra something.

I thought that this album was pretty good. It was more experimental than I expected which was a nice surprise. All in all not bad. 3/5.

A really nice album and one that surprised me in places.

The cover of Goin’ Back is a definite highlight. It is melodic, warm and beautifully arranged. The harmonies are superb and it captures that dreamy late sixties sound perfectly. It is one of those songs that just floats along and stays with you.

There is a lot going on across this record. Psychedelia, country touches, studio experimentation and layered production. At times it feels ahead of its time, and you can hear how influential it would become. That said, I am not a big fan of the instrumentals. They break the flow slightly for me and do not have the same emotional pull as the vocal tracks.

Overall it is an interesting and enjoyable listen. Not one of my absolute favourites from the era, but a strong and creative album with some genuinely great moments.

Favourite track: Goin’ Back
Least favourite: The instrumentals do not quite land for me
Album artwork: A very cool and slightly quirky cover that perfectly fits the late sixties vibe

I always associated them with the annoying jangly early stuff so only recently really listened to the Byrds with any attention after following Graham Parsons' discography backwards, so don't think I'd heard this album (apart from the ubiquitous 60s documentary soundtrack song Change is Now) but there's lots to like: Twangy country licks, baroque harmonies, Beatlesy pop melodies, raga drones, psychedelic production tricks, horns, slides, and synths and the occasional blues rock guitar solo - it all comes together better than you'd think in this controlled concise experiment in hippy indulgence. After the elaborate Sgt Pepper-sounding composition of Artificial Energy, the vibes chill out and we get a more blissed out ethereal California sound. The spacey-drone stuff in particular is really good and genre-setting for more exploratory instrumental psych, garage, and high-desert metal.

Largely forgettable songs; pleasant to listen along to; nice melodic vibes.

That was a passable album. Could listen all the way through. I'm unlikely to ever reach for it.

passaros

Peak psychedelia from The Byrds. A pleasant sound despite the inner turmoil.

There certainly is a lot of MOR folk rock on this list isn't there? 5 albums from the Byrds, really?

It's quite nice for the most part, but very gentle, and it didn't really grab me. I don't know why so many bands of the era felt compelled to add in random, tedious instrumental tracks with weird sounds. It's not big and it's not clever.

I had heard of the Byrds before, but never delved into their catalog much. There was definately quite a bit of musical experimentation throughout this album. Some things worked better than others. Space Odyssey (sounds like they used a kettle whistle as a sound byte throughout, which became annoying after a while)

Moog Raga (just an instrumental experimentation with the Moog modular synthesizer, which was awful. Sounded like someone murdering cats)

Even though there was a lot of stuff that was "out there" on this album, there were a few good tracks.

Favourite songs: Wasn't Born To Follow, Goin' Back, Draft Morning (an example of where experimentation worked. The song starts out slow and soft, lyrics about slow, sunny mornings... All of a sudden the protagonist of the song gets drafted.... A musical bridge which gets heavier with sounds of war... Followed by the heavier, darker lyrics on the second half of the song... It was interesting and unexpected), Old John Robertson

Least favourite songs: Moog Raga, Space Odyssey, Tribal Gathering

Overall, a few good songs, but too much experimentation with random sounds, and nothing of note really stuck out for me.

2/5

It just isn't for me. It's good for the style and one of the Byrds' best works as far as I've heard

Jangle pop nonsense, with lyrics about nothing and some really bizarre production choices. The use of a sitar is an insult to the whole Indian subcontinent, and the bonus tracks include band members swearing at each other to "do it properly".
Not great, but better than Nico or PSB!

honestly nothing special. 1.5/5

just average

Maybe a bad day or just too many 60’s albums but this didn’t do much for me.

It's fine. Pretty standard late 60s pop. Wouldn't turn it off if it was on, but not going to look to play it again, either.

Regular. Me he aburrido más o menos. Algunas canciones he mirado el título por si la conocía de otra versión. Sinceramente creo que es prescindible.

Groovy.

Yea its fine, I'm not into it.