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BYRDS NEWS
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ARCHIVED NEWS CAN STILL BE FOUND ON THE NEWS PAGE AND ON THE ARCHIVED 2 NEWS PAGE MORE RECENT NEWS ARE HERE ON THIS NEWS 2 PAGE |
On
June 8th, 2009, BYRDS FLYGHT celebrated its 10th anniversary online.
Byrds Flyght
's blog is at http://byrdsflyght.blogspot.com/Byrds Flyght
's blog for spare copies of Byrds-related items is at http://byrdsitemsforsale.blogspot.com
01/27/2010
A couple of several months old but well worth the read...
CRAWDADDY posted another story by writer/roadie Dinky Dawson about an experience of his with the Byrds and Jim Morrison in 1970:
http://www.crawdaddy.com/index.php/2009/11/10/clarence-white-and-jim-morrison-stretch-on-a-747/
01/26/2010
John York
will be performing at The Fret House, Covina, Ca on January 30, 2010 at 7.30 pm
01/21/2010
New songs available from Bill Kaffenberger:
Bill got four brand new
Byrds-style songs, lots of Rickenbacker, at the following web site:They are part of a planned CD length release that Bill hopes to have out by Spring 2010.
The debut issue of "Fantastic Expedition" is just out.
Contact Jason Smith for details - helen.jason@btinternet.com
01/11/2010
Horst-Peter Schmidt (Byrds-influenced artist from Germany - "The Crown Prince of The Rickenbacker 12 String Guitar") has just released a new CD called Phoenix.
Byrds / Rickenbacker / McGuinn fans won't be disappointed!!!
More info here: http://www.starbyrd.eu/40310.html
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Liner Notes: |
|
The Crown Prince of 12-String Guitar, Horst-Peter Schmidt, has returned from
his musical sabbatical to treat pop fans to another janglefest of twelve new
tunes that build on his Byrds-inspired legacy. Horst-Peter channels Roger
McGuinn effortlessly through his Rickenbacker 12-string play and his vocals. The
eleven tracks on Phoenix are original songs that draw on Horst-Peter’s varied
personal observations. The opening track, “Another Day Without You”, is a song
about his Rickenbacker 370RM 12-string guitar – which went unplayed for too long
a period. This autobiographical tone is repeated in songs like Catch Me When I
Fall - a song dedicated to his wife Uta - and You’ll Show Me The Way, a
retrospective of Horst-Peter’s musical career. Other songs capture the spirit of
60s folk-rock by lamenting the current poor state of German education, the
troubled global situation, the environment and Trail of Tears, a song rooted in
American history, as interpreted by a German songwriter. In spite of these
melancholy song themes, Horst-Peter retains his positive perspective and
optimism as evidenced by City of the Angels and the climactic You’ll Show Me The
Way. Just as Turn! Turn! Turn! gave hope to a conflicted generation in the 60s,
the songs on Phoenix give hope to contemporary listeners. We have a troubadour
from Cologne, Germany and his Rickenbacker 12-string guitar to thank for this
chiming call for a brighter, better tomorrow. |
09/16/09
For our Italian readers : the current issue of the
LATE FOR THE SKY music magazine has a long article about Gene Parsons.
Writes
Paolo:"...the current issue has a 12 page special about Gene Parsons, with special interview with Gene that I made last spring and an interview with John Delgatto, discography, reviews of Gene's records, memories from Beppe Gambetta about his playing with Gene, italian translation of Gene's lyrics and more..."
09/11/09
Long lost SKIP BATTIN album from 1973 to be released at last !
SIERRA'S NEWEST CD RELEASE-BYRDS' SKIP BATTIN'S LONG LOST, NEVER RELEASED 1973
ALBUM "TOPANGA SKYLINE"
Sierra Records is proud to announce the compact disc release, "SKIP BATTIN:
TOPANGA SKYLINE" on October 17, 2009. Exactly 40 years ago on this date, Skip
Battin made his first concert appearance as a member of the Byrds at Carl Edward
King Memorial Gymnasium, Morris Harvey University, Charleston West Virginia!
This was to be Skip's second solo album, recorded in late July 1973, just days
after the tragic death of Clarence White. Produced by the legendary Kim Fowley,
it would include backup for the most part by the Country Gazette (Byron Berline,
Roger Bush, Alan Munde and Roland White) along with Al Perkins. The album
unfortunately never saw the light of day, until now. A decade ago Skip and I
talked about releasing the album but it took all this time to make his dream
come true. After Skip's passing in 2004, his son Brent took up the cause to see
this album become a reality.
Taken from the original master audio tapes, each song (mostly Battin/Fowley
originals) is as sharp and pointed as ever. Just wait until you hear Skip's
bluegrass version of "Hully Gully", the old 1959 "Olympics" rock and roll
classic. With the help of the Country Gazette's bluegrass chops, this album's
sound could have predated Leon Russell's "Hank Wilson's Back" effort.
"Topanga Skyline" also boasts some additional bonus material. Two Battin songs
from his 1981 release on the Italian Appaloosa label have been added, "Willow in
the Wind" and my favorite all time Battin song,"China Moon" with the late, great
Sneaky Pete on pedal steel.
At the end of the last song, there is a hidden track from Skip's rehearsals for
the album with Clarence White on guitar. It is brief and very rough but it was
was recorded just a few days before Clarence's untimely death, his last
recordings in any form.
To further enhance this release, there is also a bonus MPEG video clip on the
disc (accessed by PC or MAC computer only) of a rare 1965 solo appearance of
Skip on a local L.A. TV teenage dance party show! With a 12-string guitar in his
hand and sporting an Elvis hairdo, Skip lip syncs his latest 45 single!
"Skip Battin: Topanga Skyline" was to be part of a five album release back in
1973 that would include the album releases of Gene Parsons' "Kindling", Country
Gazette's "Don't Give Up Your Day Job", Gram Parsons' "Sleepless Nights" later
released as "Grievous Angel", and what turned out to be the never released
"Clarence White" solo album on Warner Bros. Records. All five releases were to
promote a Fall 1973 Concert tour with all these performers on stage with Skip
providing the bass playing and adding his vocals. I wonder what a Gram
Parsons/Skip Battin duet would have sounded like! The tour was to be kicked off
by a "Folk/Bluegrass/
SONGS:SALTY DOG BLUES/BOLTS OF BLUE/STONE SOBER/RELAX WITH ME/DON'T GO DOWN THE
DRAIN/WILLOW IN THE WIND/ROLL IN MY SWEET BABY'S ARMS/HULLY GULLY/FOGGY MOUNTAIN
TOP/WINTERGREEN/
Place your order by paying now the prerelease price of only $15.00 and the
shipping is FREE anywhere. After it's release on October 17, 2009, the price
will be $19.00 plus shipping. Even then, this new Sierra release will only be
available direct from Sierra through the end of 2009 with the commercial release
scheduled for February 2010. Think of it as an early Christmas present to
yourself.
Just double click the "Add to Cart" button below which takes you directly to
Sierra order form where you can purchase this CD with Free Shipping.
It is also listed at the web store at
http://sierra-
You can also order by check, money order, credit card by mail to: P.O. Box 5753,
Pasadena CA 91117 (postmarked prior to October 17, 2009) or by email with your
credit card at:
mailorder@sierra-
Paypal is accepted only via the Paypal website (paypal.com) by sending payment
using the Sierra Paypal account:
mailorder@sierra-
(PLEASE NOTE: WHEN PLACING AN ORDER DIRECTLY FROM THIS EMAIL WITH THE "ADD TO
CART" BUTTON, THE "CONTINUE SHOPPING" FUNCTION ON THE ORDER PAGE CURRENTLY DOES
NOT WORK. YOU WILL NEED TO GO DIRECTLY TO SIERRA WEB SITE TO PLACE AN ORDER FOR
ANY ADDITIONAL ITEMS YOU MAY WANT TO MAKE AT THAT TIME.)
It is exciting to approach the end of the first decade of the 2000's with the
release of a missing jewel like Skip Battin's "Topanga Skyline". Sierra Records
hopes to have many more releases like this as the Company approaches it's 40th
Anniversary in 2011.
Best personal regards,
John Delgatto, Founder/Owner/
09/05/09
JOHN YORK
IN CONCERTSATURDAY, 12TH SEPTEMBER, 2009 - CLAREMONT FORUM GALLERY - Claremont Packing House
Doors open at 7pm, Show at 7:30pm - $10 ticket at the door & on sale at Throeau Bookstore in Packing House 586 W. First St. Claremont 909-626-3066,
09/02/09
The Byrds
were invited to perform at the Woodstock Festival, but chose not to participate, not figuring Woodstock to be any different from all the other music festivals that summer. In addition, there were concerns about money.As bassist John York remembers:
"We were flying to a gig and Roger McGuinn came up to us and said that a guy was putting on a festival in upstate New York. But at that point, they weren't paying all of the bands. He asked us if we wanted to do it and we said, 'No'. We had no idea what it was going to be. We were burned out and tired of the festival scene. So all of us said, 'No, we want a rest' and missed the best festival of all".
08/27/09
Crawdaddy! magazine just posted an article by Byrds roadie/writer Dinky Dawson about their live gear and cutting-edge sound system on tour in 1970.
Check it out here: http://crawdaddy.wolfgangsvault.com/Article/Byrds-for-Gearheads.html
08/24/09
The Byrds
Induction into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame will soon be available on DVD (october 20, 2009).From the internet:
"If all those special moments from the Rock Hall of Fame induction ceremonies, especially the legendary jam sessions, have been on your "I wish they'd release those" list, you're in luck.
Time-Life has just announced the release of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Live DVD boxed set on Oct. 20.
The nine-DVD collection will contain 125 performances, plus speeches, toasts and roasts rock royalty saluting each other. Eight of the DVDs will feature an assortment of performances spanning more than two decades of ceremonies, as well as induction and acceptance speeches, and never-before-seen backstage and rehearsal footage.
The ninth DVD will feature "The Concert for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame," a star-studded concert event which opened the Rock Hall Museum in Cleveland in 1995.
The set will be available only online at for $119.96 though
www.RockHallDVDs.com or www.TimeLife.com.
Here are the set's list of performers, as announced in the press release:
AC/DC, Aerosmith, The Allman Brothers, The Band, Jeff Beck, Bee Gees, Chuck Berry, Blondie, Bon Jovi, Ruth Brown, Jackson Browne, Lindsey Buckingham, Eric Burdon, Jerry Butler, Solomon Burke,
The Byrds, Johnny Cash, Chubby Checker, Eric Clapton, Elvis Costello, Cream, Crosby, Stills & Nash, Sheryl Crow, Bo Diddley, The Doors, Melissa Etheridge, Flea, Fleetwood Mac, John Fogerty, The Four Tops, Aretha Franklin, Al Green, Green Day, Dave Grohl, Buddy Guy, Emmylou Harris, Dhani Harrison, Taylor Hawkins, Isaac Hayes, Don Henley, John Lee Hooker, Bruce Hornsby, The Isley Brothers, Etta James, Mick Jagger, Jefferson Airplane, Billy Joel, Kid Rock, B.B. King, Ben E. King, The Kinks, Jonny Lang, Jerry Lee Lewis, Little Richard, Jeff Lynne, Lynyrd Skynyrd, The Mamas & The Papas, Martha & the Vandellas, Dave Mason, Paul McCartney, Metallica, Stevie Nicks, The O’Jays, Roy Orbison, Jimmy Page, Parliament-Funkadelic, Joe Perry, Tom Petty, Wilson Pickett, The Pretenders, Prince, Queen, Bonnie Raitt, The Rascals, R.E.M., Lou Reed, The Righteous Brothers, Robbie Robertson, The Ronettes, Axl Rose, Santana, Percy Sledge, Soul Asylum, Bruce Springsteen, The Staple Singers, Patti Smith, Booker T. & the MG’s, James Taylor, Traffic, Tina Turner, U2, The Who, Ann & Nancy Wilson, Steve Winwood, Ron Wood, ZZ Top."
08/24/09
Larry Knechtel,
a well-known studio musician who was a member of "the wrecking crew" and as such, played bass on The Byrds' first single (Mr Tambourine Man b/w I Knew I'd Want You), died on August 20, aged 69. He also played keyboards on The Byrds' Byrdmaniax LP.He was also a member of David Gates' band Bread ('Guitar Man', 'Baby I'm-A Want You') during the seventies.
You can see an impressive but uncomplete list of his session work by visiting http://home.cogeco.ca/~mansion3/larryknechtel.html.
08/19/09
Manassas album of outtakes due for release
On September 22, 2009, Stephen Stills, singer, songwriter and
multi-instrumentali
"The bits and pieces we were silly enough to leave off", Stills writes in the
liner notes. Manassas, the country rock band he formed in 1971 with Chris
Hillman of the Byrds and the Flying Burrito Brothers, released two albums: a
self-titled two-disc set in 1972 and "Down the Road" in 1973.
"Pieces" includes alternate versions of two "Down the Road" songs, "Do You
Remember the Americans" and "Lies", the latter featuring Joe Walsh on guitar. It
also features Manassas versions of "Word Game" and "Sugar Babe", which first
appeared on "Stephen Stills 2" in 1971, as well as "Like a Fox", which features
a then-fledgling Bonnie Raitt on backing vocals.
In the "Pieces" liner notes, Stills writes fondly of Manassas as "the first
steel-guitar-
MANASSAS "PIECES"
(*previously unreleased)
"Witching Hour"*
"Sugar Babe"*
"Lies" * (with Joe Walsh)
"My Love Is A Gentle Thing"
"Like a Fox"*
"Word Game"*
"Tan Sola Y Triste"*
"Fit To Be Tied"*
"Love and Satisfy"*
"High & Dry"*
"Panhandle Rag"*
"Uncle Pen"*
"Do You Remember the Americans"*
"Dim Lights, Thick Smoke (and Loud, Loud Music)"*
"I Am My Brother"*
08/19/09
The Byrds Collective is a new Byrds Tribute Band.
You can learn more about them at http://www.thebyrdscollective.com/
08/12/09
New releases from
SIERRA RECORDSFrom John Delgatto:
http://www.goestores.com/storename/sierrarecordsbookshomevideo/ViewDept-251900.aspx
We have opened a new blog only for offering our spare copies of
Byrds related items for sale.
07/31/09
News regarding a set of Flying Burrito Brothers reissues.
Universal International in Japan will reissue 5 FBB albums on 26 August. These reissues will be in those nice limited edition papersleeves and will also be SHM-CDs (Super High-quality Material) which are playable on ordinary CD players.
The reissues are as follows:
Bonus Tracks are as follow:
(between brackets, albums on which these tracks already appear - not exhaustive)
which means that there is ABSOLUTELY NO NEW, UNRELEASED TRACK ON THESE CDs
Thanks to Simon Robinson for helping.
07/29/09
Members and readers of the
GRAM PARSONS FORUMS who wonder where the forums have gone, should click on the following link:The official site is being reworked into another kind of site and the forums have been moved.
07/28/09
We were recently advised to purchase an album by
The Electric Prunes (an US band that was famous in the 60s). We were so pleasantly surprised that we felt we ought to recommend it to Byrds Flyght visitors.
The band reunited in 2004 and released an album called
CALIFORNIA on the PruneTwang label. It's full of excellent tracks, and we particularly recommend a song called THE RICKENBACKER 12 STRING, which will appeal to all Byrds fans.
07/27/09
John Dawson
, a founder member of The New Riders Of The Purple Sage in 1969, has died on July 21, 2009, aged 64.Skip Battin
played with John Dawson during his stint with the New Riders in 1974-1975.
07/25/09
JOHN YORK
will be appearing in concert at THE FRET HOUSE, 309 N. Citrus Ave., Covina CA, 91723 (626-339-7020) on Sat. August 8, 2009, 8pm ($15).
07/20/09
Roger McGuinn
played the Peer Rhythm And Blues Festival in Belgium yesterday (July 19, 2009).The artists were (in no particular appearing order):
Jeff Beck, Dereck Trucks, John Mayall, South Side Johnny, Roger McCuinn, Steve Winwood, Joe Bonamassa, Rod Piazza, Liz Haley & The Zydekatsflyers, Lightnin' Guy & the Mighty Gators, Boo Boo Davis...
We couldn't make it, but here's what a visitor from the Netherlands has to say:
Roger McGuinn was to me the highlight of the festival. This very sympathetic man brought us back to the 60s, with his typical jangling 12-string guitar sound and his soft high-pitched voice. The Byrds, but also a brilliant solo carreer. Turn Turn Turn, Mr Tambourine Man, You Ain't Going Nowhere, Pretty Boyd Floyd, Chesnut Mare and all those other fantastic songs. Seeing and hearing this man only was worth the trip to Peer.
Thanks to Arthur for the picture and the review
Update 7/26/2009 : watch him !
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NvzL0OeOZB4
07/18/09
Clarence White
Special at:http://www.adioslounge.com/2009/07/clarence-white-strap-yourself-to-tree.html
Do a search on "
Clarence White" on this excellent blog and you'll be surprised...
07/18/09
Crawdaddy!
magazine, just posted an article by roadie/writer Dinky Dawson about his experience touring with The Byrds in 1970:http://crawdaddy.wolfgangsvault.com/Article/1970-Tales-of-Byrds-and-Brownies.html
07/14/09
Those who enjoyed
Barry McGuire and John York's recent european "Trippin' The 60's" concerts, and those who missed them, can now rejoice, as Barry and John will be back in Europe in late september / early october (Switzerland, Germany and The Netherlands).
07/14/09
John York
kindly checked Byrds Flyght's JY Discography Page and sent us some details, corrections and deletions.Thanks to him.
View it here :
http://users.skynet.be/fa388247/discoyork2.htm
07/09/09
Tony Poole
, leader of the Byrds-influenced 70s band Starry Eyed & Laughing, has recorded, engineered, mixed, mastered, produced and musically masterminded a new CD by Peter O'Brien, the editor and publisher of the OMAHA RAINBOW magazine.Several Byrds-sounding songs should appeal to Byrds fans.
More info here: http://www.starryeyedandlaughing.com/peterobrien.htm
Recommended by
Byrds Flyght
07/03/09
Barry McGuire
and John York have just released a live CD, recorded in December 2008 at one of their "Trippin' The 60s" concerts.
Trippin' The 60s - The Show Songs Live
Green Green
The Times They Are A-Changin / Blowin' In The Wind
Mr Tambourine Man / Turn Turn Turn
Eve of Destruction
California Dreamin' / Monday, Monday / Creeque Alley
San Francisco
Dolphins
Everybody's Talkin'
Daydream
Hair
Do You Believe In Magic
Green Back Dollar
Joy To The World
Reason To Believe
If I Were A Carpenter
City of New Orleans
Woodstock /Dancin' In The Street
In My Life
live at The Coffee Gallery Backstage - Altadena, California on December 19, 2008 plus a 20 page booklet with stories about the songs and color photos.
06/29/09
Songs that will appear on CSN's forthcoming album of covers:
Ruby Tuesday (The Rolling Stones)
Uncle John's Band (The Grateful Dead)
You Can Close Your Eyes (James Taylor)
Girl From The North Country (Bob Dylan)
Reason To Believe (Tim Hardin)
Crosby, Stills & Nash at Glastonbury, U.K., June 27, 2009
06/24/09
UPDATE UPDATE
According to some sources, there will be NO bonus tracks on the FBBs upcoming japanese CD re-releases.
Some other sources confirm that there will be bonus tracks.
So we won't comment anymore about that until track listings are officially published .
06/23/09
UPDATE 6/23/2009 by Keisuke Tanimoto:
Dear Sirs,
I read your comment about SHM-CDs on Byrds Flyght .
I'm Japanese and I like to buy and listen to good quality sound CDs.
However, SHM-CDs are NOT high quality sounds. They are the material the CDs are made of, like GOLD CDs.
So if the SHM-CD was not remastered, it just dimmers (or blurs) the sound.
I compared The Flying Burrito Brothers "The Definitive Collection" on ordinary CD and SHM-CD. The ordinary CD was remastered perfectly and sounded really great, and so did the SHM-CD.
Then I compared some other SHM-CDs and ordinary CDs... and found out most of SHM-CDs just dimmed (or blurred) the sound. I think the sound quality depends on how the tracks were remastered, not on the material the discs are made of.
I'm using a $500 CD player, a $700 amp and a $140 headphone. This may not be a high quality stereo system, but it's not a cheap system either. Some people say that SHM-CDs are suitable for high quality systems, but then, how many people own such high quality systems?
I believe ordinary CDs with remastered sound are better than SHM-CDs. So I'm trying to avoid SHM-CDs and buy imported ordinary CDs.
However, the bonus tracks of the FBBs SHM-CDs are making me wonder what they are.
Sincerely yours,
Keisuke Tanimoto
P.S. So called Blue-ray disc CDs and HQCDs are same as SHM-CDS.
06/21/09
Info sent to Byrds Flyght by Simon Robinson (thanks Simon).
Simon Says :
Universal International in Japan will reissue 5 FBB albums on 26 August. These reissues will be in those nice limited edition papersleeves and will also be SHM-CDs (Super High-quality Material) which are playable on ordinary CD players.
Are SHM-CDs better? I'm not sure - I have some recent Japanese Tom Petty reissues that are SHM-CDs and I didn't notice a great difference in sound quality (and I have a high quality stereo system to play them on).
The reissues are as follows:
Extra tracks currently unknown."
06/09/09
A New CD by
Crosby, Still And Nash called DEMOS has just been released.
Tracks:
Marrakesh Express [1969 Demo]
Almost Cut My Hair [1969 Demo]
You Don't Have To Cry [1968 Demo]
Déjà Vu [1969 Demo]
Sleep Song [1969 Demo]
My Love Is A Gentle Thing [1968 Demo]
Be Yourself [1971 Demo]
Music Is Love [1970 Demo]
Singing Call [1970 Demo]
Long Time Gone [1968 Demo]
Chicago [1970 Demo]
Love The One You're With [1970 Demo]
06/03/09
Christine's Tune
(a.k.a. Devil In Disguise) by The Flying Burrito Brothers appears on the recently released TRUE BLOOD movie soundtrack CD.
05/30/09
Clarence White'
s brother Roland White and his partner Diane Bouska tell us in an e-mail that they are working on a CD release of The White Brothers LP "Live In Sweden" from 1973.
05/30/09
A home movie from 1958, featuring a 14 years old
Clarence White, has just been made available by Clarence's brother Roland White.
Watch it here : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6x4lArNXRF0
05/19/09
Complete BEAT CLUB TV shows available soon (featuring
The Byrds and Manassas)There 3 massive DVD Volumes (24 DVDs), making up the entire famed German Rock TV show from 1965 to 1972 in date order, will be released in June 2009.
1) '
Story of Beatclub Vol.1' (1965 -1968) (8DVD) Featuring:The Who, The Hollies, The Walker Brothers, Sounds Incorporated, The Moody Blues, Cream, The Smoke, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, The Kinks, The Herd, The Troggs, Chris Farlowe, Dave Davies, The Bee Gees, Cat Stevens and many more...2)
'Story of Beatclub Vol.2' (1968-1970) (8DVD) Featuring: Harry Nilsson, The Who, The Troggs, Tiny Tim, Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band, Manfred Mann, Joe Cocker, The Beach Boys, Canned Heat, Love Sculpture, Fleetwood Mac, Spooky Tooth, Caravan, Keef Harley Band, Procol Harum, Richie Havens and many more...3)
'Story of Beatclub Vol.3' (1970-1972) (8DVD) Featuring: Alexis Korner, Alice Cooper, Amon Düül II, Birth Control, Can, Canned Heat, Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band, Caravan, Family, Fanny, Fotheringay, Frumpy, Ginger Baker's Air Force, Grateful Dead, James Taylor, Jeff Beck Group, Patto, Poco, Popol Vuh, Santana, Stephen Stills' Manassas, Stone The Crows, Stoneground, T. Rex, The Byrds, The Doors, The Everly Brothers, The Grease Band, The Incredible String Band, The New Riders Of The Purple Sage, The Rolling Stones, The Soft Machine, Yes and many more...
05/12/09
What would you call an album that has cover versions of 5
Byrds tracks, 2 Flying Burrito Brothers tracks, 1 Gene Clark solo track, 2 Gram Parsons solo tracks and 1 Emmylou Harris track? We here at Byrds Flyght call this a Byrds Tribute album.But then, what about the fact that there is absolutely no mention of (nor reference to) any of these artists on the LP covers (front and back)? We call that a mystery.
Well, such is the case for an album that we purchased yesterday, after it was brought to our attention by
Dave Gleason.The album is by a british band that went by the name of
Sioux. It was released in 1976.
Track Listing:
"So You Say You Lost Your Baby"
"Here Without You"
"Ooh Las Vegas"
"Hickory Wind"
"Renaissance Fair"
"In My Hour Of Darkness"
"Amarillo"
"Colorado"
"I'll Feel A Whole Lot Better"
"God's Own Singer"
"Time Between"
Lineup:
Jacquie Sullivan, Gary Travers & Gordon Neville with help from Chas Hodges, Phil Palmer, Dave Peacock and Gus York.
05/09/09
John will be at the RHINO RECORDS in Claremont on May 17th. Please stop by and enjoy your Sunday afternoon!
John York solo
RHINO RECORDS
Sunday, May 17th, 2007 - 2:00pm~, free - 235 Yale Ave. Claremont, CA. 91711 - 909-626-7774
Trippin’ The 60’s
Barry McGuire & John York - U.K. & Ireland tour - May 24th~June 12th, 2009
Details: http://www.johnyorkmusic.com
04/29/09
Vern Gosdin
, who suffered a stroke at the start of April 2009, passed away in his sleep at a Nashville hospital the evening of April 28, 2009 at the age of 74.Vern Gosdin
played with Chris Hillman, Roger McGuinn, Gene Clark, Michael Clarke and tens of other artists.
04/19/09
John York
with Patrick Brayer
04/16/09
Due soon from Rhino, 12 previously unreleased demos recorded between 1968 and 1971, including early versions of '"Marrakesh Express", "Almost Cut My Hair", "Long Time Gone" and "Love The One You're With"'.
Neil Young performs with Crosby and Nash on "Music Is Love", a song the three co-wrote that appeared on Crosby's 1971 solo debut, "If I Could Only Remember My Name".
Crosby flies his "freak flag" alone on the anthemic "Almost Cut My Hair", a track featured on the group's 1970 #1 album "Déjà Vu".
Stills performs unaccompanied on a 1968 demo of "My Love Is A Gentle Thing".
Nearly all of the tracks on Crosby Stills and Nash Demos were recorded at Wally Heider studios, a popular recording destination on the West Coast for everyone from Jefferson Airplane to Creedence Clearwater Revival.
04/11/09
Recent
Gene Parsons Interview (03/30/2009)From
Bill Buchanan:It's a community radio program, so it lacks the polish of a professional show. But among other things he talks about his music, the Byrds, "Gunga Din," Stringbender, the book and CD he would like to finish, and a scale steam engine he's building.
Go to http://www.kdrt.org/station/archives/867
and listen to, or download, the March 30 program.
04/06/09
David Crosby
appears on one track (a new version of California Dreaming) on Al Jardine's new CD called A Postcard From California.
04/04/09
Roger McGuinn
sings and play on one track on a November 2008 CD titled My Favorite Martin, on which legendary guitarists pay tribute to the eminent guitar builder, Martin Guitar Co., on its 175th Anniversary. The CD also has a version of Roger McGuinn & Gene Clark's YOU SHOWED ME by Elliott Easton.
03/18/09
Roger McGuinn
's BACK FROM RIO album from 1991 is planned for being re-released in digipak, budget price format this month on the SPV Yellow label.
03/17/09
Starry Eyed And Laughing
was a british Byrds-sounding band from the 70s, led by Tony Poole.A new "
All Their Best" compilation CD has just been released on the Cherry Red label, with two previously unreleased tracks.
See all details and get the CD here:
http://www.cherryred.co.uk/other/product.php?display=stern4and....
Tony Poole
was also a member of a band called The Sun. A CD called Start The Countdown has also been released, compiling previously released and unreleased tracks.
See details and get it here:
http://www.starryeyedandlaughing.com/Starry_Sun.htm
03/13/09
New Gene Clark Tribute planned.
From Ben Meltzer:
I am initiating a Gene Clark tribute project and am looking for individual
investors or labels that can help finance this endeavor. The album will consist
of new recordings by established artists of classic songs by Gene Clark from his
solo albums and his work with the Byrds and with Dillard & Clark. The tracks
will be produced by three-time time Grammy winning producer John Chelew, who has
produced four albums for the Blind Boys Of Alabama as well as John Hiatt’s
iconic breakthrough album Bring The Family. He has also produced albums by
Donovan, Richard Thompson, Vic Chestnut, and Charlie Musselwhite, among others.
Anyone wanting information or to help can contact me for more information.
Ben Meltzer
443 827 3492
benjaminmeltzer@yahoo.com
03/06/09
The
Scottsville Squirrel Barkers will be making their second reunion in six years, playing the annual Adams Avenue Street Festival in San Diego on Sunday, April 26th.For further details, go to
http://www.chrishillman.
The
Thanks to Alan for the info.
03/05/09
From
JOHN YORK :"Dear Friends,
We came back from Australia tour last week. John played music with Barry McGuire. The show called "The Trippin' The sixties." If you haven't experience the show, please join us. John also has solo concert in Claremont California! We love share happiness and joy through music.
Best,
Sumi & John"
Trippin’ The 60’s - Barry McGuire & John York
Saturday, March 21, 2009. 7pm - The Meyer Theater - Green Bay Wisconsin -
http://meyertheater.orgWednesday, March 25, 2009. 12-13:20pm - San Vernadino Valley Campus - Library Viewing Room - -701 S. Mt Vernon Ave. - San Vernadino, CA
Thursday, March 26, 2009. 8pm - Coffee Gallery Back Stage - 2029 N. Lake Ave. Altadena, CA. 91001 - 626-398-7917
Friday, March 27, 2009. 8pm - Coffee Gallery Back Stage - 2029 N. Lake Ave. Altadena, CA. 91001 - 626-398-7917
John York SOLO concert
Gelencser House Concert - Saturday, March 28, 2009, 7:30pm - Claremont CA - 909-596-1266 -
http://gelencserhouseconcerts.com
02/28/09
Gene Parsons
' KINDLING album from 1972 will be re-released on CD by Collectors Choice in March 2009.
We here at
Byrds Flyght don't understand why Collectors Choice chose to re-release the original album only, when a more complete, extended version is still available (as Kindling Collection) from John Delgatto's Sierra Records (click hereunder)http://www.goestores.com/storename/sierrarecordsbookshomevideo/dept/168680/ItemDetail-10070408.aspx
02/21/09
Thanks to
Steve Wisner from the U.S., who found another obscure ex-Byrds participation on other people's records, and then passed it on to the ever-vigilant Mike Masterson in the U.K. This latest find is a single by Jimmie Lee Morris on which Clarence White plays.This record is not on any Clarence White discography that we know of. Except, as from today, on Byrds Flyght's own Clarence White Discography
This is the artist who was wrongly credited as "Jimmy Morse" on the unofficial "Palomino Tape" by the Flying Burrito Brothers.
02/19/09
Planned for release in March 2009: The Roots Of Gram Parsons
It's a Various Artists compilation of songs that were later recorded by
Gram Parsons
02/16/09
Released today:
The Roots Of The Byrds
It's a Various Artists compilation of songs that were later recorded by
The Byrds or Roger McGuinn1. A Satisfied Mind - Porter Wagoner
2. My Destiny - Wanda Jackson
3. Farther Along - Rose Maddox
4. The Christian Lane - The Louvin Brothers
5. The Water Is Wide - Pete Seeger
6. I Am A Pilgrim - Merle Travis
7. Turn Turn Turn - Pete Seeger
8. The Bells Of Rhymney - Pete Seeger
9. Blue Canadian Rockies - Gene Autry
10. O Susanna - Pete Seeger
11. Shady Grove - Bill Monroe And His Blue Grass Boys
12. Deportee (Plane Wreck At Los Gatos) - Woody Guthrie
13. Glory Glory When I Lay My Burden Down - Joseph Spence
14. Take A Whiff On Me - Leadbelly
15. James Alley Blues - Richard "Rabbit" Brown
16. Off To Sea Once More - Louis Killen
17. Heave Away, My Johnny - Sam Eskin
18. Returning Sweetheart - Sarah Hawkes
19. John The Revelator - Blind Willie Johnson
20. Old Blue - Pete Seeger
21. Pretty Boy Floyd - Woody Guthrie
22. I Come And Stand At Every Door - Pete Seeger
02/14/09
Roger McGuinn
sings and plays on the opening track (Peace Of Mind) of Will Dailey's new CD-Ep called Fashion Of Distraction
02/08/09
Ex-
Buffalo Springfield drummer Dewey Martin passed away on January 31, 2009.During the mid-sixties, he played in a band called Pink Slip alongside ex-Byrds member John York, Randy Meisner and Billy Darnell.
02/07/09
A
Graham Nash carreer anthology has just been released.It is a 3 CDs set titled Reflections, and it includes 32 alternate takes and versions of already released songs, as well as 6 unreleased songs.
David Crosby appears on many tracks.
02/05/09
R.I.P. Tom Brumley
Ex
Desert Rose Band pedal steel player Tom Brumley passed away yesterday (2/4/2009).Before his stint with the DRB, Tom Brumley played with Buck Owens, Rick Nelson, Rose Maddox, Waylon Jennings, Dwight Yoakam, Steve Warner, Rod Stewart, Chris Isaak, Merle Haggard, Reba McIntyre, Sara Evans, Janie Fricke, Burton Cummings, Martina McBride and more.
02/02/09
Roger McGuinn
's "Festival Special" this summer in Europe...He's booked for at least two festival appearances in July:
Burg Herzberg Open Air Festival (Germany) on July 17, 2009 and Peer Rhythm & Blues Festival (Belgium) on July 19, 2009...
More to come???
01/22/09
New book now published:
The Gilded Palace Of Sin by Bob Proehl
The story behind this album by
The Flying Burrito Brothers and its recording sessions.
01/22/09
A new
Clarence White book + 2 Cds has just been released by Clarence's brother Roland White.
"This book/CD set presents Clarence's early but fully realized acoustic guitar style, as demonstrated in the recordings he made at home in 1962. These songs were included in the "33 Acoustic Guitar Instrumentals" CD. The book isn't a survey of his entire career but rather focuses on the core elements of his early style. The intent is to provide an entry point for intermediate players to understand and begin to play in this style, and to impart the flavor of Clarence's early musical environment. It's not a survey of music from his entire career, and the biography, by Roland, covers the years that Roland lived with him. Disc 1 contains Clarence's renditions, plus Windows Media format video of Clarence playing two tunes. The book also has a biographical section by Roland, and a lot of great pictures."
You can get it from
http://www.rolandwhite.com
New release by
BILL KAFFENBERGER: Looking Back And Then Looking Ahead
From Bill:
For this new release, I have picked the 14 best songs from my old releases that have the most Byrds/Rickenbacker influence. They have all been remixed and remastered and most are alternate takes that feature added or different Rickenbacker parts, added drums, added harmony vocals and so forth.
In addition, there are 3 bonus tracks consisting of all new Rickenbacker-influenced original recordings.
For information, go to this link:
09/26/08
Ron Martin (Byrds-influenced artist and a member of the Byrdmaniax List) and Marco Zanzi (another Byrds-influenced artist from Italy, and the webmaster of the Byrds Lyrics webpage), have put together a band called The Piedmont Brothers Band. Their new CD has now been released released.
You can purchase it through the PBB website (PayPal instant purchase service available - credit cards/secure server).
http://www.piedmontbrothersband.com/home.htmlSomeone once told me that my « Recommended Albums » page only referred to my friends’ releases, no matter what the quality was. Not so. All the albums I put on this page, I really like them.
Such is the case for this CD, although both main performers (Ron Martin and Marco Zanzi) are indeed « virtual » friends of mine.
This CD can only appeal to Byrds fans, as both Ron and Marco are heavily influenced by The Byrds. (harmony vocals, 12 string guitar, mandolin, Parsons-White stringbender…).
Although I hate the term « Country Rock », I can find no other way to label this excellent album. File under « Desert Rose Band / Flying Burrito Brothers » musical style.
09/03/08
We had to wait a long time for it, but the Desert Rose Band fans and friends finally have their favorite band's first DRB site on the internet.
Visit it here: http://www.drb-fans.com
07/07/08
NEW PAGE
Byrds fan David Chirko from Canada kindly provided us with a copy of his BYRDS COVERS list to be published on BYRDS FLYGHT.
Many thanks to him for this invaluable piece of work.
Additions, Corrections and Comments welcome at chirko@unitz.ca
05/23/08
Gene Clark on The Flying Burrito Brothers' version of Tried So Hard : the end of a myth.
We just received the following article from Jean-Pierre Morisset :
As far back as january 1975, in my very first article on Gene Clark published in ZigZag issue # 49, I wrote:
'Gene played a few gigs with The Flying Burrito Bros who had just lost Gram Parsons during the summer (1970), and at one point it was believed that Clark was going to become a permanent member of the group. But of course he didn't; the only result of this short-lived alliance was the Burritos' recording of Clark's "Tried So Hard" as their next single, with Gene singing the bass part of the back-up vocals ...'Years later, in issue # 39/40 of Bucketfull Of Brains dated march 1992, I even added:
'... in a version different from the one that was later used on the Burritos' third album where Gene's voice was replaced by Rick Roberts.'Owning the rare A&M single "Tried So Hard" and having listened to it very carefully with headphones, I was sure to have identified a bass vocal which in my mind could only be Gene's voice, following his involvment with the Burritos' GP-less quartet during the summer of 1970. But unfortunately it's not the case !
After almost thirty eight years of belief, I finally asked Chris Hillman to confirm Gene's presence on that single. And here's what Chris wrote me:
'Gene was not on the Burritos' recording of "Tried So Hard": he didn't sing any harmonies on the song. In fact, as good of a lead singer as Gene was, he couldn't sing parts or alternate harmonies. Gene sang lead on "Here Tonight" by the Burritos, which was released later on a compilation album.'Returning to my archives after this historical point was cleared by Hillman, I finally found out that Rick Roberts had joined the FBB not in september after the recording session for the single, but in august, in time for the recording of the song, which was rush-released in october 1970, before a tour of Europe by The Flying Burrito Bros' new five-men line-up. Why his high voice can't be heard on the recording is unclear: maybe producer Jim Dickson purposedly choose not to mix Rick's harmonies upfront, as he was not familiar with the newcomer's voice. Anyway, another take the song was used on the Burritos' third LP released in may 1971, with Rick's high voice more prominent: had Jim Dickson in between realized the potential of such a harmony singer ? Maybe.
12/16/06
Horst-Peter Schmidt (from Germany - also known as "The Crown Prince Of The Twelve String") will release a CD soon.
HPS is well-known from the Byrds-sounding bands Different Faces and Starbyrd.
It will be called "Jingle Jangle Journey" and will come out as an official CD-R.
It will be a compilation of previously released songs spanning HPS' entire recording career from 1988 to 2004.
Extract from the liner notes:
"The 17 songs on Jingle Jangle Journey cannot really do justice to the wealth of melodic songs, upbeat tunes and powerful ballads that Horst-Peter has composed during his career, but this collection of songs is certainly a superb “snapshot” of his body of work. Once you have absorbed the music on this compilation, I believe that you will desire to hear more from the artist I have nicknamed “The Crown Prince of Twelve-String.” I stand in envy of his talent, and I remain grateful that he has added a sparkling codex of songs to the indie music scene. I am confident that when I pull Horst-Peter’s music off my shelf in the future, his songs will possess the same timeless and endearing qualities that the music of the Byrds, the Beatles, Bob Dylan, the Eagles, Tom Petty and CSNY have today." ---- Eric Sorensen, Jingle Jangle music journalist, www.fufkin.com
Track Listing:
01. When I Look Into Your Eyes (1988)
(4:02)
02. There Is An Island (1989) (5:12)
03. I Could Never Write Her Off (1989) (5:05)
04. London (1994) (6:34)
05. Peace Of Mind (1994) (3:29)
06. Southern Skies (1994) (4:26)
07. Monkeys (1995) (3:53)
08. Bayou Moonlight (1995) (1:44)
09. The More Things Change (2000) (4:03)
10. Back To The Roots (2000) (4:29)
11. Signature (2003) (5:21)
12. Forever Free (2003) (3:24)
13. Why (I Can HearTthe Angels Sing) (2003) (4:17)
14. Just A Little Closer (2004) (3:46)
15. I Wanna Fly Away (2004) (4:47)
16. Starbyrd (2004) (4:13)
17. Road Of Dreams (2004) (7:22)
You can pre-order the CD by sending an e-mail to
Horst-Peter at
starbyrd@t-online.de.
The price for the CD will be 12,99 € (+ shipping costs).
AND...
HPS' partner in Starbyd, GAT, will also release a compilation of his previous works this month (december 2006):
'Then To Now', the new GAT CD, is ready for release and will be available to buy in December 2006.
'Then To Now' is a collection of songs from 1999 right up to the present day. If you missed out on getting hold of the 'Coloured Blue' & 'Moving On' CD's, then this new CD by GAT is what you need. Included on the CD are also four tracks taken from the Starbyrd CD 'On The Other Side Of Mad' which GAT participated in, as well as a newly recorded song.
16 tracks in all, this CD will be well worth having.
09/10/06
Long time Byrds fan BILL KAFFENBERGER 's new CD released
It's called JINGLE JANGLE MORNING
Bill writes his own songs, plays a 12 string Rickenbacker, and his output is very Byrds-sounding.
From Bill:
06/07/06
Byrds sounding band STARBYRD have relaunched their website.
Visit http://www.starbyrd.eu/index2.html for latest news and info.
9/29/05 UPDATE
RON MARTIN (a member of the Byrdmaniax and Gene Clark mailing lists) has just released his new CD on the
FLYING CLOUD label. It is called THE CIRCLE OF LIFE and is Byrds-related!
Next to songs written by Ron Martin, the CD also includes covers of Gene Clark, Byrds and Manassas songs.
Tracks:
It Doesn't MatterEight Miles High
Daddy Went Walkin'
Feels So Near
Pisces Fish
B-Street Blues
Harvest Moon
Two of Us
Here Without You
Simple Twist of Fate
Leaves
See also Byrd Flyght's RECOMMENDED CDs page.
You can order Ron's CD here:
http://www.flyincloudrecords.com/cartease/item-detail.cfm?storeid=1&ID=FC046
A portion of the proceeds from the sale of each CD wil go to the Liddy Shriver Sarcoma Initiative www.liddyshriversarcomainitiative.org
Long time Byrds fan BILL KAFFENBERGER has just released his new CD called THIS WORLD IS BOUND TO FALL.
Bill writes his own songs, plays a 12 string Rickenbacker, and his output is very Byrds-sounding.
Details and links at http://users.skynet.be/byrdmaniax/recommended.htm
Brand New CLARENCE WHITE bio and discography pages by Thomas Aubrunner
CLARENCE WHITE BIO- & DISCOGRAPHY PAGES - recommended!
BYRDS
related band 
have released their first CD
called ON THE OTHER SIDE OF MAD.
It is filled with Byrds-sounding songs. Actually, it sounds more "Byrds" than any solo album recorded by ex-Byrds
members (except maybe for Roger McGuinn's Back From Rio).
1: I Want You To Know (Gat)
2: I Wanna Fly Away (Schmidt)
3: It's Still Me (Schmidt/Gat)
4: Starbyrd (Schmidt)
5: Sick And Tired Of You (Gat)
6: Equal Minds (Schmidt/Gat)
7: Handle With Care (Lynne/Petty/Dylan/Harrison/Orbison)
8: Chasin' Down The Sun (Lewis/Schmidt/Gat)
9: The Crown Prince and the King (Schmidt/Gat)
10: Back To The Roots (Schmidt)
11: Down By The River (Gat)
12: Just A Little Closer (Schmidt/Gat)
13: (Still) Chasin' Down The Sun (Lewis/Schmidt/Gat)
14: Psychedelic Bridges (Schmidt/Gat)
15: The Tears (C. McGuinn / R. McGuinn) (C) 1983 McGuinn Music (BMI) / April First Music (ASCAP)
16: Mauritius Moon (Schmidt)
17: Road Of Dreams (Schmidt)
TEST
BYRDSFLYGHT STRONGLY RECOMMENDS THIS ALBUM
It contains an excellent version of a hitherto unreleased Roger McGuinn / Camilla McGuinn song called THE TEARS
(which Roger performed live in the mid-80s).
Roger helped the band with suggestions for the recording, and Camilla wrote part of the booklet liner notes.
You can order it from this page: http://www.starbyrd.net
TERRY JONES ROGERS (who was a member of Michael Clarke's Byrds and who later led the
Byrds Celebration with Skip Battin and Gene Parsons), has an interesting new website with pictures,
stories, biography, discography, concert appearances, and much more (past, present and future)...
Byrds
1989: Jerry Sorn, Terry Jones Rogers,
Skip Battin, Michael
Clarke
You can visit it at http://www.terryjonesrogers.com and e-mail Terry at terryjonesrogers@juno.com
You can also read a review (with an interview by Byrds Flyght) ) of the 1996 Byrds Celebration
performance in Brussels, Belgium here:
http://www.geocities.com/byrdsflyght/celebration.htm
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