The Byrds Play Dylan

Since both camps were signed to Columbia, the Byrds had early access to Bob Dylan’s “Mr. Tambourine Man” before the original recording was released to the public. Label heads pushed the band to cover Dylan’s musing to Bruce Langhorne (a Greenwich Village folkie who played a large tambourine). Roger McGuinn’s 12-string Rickenbacker punctuated what may have been the first recorded “folk-rock” tune in April of 1965 (Dylan didn’t go electric until July of that same year). And since the Byrds’ version hit at #1 in both U.S. and U.K. charts, everybody knew they had a good thing going. This compilation illustrates the Byrds’ uncanny knack for the reinterpretation of Dylan songs throughout their lengthy span. Their jangly take on “All I Really Want to Do” opens with David Crosby’s salient lead harmony in the chorus. “It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue” is an outtake from their second album that should have been a lead track as it turned the ballad into a danceable gem. Their cosmic American version of “You Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere” has become a California campfire staple.