Reviews (page 2 of 8)
I find this band so boring
Oh well, once more. They have certainly been influential, and I realize they have a unique sound, but in terms of great songs and enjoying what I get to listen to in between, I find Byrds records a hit and miss thing.
man this site LOVES the byrds
I liked Younger Than Yesterday, the other Byrds album we've gotten so far, but liked this one more! It really hits that early psychedelic folky vibe that I like from this kind of music, and of course "Eight Miles High" is an all-time classic. I also need to shout out "I See You" for inspiring a cover by an early incarnation of Yes!
While we don’t need five albums from these folks, this was not bad. It is very much a 1966 album in that it is heavily Beatles inspired, but it was still decent.
It's somewhat derivative at points, but what does it matter, really.... they're good tunes at the end of the day, a rare sight in 60s rock. Not bad from The Byrds! Standouts: Wild Mountain Thyme • Captain Soul
Oof, this let me down. I don't think I realized how much they were relying on performing things Bob Dylan wrote up to this point. Apparently, contemporary reviews called this album unfocused and I have to agree. It doesn't seem like an album where there was experimentation going on that generated interesting new sounds. It seems more like they had a bunch of leftover stuff that got slapped together at once. The opening track was encouraging, but the less said about Mr. Spaceman, the better. We also have an inexplicable song from the perspective of an immolated child at Hiroshima, and the final track is a 2 minute repetition about a Lear Jet, at which point the album ends unceremoniously with no warning at all.
Not all the songs are up to par but the good ones are pretty good.
There was a time when I would have grooved into oblivion on this hippy dippy “I open my heart to the world” stuff, but that was before MAGA fascism.
The Byrds have such an iconic sound. And you either love it or hate it. I was surprised to find that I enjoyed it quite a bit! A couple hits on this album, but really it was solid from beginning to end. 4/5
First song is interesting as as thought experiment and very philosophical, the music was okay. I'm a sucker for Irish music so a cover of Wild Mountain Thyme was fun. Mr. Spaceman had a Johnny Cash bassline, and some Simon/Garfunkel-esque harmony, and Bob Dylan vocals. It is an interesting mishmash of sound and style. "I See You" is a weird discordant song, but it kinda works, but isn't my favorite. "What's Happening?" is a very fun song, so simple but catchy and memorable. I love the meaning behind "I Come and Stand at Every Door" but it is kind of a boring song. "Eight Miles High" has a fun guitar intro and music, but I kind of felt like the singer was too slow comparatively. "Hey Joe" is good, but just kind of blends in. "Captain Soul" is a great jam track. Love the bass in it and harmonica, this band also just loves that discordant guitar sound. "John Riley" is a fun cover, but I feel like they should have done it faster. "2-4-2" is a fun song, but I can see how some people wouldn't like it. Overall I liked this album and would listen to it again, but I wouldn't miss it. It does seem interesting and potential ahead of its time, or at the least a great representation of the time. 3/5 Favorite Tracks: Mr. Spaceman, What's Happening?, Captain Soul Least Favorite Tracks: I Come and Stand at Every Door,
Waayyyy better than expected
C'était TRES bien
I did not really care for this
A very 1960's folk rock album. Neat to hear David Crosby prior to him teaming up with Stills and Nash. Pretty good stuff, very mellow. I'm not sure what that 2-4-2 Fox Trot song is for, it should have been left off.
It was fine.
Again, I need to listen to this one again. I’m going off feels here and the feels are telling me this is a square 4.
Rather passed me by, most of the tracks were two and a half minutes or under so it flew by pretty quickly.
Colocaram Bob Dylan e os Beatles num liquidificador e bateram, deu uma vitamina The Byrds. Bom disco, mas não é algo que eu escutaria nas minhas playlists.
Good stuff. On this album the Byrds are starting to leaven their brand of light folk rock and close harmony with sitar-influenced guitar work and more complex song structures, making them sound a bit more distinctive and pushing towards what will become psychedelic rock. Some really good tracks on here and some that are a bit rougher around the edges.
Good album!
Инновационный звук которым The Byrds скрасили свой альбом Fifth Dimension теперь стал настолько базовым, что его уникальность читается только если рассматривать его как первопроходца жанра. А в остальном приятный, но базовый психоделик-саунд середины 60х
Imagine The Byrds on their first acid trip: 'Hey guys, let's try this new sound thing...' That's Fifth Dimension for you. It's not terrible, just a bit all over the place. Spins: 1 Playlist Additions - 5D (Fifth Dimension) - Mr. Spaceman - Eight Miles High
This was alright, not super my thing but a perfectly smooth and nice background listen
I feel like I'm always slightly disappointed when I come back and listen to The Byrds because when I was younger I thought this was amazing but now it just feels a bit flat or something. Not sure why that is? On paper this should be really up my street and once upon a time it was, but there's just this kind of lack of cohesion that I'm feeling here. WHATS THAT ABOUT
Appreciated the musicianship but was never really into this one, also way too long for what it is
I haven’t heard this before but I’ve heard more than half of these songs before. I dig the Byrds and have liked them since I was a kid since my dad listened to them a lot. I’m kinda surprised he doesn’t have this album, and in fact I think he only has a greatest hits comp. This is a landmark in psych and jangle pop and extends way beyond their original folk rock sound. I can dig it.
This is what the youths would call “mid”
Not my favorite Byrds album. Love the 12-string, as always.
I really don’t know how the 60s has come to be regarded as such a great era for music. Every album is just trying to sound like the last one that came out. Nothing on this album stands out. It’s all more of the same folksy psychedelic Brit pop.
Very cool album, not super cohesive tho so it can be a bit all over the place.
It's fine but most of the songs are pretty boring. Not much more to say again sorry. The rating is lower than perhaps usual because it was completely forgettable and I'm too generous.
This is very much not my thing - I was tempted to give 3 stars anyway because there's one song where they sound exactly like Tom Petty, but that was overcome by whatever the hell that last song was - oof.
WTF I thought I'd already gotten all the Byrds albums on this list but apparently I have 2 more (including this one 😔). Why are there so many Byrds albums here?? I don't hate The Byrds, I just think they're overrepresented on this list considering the quality of music they produce.
Great lyrics, good riffs. Really fun 60s psychedelia. John riley was a great one.
The album didn't hit for me, I might enjoy it more if I was very high. I always love their guitar sound and vocals, but the best songs on this album are covers that others did better (hey joe, I know you rider). "Hey mr spaceman won't you please take me along"... I'm just. not. high. enough.
Bueno para tenerlo de fondo.
There’s like 8 million psych rock albums on here which would leave you to believe EVERYONE in the 60s was on acid. It’s really is just overbearing and all of them blend in to each other. The Byrds are talented but there is no distinguishing this from their other efforts or the efforts of their peers
The Byrds really don’t strike a chord with me. Not unlistenable and has some good points but not making me a dedicated fan
Just bored. This was boring. Not total dreck but man, this list has burned me out on The Byrds, after being pretty charmed by the first album or two of theirs I came across.
I will not include the bonus tracks from the 1996 CD reissue in this review. Last time I spoke about The Byrds, it was regarding Younger Than Yesterday, an album that saw them continue dabbling in psychedelia and jazz following their previous record. Well, here's that previous record. Fifth Dimension would be a significant album in the band's catalog, not only for the increased songwriting contributions from James Roger McGuinn and David Crosby in the wake of Gene Clark's exit from the group, but also for its influence across the folk rock, psychedelic rock, country rock, and raga rock genres. In fact, the term "raga rock" was coined by the band's publicist during the promotion of the lead single, "Eight Miles High". So the significance of Fifth Dimension to the rest of the 1960s is firmly established. The question is, does it hold up all these years later? Let me start by acknowledging how strong the opening title track is for setting the mood. It's a very loose psychedelic waltz, as Roger sang about crossing beyond his dimensional boundaries with such curiosity. Roger has stated that this track was based on Albert Einstein's Theory of Relativity, but it's more likely a song about taking drugs. In fact, it can be argued that multiple songs on this record are ostensibly about being on drugs while trying to hide it behind abstract lyrics that could have a more reasonable meaning, such as the band's flight to London on "Eight Miles High", the fervent desires to be with a loved one on "I See You", Roger's earnest wonderment toward extraterrestrial life on the jaunty country-rock tune "Mr. Spaceman", or David Crosby's constant questioning of his given predicament on "What's Happening?!?!". The only sobering moment on this record is "I Come and Stand at Every Door", adapted from a poem by Turkish poet Nâzım Hikmet, describing from the viewpoint of a seven-year-old Japanese girl killed during the atomic bombing of Hiroshima. It is a shockingly harrowing ballad, one that I did not expect The Byrds of all bands to pull off. Along the way, the band did a reasonably solid job in taking influence from raga and modal jazz to make such trippy songs, most notably with "Eight Miles High", one of the last songs written by Gene Clark for the band. Speaking of him, it's clear that Gene Clark's absence was felt. Not only is the best song on here the aforementioned "Eight Miles High" by a comfortable margin, but the band had to compensate by including multiple covers and an instrumental, none of which quite stack up. "Captain Soul" is an admittedly fine blues instrumental that's not much to write home about, and the band's takes on the traditional "Wild Mountain Thyme" and "John Riley" both come off rather dry in the execution, even with producer Allen Stanton's string arrangements. I will give David Crosby credit for convincing the band to jump on the bandwagon of covering Billy Roberts's "Hey Joe", cause they did try to make it fun with that bouncy cowbell. Still, the superior "Hey Joe" cover would come out the following year from Jimi Hendrix. Finally, the album closes on "2-4-2 Fox Trot (The Lear Jet Song)", a song inspired by the band's friend John Lear, son of jet manufacturer Bill Lear, in an attempt to immerse the listener in the takeoff of one of John's private jets. It certainly has novelty as one of the first pop tunes to incorporate recorded sound effects, even if it made for a rather perfunctory ending. All in all, I will credit Fifth Dimension with laying the groundwork for several musical innovations throughout the rest of the 1960s. I wish the album wasn't as uneven as it is, as many of these ideas weren't fully realized and didn't lend themselves to a cohesive body of work.
Two Byrds in a row. This one was a little better
Didn't totally capture me but I liked it. My parents like it
theres only so much you can say when you are reviewing your 4th byrds album y'kno. ive covered the CIA stuff and that i generally like them. its kinda nice that they're like folky country guys and not like annoying rock and roll guys...
Fun!
Overall, actually not a bad album. It has this vibe from around that time, it's pretty chill having in the backgroundd.
As often, coming from the next Millenium the records sound less psychedelic than the cover art suggests to todays ears. Pretty cool though
Never really got the Byrds. It’s all very pretty, but also just a bit bland to my ears. This is leaving me cold. 2
Very Christian. Alright though.
Passable rock music, entirely unremarkable. Mixing's a bit shit. Hardly noticed the album go by. Possibly because it's not even a full 30 minutes.
Mr. Spaceman has to be the inspiration for Dear Mr. Kennedy, right? Some of those electric solos...yikes. Van Dyke Parks on keyboards! (He did all the orchestral arrangements on Ys)
okei... auto
Feathery fun.
Great
Byrds have been consistently mid for me throughout this journey. I'm happy this effort doesn't feel very Americana, instead dabbling a little in country rock for the A side. It could be worse, honestly. Eight Miles High is new to me, and yes, it feels pretty psychedelic, more than just a little groovy, very dated but in a way that feels frozen in time. Feels iconic to start off the B side of the record, and the energy kind of maintains in that realm until the end. I'd buy this record for the B side. I wouldn't spend much on it, but it's a fun occasional spin. 2.8/5
Another psychedelic experiment by the Byrds but this one just doesn’t have the juice
I never liked this type of shitty country/folk rock. This was bad.
66/100
okay
Yeah, I liked this - good band, like most of their stuff, some good cool trax on here
Sehr schön klingendes Album ::)
ganz nett
Byrds wie immer 3 Sterne. Angenehm zu hören, mehr aber auch nicht. Warum so viele Byrds alben auf der Liste?
I like the Byrds a little more in this weird sci-fi mode - they were a little bland on mr tambourine man here they seem to be embracing their weirdo side. Mr Spaceman is very fun and Eight Miles High is awesome - surprised it came out before Tomorrow Never Knows. Their version of Hey Joe is way worse than another version I also listened to today. Also at one point I was like "why are they doing that annoying Byrds guitar thing" then I remembered they are the Byrds. What a compliment that I forgot though.
Beautiful
Щось психоделічне, мабуть. Mr. Spaceman весела пісня, сподобалася. Не сподівано хороший альбом.
Me gusta la onda del álbum
The good hippie stuff.
This was really good. Nostalgia hit hard since my dad was a big fan of this style of music.
Listens: 3 Standout Tracks: Mr. Spaceman, Hey Joe (Where You Gonna Go) Yea, so my first foray into the Byrds was their sixth studio album, Sweetheart Of The Rodeo, wherein they apparently had a significant departure from their previous psychedelic sound and dove into the "Country Rock" genre. This album is decidedly more psychedelic rock with a bit of folk thrown in the mix. It's still not quite my cup of tea, but its miles better than Sweetheart Of The Rodeo. Concepts like the 5th Dimension and being taken away by aliens is much more palatable in my mind than whatever come up on a country rock album...
Not every Byrds album need to be on this list. Couple decent songs, bunch of covers, bunch of "psychedelic " songs and some shitty noodling on the guitar.
Byrds!!!!!!!!!!!!
Quite pleasant, but a little too much of the same laid-back energy after a while. That Hey Joe cover took me by surprise! Such a strange interpretation I didn't even mind.
Fine trippy folk rock
I'm gonna need a minute about this Hey Joe thing..
Extremely tired of 60s rock albums.
really nice
Gene Clark leaves the Byrds, and it shows. I really do enjoy a lot of the tracks - "Eight Miles High", probably the last thing Clark helped write for them, is a seminal slice of psychedelia, incorporating John Coltrane influenced guitar playing and raga based music. This band was one of the best guitar bands of their time, so it's pulled off quite well! But, it's overall disjointed and lots of filler, druggy efforts, and throwaway blues jams. What made their first two albums timeless makes this one feel like a cash-in on the trends of the time. What's really weird about this list is that this is included along with Younger Then Yesterday and Sweetheart of the Rodeo, but NO Turn! Turn! Turn! ?? Who knows. Maybe because two Gene Clark albums are already on here. It sucks when the editor doesn't always share the same taste as the fans of the band.
ну теж таке
It gets the same writing as the last one I reviewed, and probably the next Byrds album I review too. It's perfectly fine, but not interesting enough for me to engage particularly with it.
I think this must be the last Byrds album for me. Not sure what makes them sooooo important and now I'm jaded. Some nice guitar twiddling but soo boring.
A few songs break through otherwise okay folk pop. The proto-psych rock stuff stands out. Half-tempted to get a copy of this.
This is an interesting crossover between folk music and psychedelia, especially on the title track which genuinely sounds like Bob Dylan floating through the universe on a particularly freaky acid trip. This is followed by an oddly out of place cover of a traditional Scottish folk song - I’m guessing that they don’t have much purple heather in San Francisco, but then we are back to the weirdness with a song about ufos and little green men. The highlight is probably the best known track here, the soaring Eight Miles High which has echos of some of the Beatles experiments with Eastern mysticism that were in the zeitgeist at the time. Apparently many radio stations refused to play it as they thought it was a drugs reference. Wonder where they got that idea from?
Not sure I needed more non descript 60s rock but this was listenable and runs for a nice 30 minutes. That song with the plane in the background was a terrible choice though
I have a bit of Byrds/ 60s rock fatigue from this list but this is an enjoyable record on the whole. The closing song with the plane is rubbish though
Correcto
60 year rock. Ok. But not my favourite.
# Album Name: Fifth Dimension # Artist: Byrds # Rating: 4/5 # Comments: Good album. Worth a listen. Give it a chance. # Top Tunes: 5D / Spaceman / whats happening / 8 miles / hey joe / captain soul # Would I listen to it again? Yes
I Come and Stand at Every Door still being relevant to today is heartbreaking
Don't care for it. Don't care for the Byrds. Don't care for David Crosby. I think maybe the worst Hey Joe cover ever on record.
Man I love the Byrds, but I’m seeing why I haven’t really bumped their albums front to back before. There’s awesome songs mixed in. (What’s happening, Hey Joe, Mr. spaceman) but Jesus some of this stuff is such a DRAG. There’s quite a bit of variety in their sound here, yet still I find it repetitive. Honestly one of their weaker albums I’ve heard parts of. Defintely a staple of the psych/folk genres but eh. Fun fact: I think this is the first byrds album without a Dylan cover
What I can stay is the band sounds great the vocals work so well with the music itself Roger mccguinn can sing and he wrote all the good songs here it seems. This is a genre mash looking for what works and the ballads and 60s guitars are in full force. Mr spaceman is a perfect song to encapsulate the era obsessed with the next frontier before the moon landing and the songs that work really work with their premises.Hey Joe for example simple song made Byrds by the guitar and music so when captain soul comes on you are not only aware but ready for this ballad that it gives. All in all a fine listen with some surprises but mostly a bit forgettable and what I do remember is good
Un po' scialbo
Usually don't like this kind of music but this one was better
My least favorite Byrds record out of the three I've gotten. I can hear them leaning towards Younger Than Yesterday for sure. The first side does show tons of promise with Crosby's What's Happening, McGuinn's Mr. Spaceman and the poem tune I Come And Stand At Every Door. Then the second side, save for Eight Miles High, crumbles into weak cover versions, an instrumental jam and the experimental flight simulator (Lear-Jet). As they said when it came out: it's an uneven swing. They had lost Gene Clark and were reduced to four, so that could be a reason as to why this isn't as tight. But I haven't gotten into what many consider to be their true classics in Tambourine Man and Turn Turn Turn, so I can't say much. In terms of the progression of the band, it acts as a transition to a clear favorite of mine. There is turbulence when you head towards space (6/10, 3/5 on this scale)
This is really generic hippie music.
For the birds
Fifth Dimension isn't The Byrds at its very best, but it's still a great pop record.
Meh
Is The Lear Jet song a distant cousin of that Like a G6 song? Has some moments but I didn't like it as much as some other work by The Byrds. There are moments that sound like Simon & Garfunkel and others that sound like half a dozen bands. This is probably more influential than I'm giving it credit for.
I can hear a heavy influence on a band like Dinosaur jr. or Lou Barlow's other projects in a song like I Come and Stand at Every Door It had it's moments but after a couple listens it doesn't stick with me.
Never much cared for these guys. Right era, wrong jam.
It's as vast as space, and as timeless as infinity.
This Crosby guy is pretty good. He would be a good match with the Nash, Stills and Young fellas
On aggregate, I like more than I dislike on this record.
Omg it's another Byrds album. At least this time it's a top 2. Psychedelic Byrds. First half is probably better and the title track is particularly good.
I tried to start listening to this album multiple times. I got to Mr. Spaceman and for some reason couldn't finish the album or kept getting distracted. it's not a bad album. i just feel like this list has way more of the british invasion than I would care for.
I love how something from the 60s can still sound super cool and relevant, even though it got a little tired at times. 3.2
I certainly didn’t do this one justice. Fragmented throughout the afternoon. It was decent but not very memorable. I even listened to the song all the reviews were calling out, Eight Miles High, again in the evening when I was at least a few feet high, and all I could muster is “it’s fine.” 5/10 Decent
There's subtly a lot here, and it doesn't all hold together. It sounds like a 60s psychedelic band trying out lots of different sounds and not settling on one. Eight Miles High and John Riley sound like early Crosby Still & Nash, but Wild Mountain Thyme just kind of gets lost.
It's a fine album. Short and sweet psychedelic. Nothing groundbreaking. 2.5/5 Might listen again
It’s pleasant enough but I can’t get very excited about it. Much as you’d expect it to sound.
There are so many Byrds albums on this list. But that's a lot better than a lot of the other artists who make strangely numerous appearances here.
As a historical record documenting the development of late Sixties rock in its various strains, this is invaluable; as a functional album, it's definitely uneven. The clunkers stand out; "I Come and Stand at Every Door" is well-intentioned but ultimately feels clumsy, and some of the more out-there sonic experiments fall flat ("2-4-2 Fox Trot (The Lear Jet Song)"). And I know judging anybody against Hendrix is unfair, but the version of "Hey Joe" here flat-out doesn't work; if we're gonna have songs about shooting your woman down then they probably shouldn't sound like harmless fun. But this sounds more negative than I really intend to be; I basically like this sound, which again is the primary pleasure here. "Eight Miles High" is deservedly praised and remembered, and most of what these guys do when in more traditional folk mode works really well ("Wild Mountain Thyme," "John Riley"). I'm not sure anything other than "Eight Miles High" is truly essential but I felt like this was time well spent.
Mid-60s Beatles vibe (no wonder, same time period). But only early Beatles, where they had no experimental stuff. Solid overall, lovely. Liked What's Happening?
Listening to this led to an increase in hair length, beard length, and body odor, and a decrease in the ability to pass a drug test.
Watching Mad Men and doing this 1001 albums project have together convinced me that the 60s might be the worst decade of all time. As if war in Vietnam, off the charts racism and sexism, civil unrest, the looming threat of nuclear armageddon, stinky hippies, and people smoking everywhere weren't enough to put you off, the music sucked too
I liked this one just fine, but didn’t love it. Even though there are no Dylan songs on the album, a couple of them still sound like it. It gets three stars from me.
I came into this album expecting some standard fare 60s psychedilia with some nice harmonies. And while this album definitely delivered the psychedilia and fantastic harmonies (as The Byrds do), it also rocked a lot more than I anticipated. A very pleasant surprise.
Sounds very 60's. Nothing really stands out, but it is not bad.
One of the greats. Really interesting early psychedelic rock album that still holds elements of folk and blues. "Hey Joe (Where You Gonna Go)" was the favorite track.
It wasn't bad, but I don't see myself revisiting it much.
Three out of five. Not bad at all, best part was some fun g commentary. These guys do copious amount of drugs, but damn if it isn't decent music.
Thursday, 12 June, 2026 I wasn’t prepared to like it, but it was surprisingly good. It is mostly an off brand Beatles album, but it’s still good.
I feel like I would have to apologize to someone if I got them to do the 1001 albums challenge and this was the first album they got. It's not bad, I just don't understand what is special about it. And the "the album is notable for being the first by the Byrds not to include any songs written by Bob Dylan" just solidifies my opinion. Maybe I just don't resonate with the Byrds, but after listening to 2 of their albums, 999 albums to listen to before you die is good enough for me.
I’m a sucker for those jangly guitars, so this album was pretty good. It was an experimental, messy, and interesting. All good stuff a having a good time. However… we have to talk about I Come and Stand at Every Door. What a colossal turd in the punchbowl. I’m fine with political anthems or shocks to the system, but this was such a downer it dragged the energy down the rest of the album. Come on, people. No more songs of 7 year old ghost victims of nuclear bombings please. Best tracks Mr. Spaceman and 8 Miles High.
Pretty good album! Even though it was made in the 60s, it still translated well to today. Good sound and composition, very well received.
good listening, followed nicely after listening to Eagles
not as good as Joni Mitchell’s Blue
Super short album but packs a punch
There are two great songs on this - the rest is mostly a rather flat, folk-rock drone.
Laat psychedelische stonede rock nu net mijn minst favoriete deel van de 60s zijn. Zeker als het enkel gecombineerd wordt met mediocere songs.
gwn oke
beetje een rommelig album, soms vervelend en saai, soms leuker en vernieuwend. de hele tijd super jaren 60
I wanted to like this album more. They know how to make good music. But this sounds like something missing. Maybe they do need bob dylan…
enjoyable, except for the last 16 minute track where actually 3 minutes of it was a song. that was just silly overall though, i did enjoy this album. this would be fun to throw on, for a casual get together. also, cool to hear an earlier cover of 'Hey Joe'. for anyone that wants to hear a rockin version of that song, listen to the Hendrix version, its incredible
It’s not bad, I’m just burnt out on Brit Pop with this list. Pleasant, the darker sounds kept me interested, but I’m probably only listening to The Byrds for their hits. And none of them were on this album.
A totally middle of the road album.
Semi-interesting early psychadelic rock.
A reasonable enough listen, but not one I can see myself returning to. Not sure we needed as many Byrds or Byrds-related albums as the 1001 suggests you HAVE to listen to.
Creative input on all levels (but especially guitars) elevates this above what I remember of the hits (I See You, for example, a revelation). I don't think I ever heard this continuously from beginning to end. The propulsive drumming on Hey Joe is remarkable but sadly is on the most out-of-place cut on the album, but makes you pay more attention to the excellent drumming (and rhythm) throughout. The spaciness more than makes up for the earlier use of Dylan and a more pop-oriented sound. Landmark psych-pop-folk-rock.
Revisiting the three prior Byrds review, I don't have a ton to say, other than to reiterate that five albums seems excessive. Influential, yes. Solid, yes. Did I hear something new from the band here? Not that I could discern.
The Byrds are better and worse than their reputation would suggest, and this album is the perfect example. There are a few great songs on this one—some of them pretty deep cuts; but there's also a lot of filler and some downright crap. They really coast on their incredible sound here, which can make you not realize how terrible the songwriting often is. I'm not sure they have a true 5-star album, but man, when they're on, they're on. You could make a killer two-disc set of their best works, and it would stand up there with the best of anyone from this era. But they didn't have a George Martin to rein them in or even to arrange their songs the way The Beatles did. The strings on this album, for example. Compare these string arrangements to any Beatles song that features strings, and you'll see what I mean. Question: What is it about Hey Joe that compelled so many artists to cover it? I've never understood the fascination with that song.
I just love them.
Decent album - good listen - quality group
legal
8 Miles High is one of those quintessential '60s songs at this point. The Byrds are hit or miss for me, the highs are high and the lows mid. Very rarely would i prefer to listen to one of their covers over the original.
Not memorable
It's a nice psychedelic album
I don’t mind this record so much, but I can’t see revisiting it. Parts of it grate on me, but some of it’s alright. But it definitely sounds like the Byrds; I’m sure they’re not quite “heard one Byrds song, you’ve heard them all”, but they’re really not far off from that. They definitely have a distinctive sound. This record expands that sound a bit in some places. 6.5/10
This was fun! Eight Miles High is far and away my favourite song on the album but I enjoyed it all.
A very influential sound, I don’t love that the Spotify album had interviews on it tho
Stratospheric harmonies for sure. Very interesting to hear that they used that random-ish galloping guitar thing on a couple of tracks. Captain Soul is surprisingly funky. Hey Joe is a curiosity considering the much more famous Hendrix version. Mr. Spaceman is interesting, and What's Happening?!?! is fun. But all of that plus a truly incredible track in 8 Miles High still don't add up to "I'll listen to this whole album again."
Why are there so many Byrds records here? They were not that great. To listen to once is enough.
A classic, obviously influential album. Perhaps the impetus of psychedelic rock. I’m sure it packed a bigger punch in 1966 than 2026, but it still sounds great today. Some wild guitar work by McGuinn on Eight Miles High, and of course the vocals (especially Croz) are fantastic throughout.
Me gustó bastante, tuvo un giro en su sonido que no me esperaba y es cómo usan las influencias de la música hindú (Raga Rock) y lo mezclan con la psicodelia, justo el mismo año que The Beatles llevó este nuevo estilo al mainstream, es un álbum con canciones interesantes.
This is one of those albums that can’t seem to settle on a genre or even a style. There’s everything in here from folk-pop to psychedelic rock to what is almost country music. Most of the time I feel that makes an album feel disjointed and in some ways uncomfortable as a listening experience, but that’s not the case here. For whatever reason it all transitions pretty well, it’s actually remarkable how well it works for The Byrds. Notably this is the first Byrds album without any Bob Dylan songs, and I think that was an excellent decision. Fun album, really dynamic and interesting. 4*
Overall, the album is pretty hot and cold. But I couldn't give it any lower than three stars cos the opening tune, 5th dimension, is one my dad has been playing me since I can remember. And it's beautiful and I love it so so so much!!
I like some of the Byrds other work, but no clark or Dylan and it shows on this record.. 2.5
Byrd harmonies and psychedelia are a splendid combo, Eight Miles High is the obvious standout
The 1960s. When rock and roll was learning how to walk. Hippie-ish, summer of love heavy in this one. It’s 1966, you’re sitting on the hood of a car smoking grass, and this is coming through the radio. What a time.
One day I will be free of mediocre Brit folk pop, but this is not the day. Forgettable, never heard of them and now I know why. Just slipped in one ear and out of another. One somewhat decent song, but I’m going to be mad if we finish this list and some other albums were included over this one.
Considering the general averageness of the other two Byrds album's I've encountered – Mr. Tambourine Man and The Notorious Byrd Brothers – I was a little worried Fifth Dimension wouldn't present anything new. But 1966 was a pretty promising year for music. Keep your hopes up, right? In 5D (Fifth Dimension), the Byrd bros throw us a fantastic, sparkling guitar part, which comes in a barrage of solo notes at the end, making you long for more during the fadeout. Wild Mountain Thyme would be a standard mid-60s Simon & Garfunkel-sounding track, but for those strings, which completely transform the song. Not a fan of the stereo mix – I imagine mono versions are invariably more pleasant to listen to – but it doesn't completely ruin the song. Again that bright guitar sound is revisited. I'm excited to hear the rest. The next track is Mr. Spaceman, which is sort of a folksy rockabilly tune with S&G undertones. It flows nicely into I See You, which has a similar tempo and groove. Frustratingly, by the halfway point of the album, you start to notice a... lack of soul, I guess? I Come and Stand at Every Door feels kind of lifeless compared to the strongest of the pack, and I See You isn't much better. Near the end of the original album, John Riley has the same issue. Monotonous, and little done to sonically distinguish it from preceding tracks. Eight Miles High performs a noble feat, returning some blistering energy in the form of electric guitar solo, a distinctly modal key during the solo (compared to the major key in the choruses). 2-4-2 Fox Trot... I mean, at least it's memorable. Plenty of 60s-style sonic experimentation going on here, in the form of SFX and garbled talking (à la Yellow Submarine). 3/5 Key tracks: 5D (Fifth Dimension), Mr. Spaceman, Eight Miles High
I’m surprised The Byrds could even think of five dimensions given how one-dimensional their music is.
3.5
Okay. Better the last one we had.
Very iffy on this one. The all music track was my favorite
3.5
This was a drag, not something I would consider relistenable!
I liked this album. Good, not great. 3.5/5
It was fine. Didn't love the song about pretending to be a 7 year old in Hiroshima, even if I support the sentiment behind it.
This was an okay album with no real direction. It went from space abduction themed to bluegrass to forays into psychedelic rock. I'm sure their main songwriter leaving the band before this had something to do with the aimlessness, but that's no excuse.
Ibland låter det Beatles och det är få det är som bäst. Kanske inget pangbetyg. En trea
Perfect
Finally some good damn music bruh! Damn it was like pulling teeth the last few days. This was a smooth lishen from start to finish and I enjoyed the simplicity of it.
eight miles high is fantastic, but rest of the album is ordinary.
It's psychedelic 60s rock, but it's not particularly good psychedelic 60s rock.
Fifth Dimension was pretty solid. Its an album that doesn't really do a whole lot of interesting stuff but it is still an album that does what it set out to do decently alright. The music on offer is just some perfectly passable psychedelic country rock with it occasionally doing some interesting things but remaining with the sound it goes for throughout most of it. I would say that the best part of this album is the melodies as they were pretty darn catchy. I also like that this is easily one of the shorter albums on this list with it only clocking in at around 28 minutes but i still felt like i got my fill. Its not super great or anything but still pretty solid. Best Song: 2-4-2 Fox Trot (The Lear Jet Song) Worst Song: I Come and Stand at Every Door
the byrds go psychedelic. This album was better than the last one. Buy in some aspects, it feels the same, only with a psychedelic, acid inspired vision and sound. If you're into that, is a nice trip. it was for me
Twangy and a bit bothersome. The broadest variance comes from the topics but the songs are just pretty flatly recorded and similarly composed.
Ya it's pretty good. I liked Mr. Spaceman the best. Pretty folksy and unoffensive rock and roll.
This was fun to listen to after reading "All the Leaves are Brown" and learning how intertwined all these post-folk, early rock bands were. You can hear so much of that in here, some dylan, rolling stones, everything! Very cool.
It’s fine, don’t really have strong feelings about this music (which says enough)
Lowk didn’t listen to the whole album but I can’t imagine it amounts to much more than old head slop
Good lyrics!
Aside from Eight Miles High being among my favourite ways to spend three and a half minutes in music, Mr Spaceman, 5D and What’s Happening?!?? are crackers. A little bit uneven but plenty to love.
Unmistakably the Byrds but can’t say it drew me in as much as the previous offering we had of theirs.
I much preferred this album to the last 2 of their albums, possibly because they weren’t relying on Dylan covers throughout. A real ahead of its time feel and very listenable.
3rd Byrds album and another great effort. Second half stronger than the first, just more upbeat and psych. 8 Mile High always a banger. Haircuts remain high quality.
The Byrds are certainly one of the great bands in the history of pop/rock. And this album is certainly one of their bigger ones.
Sladak album, na trenutke malo dosadnjikav, ali šta se sve nudilo to, ovo je glazbeni vrhunac 😄 3/5, 6/10
Pleasant but a bit boring and too Beatlish sometimes. 3.5
Wasn't into it throughout except for I Come and Stand at Every Door, which led me down an interesting read about Nâzım Hikmet
can't finish, garbage
One of the most aggressively 60s albums I've ever heard: primarily a folk rock album, heavy on the psychedelia, with lyrics that split the difference between abstract surrealism and political content. Apparently this was one of the first psychedelic rock albums, and while I do think its approach is relatively simplistic compared to what would come after, I found it charming rather than dated. There's a colorfulness this album brings to the table that just makes it such a fun, easy listen. The obvious standout is Eight Miles High, which features a fantastic guitar solo from Roger McGuinn, but I also loved the lush folk instrumentation on tracks like Wild Mountain Thyme and the slightly dour tone of What's Happening. It surprised me how versatile this album was with its combinations of folk, rock, and country, but it was a welcome surprise.
Aight, a much better band than the beatles
This is my fifth and final Byrds album of the project, and I can officially say they are firmly a 3.5/5 band for me. Each album has been solid in its own way, some nice tracks and some filler each time. Like their sound and how they never pigeonholed themselves into one specific style, always experimenting and growing as a band.
p86. 1966. 3 stars. Strange and eclectic collection of songs that doesn't quite work - you can hear rock, folk, psychedelia and just plain weird 60s hippy trippyness in the mix. Very much of its time.
Mouais
I know the Byrds are kind of a big deal and likely this hit differently when it came out. Here is it just psycadelic rock that is coherent and flows together, like they weren't actually high while they were recording which made for a much better listening experience compared to others of the time. But also nothing super special, just simple music that used a sitar a lot.
Cool. The guitar work has many interesting moments. This is probably not my favorite Byrds album. It's OK.
So this album is notable because of their struggles after losing their principal songwriter, paired with it being the first time none of their songs were written by Bob Dylan? So legendary! I guess it's also when they took a turn from a more folksy sound into the psychedelic realm. I might care about all of these things more if I cared about The Byrds more. This is the fifth album of theirs we've had, and apparently they haven't made a big impression on me because I barely remember their other material. All that aside, the album is fine and the songs are pleasant enough, but I didn't find anything that particularly moved me. Pretty interesting stuff considering it was the mid 60s. And Mr. Spaceman was fun.
Psyadelic rock. I thought Hey Joe was an original song by Jimi Hendrix obviously I was mistaken. It is an ok album but nothing earth shattering. 5.25/10 Top song Mr. Spaceman
fifth dimension? more like 2/5 dimension
3,5
Nimalo loš album posebno za godinu iz koje je ali nespektakularan i ne razumijem zašto imam još gomilu albuma ovih likova da preslušam.
There are an oddly...high amount of Byrds albums on this list. This is apparently the first of theirs that doesn't include any Bob Dylan-written songs, however. It's all just fine. Not much different that the other three albums of theirs that I've heard thus far. It's early psychedelic rock that leans more folk. Easy listen, but doesn't really "wow" you too much.
These type of 60's albums are a dime a dozen
I have a rocky relationship with psychedelic bands from the sixties. Sometimes it's just too jangly to me. The Byrds have a strong folk backbone, so that helps a lot. Keeps 'em grounded. On the other hand, there are some challenging things going on here: starting with 'Wild Mountain Thyme' (a Celtic traditional song with a very straight rhythm), there are some funny things going on with timekeeping. Similarly, 'I See You' has some tension in both the rhythm guitar and also the lead -- kind of a jumble but an interesting one. That feeling of being unsettled continues in several places throughout the album. Sometimes the songs will have floating key centres. Sometimes there's a little sitar influence out of Jim McGuinn's lead guitar. Often, one instrument will be a half-time (often the vocals) compared to the rest of the band (or only part of it). All of these things, plus the steady droning of David Crosby's rhythm guitar playing, combine to make for an accessible and familiar sound that feels like it conceals something else. It's weird, in a way that's a little difficult to describe. This is one of the more psychedelic psych-rock albums I've listened to. Death is a recurring theme (and is also for the psychonauts from whom the genre pulls its name and influence), there's an open-feeling subversion of what would've been the contemporary rock sound at the time. The harmonies are beautiful. This isn't going into my regular rotation. It's really cool, though: familiar yet spacey. The recording isn't without blemish but it still rewards listening in a decent format (Spotify lossless through some Grado SR80s, today). It's not punk rock but it's definitely rebellious. It's also quite beautiful. Apparently critics have called this awkward and scattered. I can hear it but I'd much rather hear The Byrds giving it an honest go than listen to Damon Albarn seemingly sneering at the idea of trying at all. Very 60's. Maybe my favourite psych album, yet. Still only a 3/5, as it's a little tedious, but it's a strong 3.
Okay, interessant. Nicht mehr wirklich frisch, aber historisch interessant. Aber stimmt es dass es 5 Alben von ihnen in der Liste gibt?
I really thought I liked the Byrds. I do like the guitar work, both the very fresh transitional licks that clearly inspire R.E.M, and the darker sounds where the guitarist sounds like they’re working through something. They are a good band with good vocals, and there are a few good songs here (Eight Miles High is a classic for a reason). But they’re swimming in a soup of self-important, over serious noodling. For me, it’s not worth the flight. A 2.
As with most of my 3's, it mostly means I didn't hate anything here but I also didn't really enjoy it, just background noise
8/10
The first Byrds album without a song written by Bob Dylan. Yet the first song sounds very Dylanesque. I always thought Crosby was over-rated. So as someone that likes a lot of music from this era, this one falls short. 2
Loved some, ambivalent about others. Really liked the first half though
3.5/5
Yet another 60s/Byrds album, meh. 3* Highlights: wild mountain thyme (lol that this is a cover)
This is the 4th Byrds album on this list. It's way out of hand now. They don't deserve this many spots
Standouts Mr. Spaceman Captain Soul
Stable but not special, 6/10
3.5 stars
I’d heard of The Byrds, but I wasn’t really familiar with their music. Even though this album was released the year I was born, it’s not really my favourite. Still, three stars… 🙂
Heck yeah! Outstanding 60's psychedelic rock with top notch vocals. The 12 string guitar sound in Eight Miles High is so recognizable and the lyric from 5D, 'and I opened my heart to the whole universe, and I found it was loving' sounds like someone describing an LSD trip. Dig it. The 5 book albums from The Byrds were released in a 4 year period. It's wild to think about. Great album and highly enjoyable.
This is a good record, though it kind of reminds me why I was never into The Byrds. We all know "Eight Miles High," of course, which is fine to hear once a year or so. It's a pleasant album; I didn't want to turn it off, but it didn't make me want to go out and find a copy either. The one song that got my attention was "2+2=4 Lear Jet," which was amusingly weird with the air traffic chatter, airplane noises, and noodly guitar. I liked that one, though I'm now going to be muttering "gonna ride a Learjet baby, gonna ride a Learjet" to myself for the rest of the afternoon. 3 stars
Fan vad mycket skit det fanns på 60-talet som bara försöker hänga på vågen
If Bob Dylan could sing, and was part of a band, it might sound like this. I guess with that said, maybe you should hear this to realize that if you like 60s folk rock, it can actually sound better than Bob.
One of the big ones… that I’m listening to for the first time. It’s fine actually. But I could live without it
тяжело дослушал
In the immortal words of Austin Powers: Psychedelic! Yeah, baby! Groovy. Chicks dig it, man. In all honesty, I can’t remember whether this is any better or worse than the other Byrds albums we’ve already had on this list. I’m sure it was groundbreaking for its time, but Fifth Dimension doesn’t give me any of the warm and fuzzies.
This was fine. I'm not sure why these guys have five albums on the list. Filler week day four complete.
Enjoyed this!
My only complaint is that it’s too short.
Meeeeh. Eipä tämäkään lähe
Liian buumeria että jaksais ees kuunnella, sori byrds
Aika kädenlämpöstä...
Iha jees.
No jaa. Eight Miles High On ihan saatanan kova biisi. Siinä on tavallaan omaan korvaan jotenkin täydellisesti kiteytetty 60-70 luvun vaihdos, vaikkakin levy on jo vuodelta 1966. Aikaansa edellä! Muuten aika laidasta laitaan menoa, ihan hyviä biisejä mutta myös kyllä ihan täysin mitäänsanomattomia luikautuksia. Aika selkee kolmonen.
A pretty strong opening gave way to a mediocre second half. I like the Byrds' sound, and there are a few I've saved to listen to again in future.
I read that they covered a lot of Dylan, and that makes sense since the first song sounded like a Dylan song. I didn't find anything groundbreaking here, other than being amused at a young David Crosby.
This feels like a time capsule record. Like if you were to ask “hey what was music like in the 60s” this album would be included in that list. That said, it’s pretty mid to low mid for today’s standards.
One blink and it was gone. Did not made an impression.
I love The Byrds and there are some cute songs but without Gene Clark they sound a bit lost.
The first 60s jjangly album I love and I’d buy. Could be the harmonies, or that I’m a fan of Tom Petty who, as he even said in interviews, was more than little influenced by them and later worked with McGuinn. So, if you’re a fan of Tom Petty, you should like this album. If not, you probably will not.
It’s fine. It’s The Byrds. Not blown away by but the stuff that is good is really good. 3.5
Classic folk-rock psychedelia album. Best known for Eight Miles High, banned by many radio stations of the day because they suspected it was about drug use (they were right!). An eclectic blend of traditional tunes and their own songwriting. Recommended listening.
This was bland. Interesting hearing I See You having been familiar with the Yes version for years. But yeah, nothing special overall.
Alch no tienen discos chidos, pero sii singles ;-;
qué disco tan raro. siempre he dado un poco x sentado a los byrds a pesar de que, teniendo rasgos tan distintivos, su carrera es medio curiosa en cuanto a lo que fueron haciendo con su sonido (el disco que más les había escuchado es el sweetheart of the rodeo, su disco country post psicodelia). pero acá se traen un desmadre, se nota que son sus primeras incursiones en lo experimental pero namames, si piensas que salió antes un mes antes que el revolver, sí es otro pedo. el mood está bien inconsistente xq quieren probar de todo, las guitarras se ponen super erráticas en algunas rolas (y me encanta), y no recuerdo haberme entusiasmado tanto con ninguno de sus otros discos, pero me dejó con muchas ganas de ponerme seria con su catálogo. cinco estrellas, una por cada dimensión
Byrds are ok, just rather a lot of them here
krakto i slatko
This was ok. Not a big fan of the noodly guitar work, it just sounded like someone learning to play guitar messing around with random strings. 2/5
As far as psychedelic rock albums go, Fifth Dimension feels like it should get more recognition. Not only was this released before the summer of love, but it also feels trippier and more psychedelic than a lot of the acclaimed albums from the San Francisco scene. The guitar on tracks like "I See You" is are wild an untamed, bouncing every which way. The beautiful vocal harmonies rival Simon and Garfunkel and add depth to the songs. At the same time, this feels weightier than a lot of the strummy strum stuff from Laurel Canyon. The lyrics are appropriately disorienting, touching on war, nature, space, and more. The band makes each of the non-original songs their own, though some of the originals feel a bit short and light. Still, the shortness of the tracks makes this a really easy listen with a lot of different sounds.
Like them in small doses, but a whole album was too much for me.
This is like the 3rd Byrds record I’ve gotten. They all suck.
This is funky. I love the Cosmic American take on "Wild Mountain Thyme," but some of the other songs lack enough substance to cross from a 4 to a 5
I should be a huge Byrds fan. I'm not a huge Byrds fan.
I'm not a huge Byrds fan but this might be my favourite outside of Sweetheart of the Rodeo. It has that jangly Byrds sound but the music ranges from a country song about aliens ('Mr Spaceman') to John Coltrane influences - 'Eight Miles High' contains a hilarious yet effective attempt at a Coltrane-style solo played on guitar which captures some of the spirit if none of the technique. The covers include a very good version of 'Wild Mountain Thyme' and one of the worst versions of 'Hey Joe' I have ever heard. 'I Come and Stand at Every Door', another cover, is a harrowingly effective story of Hiroshima narrated by a seven-year old victim of the atomic bomb.
might be my favourite of the byrds, I am kinda tired of hearing them now though Will I listen to again: 33%
Eight Miles High plus some lesser tracks. I like The Byrds but this doesn't do it for me.
Was okay
A pretty good album, just liked Wild Mountain Thyme and Captain Soul the most.
This is definitely better than the previous Byrds effort, with a bit more psych and exploration. But it's clear that when the band railroaded Gene Clark they really fucked with the formula. I'm sure their country phase will prove fruitful but while there's some great tunes it just feels hollow without Gene.
eh.
solid, but a weak album of its genre
Fantastic
This may have been groundbreaking but it now sounds like a parody
like yeah, its good but i feel like its every ther 60s song ive ever heard, yk?
I was actually enjoying this album for moments. Which is a huge improvement over how I felt about the other album that I reviewed of theirs (sweetheart of the rodeo). This album is way more my speed and energy. It had moments where it lost my interest cause it can be abit dry at moments. But as a whole, this is probably my favorite album by the Byrds so far.
Review - a short album. A few good songs, not a bad listen. Was hoping to like it more now I'm a new found fan of Gene Clark, but this was their first album without him. Still has a song written by him though, and it's the best on the album. Rating - 6/10 Need to hear? YES
I struggled with this album and didn't complete listening. It jumps around, it lost me
This didn’t take me to a 5th dimension…
Some great songs. Some beautiful harmonies. Some very average songs. Feels like a band that doesn't know what they want to be. 3*
I know the Byrds are a legendary band and they have a unique sound, but I found this album to be boring
I love their sound but this was a little boring as a whole
Rock de hippies, sympa sans être transcendant
M’oui
Sympa mais pas mémorable
This was like every cliche of psych rock and I guess they created those cliches so it’s okay. I got nothing here, didn’t like it won’t listen again but it’s fine. There’s five of these on the list?
Really enjoyed it.
Country is not really my style. This album isn't bad per se but i felt pretty bored while listening to it.
This is neat, don’t have much to say but some real solid stuff here. My standouts are 5D, what’s happening and especially Wild Mountain Thyme, it’s a very beautiful song.
Oouff…boring 60s album. Had 2 cool tracks though. Wouldn’t save the two to relisten but wouldn’t turn the radio off either.
The first of the five Byrds albums on this list that I've received. I'm not sure what these guys did to warrant having that many albums. This isn't but its pretty standard compared to everything else from the era. Maybe their next four albums will enlighten me on their true greatness. Favorite track: Eight Miles High
Guess I’m not a Byrds fan.
It's 60's psych rock. It's fine.
The interview was neat, and Eight Miles High was kinda nice. As a whole, whoever, the album was extremely uninspired (ironically) and wholly boring. Sad to say, but this is a 2 for me at best, but right now it feels like a 1.
yay, another 60's album... It may be the fact that I'm really tired of the 60s sound at this point, but this album just bored me the whole way through. Not saying it's bad, but being unentertaining is worse than bad. I spotted nothing I could take from this record.
Odd cover choices but done well
fun psychedelic rock but nothing super special or interesting
This really exceeded my expectations. Fifth Dimension is one of those rare mid‑’60s albums where a band, suddenly unmoored, accidentally invents a new future for rock. After Gene Clark’s departure, The Byrds leaned into experimentation, and the result is a record that helped define psychedelic rock while still rooted in their folk‑rock DNA. Critics and historians consistently point out that these were among the first and best examples of psychedelic rock, with the band drawing explicitly from Indian classical music and John Coltrane’s modal jazz. The album doesn’t just use psychedelic elements—it codifies them. It shows a band discovering that rock music could be a vehicle for abstraction, texture, and atmosphere. Fifth Dimension helped establish several musical ideas that later became central to progressive and psychedelic rock including extended, exploratory guitar work, psychedelic soundscapes as narrative, and genre fusion as a creative principle. Fifth Dimension blends folk, raga, country touches, and psychedelia. This willingness to hybridize genres laid groundwork for the progressive rock mindset: rock as a flexible, exploratory medium. Rush’s early albums and Pink Floyd’s mid‑’70s work both rely on this idea of rock as a boundary‑breaking form. These connections aren’t about direct influence so much as conceptual lineage—The Byrds helped create the musical vocabulary that later bands expanded into full-blown progressive and psychedelic architecture. Key songs: “Eight Miles High” — Often cited as one of the greatest singles of the ’60s and a cornerstone of psychedelic rock. “5D (Fifth Dimension)” — A philosophical, cosmic exploration that anticipates the metaphysical themes later embraced by prog rock. “I See You” — Features early 12‑string psychedelic soloing that feels surprisingly modern. "Mr. Spaceman" A song about aliens? Extra star. Fifth Dimension is the moment The Byrds stopped being just folk‑rock pioneers and became architects of the psychedelic and progressive sensibility. The album’s modal guitar work, genre fusion, and cosmic lyricism didn’t just influence their contemporaries—they helped sketch the blueprint that bands like Pink Floyd and Rush would later expand into entire musical worlds.
A couple funky psychedlic tunes but a lot of weird and just straight bad songs too. The fuck was that Hiroshima shit? Would not recommend
I didn’t care for this one.
With the loss of Gene Clark early in the album’s incubation, despite the efforts of the remaining Byrds, Fifth Dimension has a transitional feel notwithstanding some major innovations. They do get some pretty serious psyche work in and push the envelope of what is acceptable in a pop group making actual chart hits, but there are too many “will this do?” moments masquerading as quirkiness. They are an important group that made impressive albums, both before and after this one, but Fifth Dimension feels like a dip to me.
Meh
Think I’ve already had on Byrds album and didn’t feel too impressed by it and the way this one is starting, it’s looking like a similar experience. Nothing particularly wrong with it, but nothing special either. Very of its time and 60s jangley guitar vibes. Like many, a kind of knock of Beatles that don’t do it anywhere near as well and doesn’t really get me excited. Some welcome psychedelia later on but probably still looking like a 3.5
This was all over the place. Some earlier tracks on the album (I See You, I Come and Stand at Every Door) never seemed to reach a resolution. Eight Miles High is the most famous song on this album, and it's dreamy and cryptic. "Why" is decent, and I enjoyed Psychodrama City.
Sounds decent and consistent, not much of a lasting impression
4/5. A great listen and majorly underrated. It's a bit sad that I only really knew the Byrds as "guys who took Bob Dylan songs and made great covers," because they have a lot to offer. Many of the songs are well made and are executed well to boot. Some melodies are good enough to be ear worms and stick with you well after your first listen.
I might have enjoyed the album more if I had more time to dedicate to it, but ultimately didn’t take anything away or dig much more into the album or band besides some one sided commentary from the members provided at the end of the Spotify album.
Pretty chill 60s