The Notorious Byrd Brothers

A good album and hugely influential, but there weren’t any standout tracks

Gotta love”eight miles high”

I just watched a documentary on Amazon the other day about Laurel Canyon, and The Byrds feature prominently in the first part. They were the first band to drop root in that idyllic heaven in California, followed by totemic artists such as The Doors, The Mamas and the Papas, Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, Crosby Stills and Nash, and later The Eagles. The music here sums up the feeling of an endless perfect summer, gardens full of colorful flowers, and sunlight coming through a plant populated living room window. It’s almost certain the album cover was taken at a band members house in the canyon. What a time and place to be alive!

Wow. Didn’t know how diverse and ethereal these guys are.

Absolutely loved it, starting really like a lot of this kind of genre and these are no exception if not better. Love the early shoegaze like sound as well. Will certainly listen more and it may grow even more but it is hard to get a 5 so it will be 4 for now. Stand out songs: Wasn't Born to Follow Tribal Gathering Dolphins Smile

Some crazy psychedelic folk, very cool vibe. This album is literally a trip. I feel like every song gets deeper into a drugscape. Goin' Backs is very good on the front side, and the songs are little more folky with some unique effects on the voices that give it some character. Then the final three songs with tribal gathering, dolphin smile, and space odyssey, you can tell by the names alone what went down. Cool album

Original and interesting, liked it better than Mr. Tambourine Man

Ah, the record that broke up the Byrds. Nevermind, that was just David Crosby being a dick. While it’s a great record, with some PHENOMENAL songs, to me this is a transitional record that starts to hint at the full country-rock statement of “Sweetheart of the Rodeo.” The track listing starts with a very retro song (Artificial Energy), moves through some psychedelia and experimentation (the MOOG!!) before ending with “Triad,” which acknowledges their new lineup reality. Some really cool stuff here, though, with some super cool drum parts. Without this record, there would be no Eagles, Linda Ronstadt, etc.

Aaaaalta fumada, Esto es lo que escuchaban los de Érase una vez en... Hollywood

The 3rd Byrd's album I've gotten, and I just learned that David Crosby was an original member of this band. How did I miss that all this time? Anyways, great sound on this album, like if The Beatles had more southern American soul to them. More electric rock mixed in on this on than the earlier albums.

A durable classic. As with other Byrds records, one hears so much of the future across these cuts, so many of which are excellently tuneful – ”Goin Back,” “Draft Morning,” “Wasn’t Born to Follow” “Get to You” “Old John Robertson.” "Natural Harmony" and "Draft Morning" are templates for the sound and outputs of most likable and wholly decent The Clientele.

Proper quality, classic 60s psychedelia and honestly I prefer it to their country stuff. Required listening for anyone exploring that era of music

Another band I've been meaning to listen to. I enjoyed the psych and prog elements of this album. Feels way ahead of it's time.

A great folk rock album with an experimental twist

I generally like the Byrds, and appreciate just how influential and groundbreaking they were. They were pioneers of folk rock, psychedelia, and alternative country. So much talent in that band. My least favorite Byrds songs are usually those where David Crosby had a prominent role. I'm not sure what it is, but his melodies are sort of creepy sounding easy listening to me. This album has a few of those, but overall it's very good. Also, this may be a controversial opinion, but the song Wasn't Born to Follow, which is a great song, was done better by The Monkees on their 2016 album Good Times! 4 stars.

Wafty 60s, could listen again.

Whoa, this was pretty cool. Dreamy, spacey, nice harmonies.

Really captures the Laurel Canyon folk rock sound. Flows together as an album. Dabbles in different genres while a keeping a consistent rock base. Not as much a fan when they get more psychedelic though. "Goin' Back" is the standout.

it's a 4ish

Hell yeah brother

Good old psychodelic rock))

it's the beatles meets eagles and i love it

Not my style but still enjoyable

Not as good as Mr. Tambo/Urine Man but still terrific.

It's like all those Elephant 6 bands in Athens listened to this and then made records.

3/4

pleasure

Like the Beatles with creepier lyrics 🤣

I never used to understand why the Byrds were so popular but this album finally is helping me see why.

Great morning coffee music thanks to that teakettle ending note. The album begins with sounds akin to Beatles at their most gonzo, unserious psychadelia which takes itself very very very seriously. I'm not sure if the Byrds get much more Byrds than this, but there are hints of their country work and your expected "world" music worship scattered. And it doesn't overstay its welcome a minute.

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

Music: 🌈 Lyrics: 💣

I really love the mystical, soft, and experimental nature of this. Love all the different instruments that are played with too. Crosby hasn't missed so far.

Just when I thought I had the Byrds pegged (in the sense that I think their music is fine but ultimately uninteresting to me), I get tossed yet another one of their albums (is every one of their albums on this list), and it turns out that it's actually good and I like it. What the hell, Byrds? It's a bit weird to me that the two Byrds albums that I enjoyed the most were the ones without David Crosby, despite the fact that I like his work with CSNY. It just feels like they are more willing to experiment in these albums, rather than trying to be psychedelic Bob Dylan. There was apparently a ton of songwriting talent in this band just waiting to get out of it's folk rock cage and explore other styles 4/5

I'm wondering (as many others, I presume) why these guys are not so recognized as much as The Beatles or The Beach Boys. Maybe they are not the best on this comparison; it's a matter of taste, and I don't think they are the best. However, it has everything here: the experimentalism, the psychedelia, the "feeling good" rock n' roll, everything! Maybe the problem with Crosby affected their reputation not to be so recognized worldwide as the most famous band. I'm happy to discover them on the 1001 list, even if I do not enjoy every song.

Now I like it even more then before. It’s a really great record which shows the best sides of this band.

It was cool. Felt super short and without anything super memorable for me but I liked it enough.

Nice 👍

Laid-back and chill stuff that I was kinda jamming to ngl.

Fine, high quality songs. I also liked the droning closer Space Odyssey.

BEST SONGS: -Draft Morning -Moog Raga (Instrumental)

Feels weirdly like the Beatles, but very much enjoyed listening to this - apart from the last track which I frankly skipped over, wasn't in the mood for a 14 minute jam. It feels very experimental in the same way that the late Beatles was, and I actually found the sound to be somewhat similar (you can really see the Beatles influence here).

HL: “Goin Back”, “Draft Morning”, “I Wasn’t Born To Follow”, “Get To You”, “Old John Robertson” Little step up from “Younger Than Yesterday”; it takes the country & psychedelic elements and pushes them further so you get a more diverse set of songs. My favourite is “Get to You”, which sounds like the Byrds’ take on baroque pop 4* July 31st, 2023

I've heard several Byrds album and found them a bit jungle jangle dull. Never heard thus and its really good. Will play again. Enjoy your 4 !

This album represents a major transition for the Byrds. David Crosby was fired halfway through the sessions and we hear one of the earliest uses of the Moog synthesizer. The Byrds still lean heavily into their psychedelic folk sound but temper it with more explicit country rock influences that would be more fully explored on their next album. Overall, this album is interesting for the development it shows musically as the Byrds head out of the 60s.

I enjoyed that one.

I’m excited to hear more from The Byrds today. Mr Tamborine Man was a great album, and I’ve enjoyed the music from Crosby, Stills & Nash (& Young) too. I’m hopeful for today’s album, so let’s listen and find out if it holds up! Songs I already knew: none Favourites: Goin’ Back, Change Is Now As expected, I really quite enjoyed this. It’s hard to describe just how pleasing the vocal harmonies are with The Byrds, and the guitar playing is also very identifiable. It’s a little bit twangy and country in places, and you can easily see how they were considered one of the most influential bands of the 60’s. The music is interesting as well as catchy, and makes for a very comfy listen. I could listen to this if I was having a down day, and I think it would make me a bit happier.

An unheralded classic of the Byrds discography. It is unlike anything before or after, thought is shows nods to both eras of the band. Roger McGuinn, Chris Holland, and Michael Clark were ready to move beyond David Crosby but not fully ready to embrace the country rock of Sweetheart of the Radio that would follow.

This is an album that I can 100% see people either loving or hating. It is very consistent, in that no one song stands out as any better than the others (to me). It is a very weird album because it doesn't really fit in a specific category to me. The first song is definitely classic rock with what sounds like (to me at least) some R&B influence with the horns, then the next tracks are strictly classic rock but also kind of sound like proto-country rock with some banjo and maybe even mandolin usage but they also have some harder rock influence on "Draft Morning" as well, then by the time we get to like "Old John Robertson" we are definitely in country-rock or folk-rock territory and then at the end they throw a big middle finger to us by adding a couple psych-rock songs like "Dolphin's Smile" and "Space Odyssey". Somehow though with all this the album still sounds extremely cohesive to the point that I had to re-listen to the album just to pick out the songs. I usually don't agree with the idea that you need to listen to an album all the way through but this is one that I definitely think you need to. It is just too weird and I feel like you would not get much out of just listening to random songs off the album in a playlist. Personally though I like the album a lot and I think it is a great easy listen but I definitely think that I would have to be in a specific mood to listen. I think I would give this an 8.5/10.

Minus Croz and yet to add Gram Parsons, this could have been something of a transitional moment for the Byrds. And it is, though it also manages the neat trick of being sublime as well. A potpourri grab bag, past present and future of psych rock in under half an hour. Far out.

Cute, pretty music

Swag album!

Genres: Rock, psychedelic rock, pop Formed: Los Angeles, California, in 1964 Run time: 17 songs, 58 min, 11 sec An album of nearly one hour duration is unusual, especially for the late 60’s. 1. "Artificial Energy": I loved the tune. The warning of amphetamine abuse is clear. I didn’t like the composition because I hate when lyrics are squeezed or stretched to make them fit. 2. "Goin' Back" is a cover of a Goffin–King song. A beautifully crafted song, delicately performed. 3. "Natural Harmony": another beautifully performed song with great harmonies. 4. “Draft Morning”: Contrasts life as a civilian to action as a solder. It does this amazingly well in a song of less than 3 minutes. 5. "Wasn't Born to Follow" is another Goffin–King composition. Country influenced. Although it provides contrast to the electric guitar, I found the pedal steel guitar a little jarring in places. 6. “Get to You” 7. "Change Is Now": A positive song suggesting we seize the day. It has a country feel to it. 8. "Old John Robertson": Another country influence song. 9. "Tribal Gathering": A track about a “Hippie” gathering, although it isn’t a psychedelic track. It has a jazz influence. 10. "Dolphin's Smile" is another chilled-out jazzy track. 11. "Space Odyssey", is a musical retelling of Arthur C. Clarke's short story "The Sentinel". The opening line reads “In nineteen and ninety-six We ventured to the moon”. Could they have imagined they would only have to wait a year before we went to the moon? The story telling of the song is great, but I didn’t particularly like the song. (The following are 1997 bonus tracks.) 12. "Moog Raga" is an instrumental track. It is a bonus track on the 1997 album reissue. They shouldn’t have bothered. 13. "Bound to Fall" is another instrumental bonus track. This is a more chilled track. 14. "Triad", a song about a ménage à trois. Two girlfriends would be hard enough to deal with, but this greedy man says “And in time maybe others”. Here’s someone who is going to end up alone! 15. "Goin' Back – Extended Version" 16. “Draft Morning – Alternate Backing Track”. Contains a load of studio chatter. I don’t feel it added anything, but I suppose it gives an insight into the creative process. Overall, I enjoyed the album. It is very chilled a relaxing. If I were prone to lying around listening to music I would probably listen again. My Rating: ****

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

A classic

Hoogst aangeschreven album van The Byrds. Mix van folk, rock, country jazz en natuurlijk psychedelia. Nummers gaan veelal over de hippie/drugscultuur van de jaren '60. Leuk album van een van de beste sixties bands. leukste nummer: Goin' Back De band viel praktisch uit elkaar tijdens de recordings. David Crosby werd ontslagen, maar de band gebruikte alsnog zijn "Draft Morning" op het album, wat hij niet zo leuk vond.

Legendary experimentation. A band so underrated it is criminal. They pushed boundaries more than the Beatles did and are never spoken about in the same light.

The Byrds just never disappoint, very enjoyable and joyous album, as always

4/5

Rock psicodélico sesentero.

I love The Byrds!

Meh... not bad. I could imagine this being a 69' woodstock headliner with everybody tripping out of their minds, they would lose it. Pretty chill stuff, the end of the album gets pretty darn psychadelic and progressive, which I definitely enjoyed. Okay, i keep coming back here to update my review as i listen to a few more songs because it keeps getting better, the first few songs kinda fall flat and gets more and more progressive This is pretty cool though: "The Byrds also introduced the sound of the pedal steel guitar and the Moog modular synthesizer into their music, making it one of the first LP releases on which the Moog appears"

Lovely album, starting to sound a bit dated, but also some cutting edge sounds in here too. Enjoyable listen, will likely revisit at some point in the future.

Beautifully sprawling

A solid 4.5 ⭐ the sounds and lyrics on this album are classic 60s. The song Triad is bizarre.

very cool with the venturing into new and weird styles

I used to listen to the Byrds a lot while riding the bus to school so listening to this album made me feel a bit nostalgic and really relaxed.

First review. Almost gave it three stars because not my favorite album that David Crosby made, but I love him and I am being nostalgic about his passing - the harmonies and sound of this album are pretty phenomenal.

7/10

Baita som, das antiga e pa, muito agradável

I've never seriously checked out the Byrds but this album definitely up my alley. It's just a well-produced short batch of folk-rock songs with some cool instrumental choices and solid songwriting. While I don't think it lives up to my favorite albums from this era/style, I'm sure I'll come back to it when I'm looking for something easy to listen to.

Really enjoyed this album. Lots of early experimentation with studio production elements with phasing, delay, and of course synthesizers. Didn't expect this from a band like The Byrds. Bonus tracks are definitely them just playing around in the studio, but genuinely appreciated them including it as part of the album as those sounds play such a large role in modern music production.

This pretty awesome album was made all the more interesting by the hippy squabbling at the end of the secret track.

Great!

This is definitely the best I’ve heard from the byrds

In 1968, the sort of people who thought excessive flange and phaser effects sounded futuristic and otherworldly were probably the same people who thought that by 1996, we'd be discovering signs of alien life on the moon. In this album, The Byrds are those people. I've always really admired this band but don't know a lot of their material on a deep-cut level. "Mr. Tambourine Man", released three years before "The Notorious Byrd Brothers", is the Byrds album I'm most familiar with and it's very different from this one. Delving deeper than ever before into psychedelia, the band become more introspective, solemn and ambitious here, and they do get a little lost along the way. There are cautionary songs about drug use, harrowing hallucinations of Vietnam, a longing to retreat into some innocent life free of responsibility. Even one of their cover choices- a wistful standout "Goin' Back"- is a yearning elegy to childhood. It's only 1968 and the Byrds are already sounding disillusioned with the Summer of Love. My favourite stretch of the record was in the middle: "Draft Morning" to "Old John Robertson" is a really solid run of tracks. The country influences are logical and accomplished, lap-steel guitar forms a welcome addition to the line-up, and it goes without saying that the harmonies are breezy and immaculate... perfectly measured vocals to serve each song. When the tempo ramps up, in "Old John Robertson", it's a ray of light through the fog. When it breaks for a lysergic, delay-soaked guitar solo like "Change is Now", it allows some of the most effective atmospherics on the record. The songs in 5/4 also push the envelope nicely. Slightly less effective for me are the songs that push the iconic 12-string Rickenbackers to the background: "Artificial Energy" has a fairly basic horn arrangement and doesn't do a great deal for me as an opener. "Space Odyssey" is a weak note to go out on, and "Natural Harmony" is a bit too dirge-like for my taste. The band's ambition throughout is admirable, but the constant studio effects are more than a little dated now and often distract from the strength of the songwriting. For a run-time of just twenty-eight minutes, "The Notorious Byrd Brothers" is sufficiently sprawling and dense. The band manage to pack a lot into each song, and while it doesn't reach the eight-mile heights of some of their other work, the craftsmanship and attention to detail here is applaudable. Definitely one to let sink in over some lazy afternoons and foggy nights.

In the midst of band upheaval and turmoil, The Byrds churned out one of their two classic albums of 1968, starting with this notorious set of songs. Featuring one of the first forays into the Moog synthesizer, along with their typical folk-rock excursions and Indian ragas melding with topics on threesomes and all. A very intriguing set that doesn't leave any crumbs for what may come later, but still worth the time. Favorites: Artificial Energy, Goin' Back, Draft Morning, Wasn't Born to Follow, Old John Robinson, Tribal Gathering, Moon Raga, Triad.

Really nice folk rock album, first time to it but I'd definitely listen again.

Really enjoyed this - the fun side of sixties over-indulgence, certainly in terms of the results. I can’t remember any specific songs, but I’d definitely check out more of The Byrds, based on this. An interesting mix of styles, and some lovely harmonies and melodies.

first listen great vibes

Quite lovely for the most part, just a little wet and meandering.

What a Banger

Kind of like The Beatles

Les melodies gairebé perfectes i les cançons per conservar durant décades continuaven sortint a dojo en el cinquè disc de la banda. Crosby ja estava de retirada, però les seves aportacions i les de la resta del grup fan del treball el favorit de molts. El toc hippie i antibèlic de la majoria de lletres encara li dona una pàtina més nostàlgica i atractiva

Fairly experimental folk, which is quite a fun sonic experience. However, there were a few moments on the album that were a little samey for my tastes.

Nice. Some great harmonies, and I like the trippiness of some of the songs. Favorites: Natural Harmony, Wasn't Born to Follow, Get to You, and Bound to Fall (instrumental).

4.25

Lovely, tuneful, thoroughly of its era but I enjoyed it a lot.

The last track on spotify - 13+ minutes. - of them arguing with each other about the song is pretty funny. fits with the wiki article about their arguments when creating this album

If you don't like this album don't worry you aren't weird and if you do like it don't worry you aren't weird. They certainly threw all sorts of musical styles, sounds, and instruments at this album its a mix of folk, country, electronic and pop and more yet it somehow works. Overall, this album covers subjects like nature, peace, love, war, and drugs this album could have been written and recorded last week as to how relevant it still feels on much of that subject matter. The track titled Draft Morning is a stark historical reminder of the draft and the never-ending war machine continually churning out casualties of war and conflict all in the name of profits and a stark reminder of the Vietnam war and in the historical context of 2022 the nearly unbroken half a century of war and conflict we as a nation have been involved in and how seemingly normal and a part of everyday life it's become. A handful of songs later you'll come across "Tribal Gathering" this song touches on tribalism and groupthink and then a few more songs later you get a track like "Space Odyssey" it's weird and odd and just plain out there it's truly spectacular I can't imagine how it might have been received in the late 60s early 70s.

This was a pretty wild and fun album

Really liked it Good production Very similar to the Beatles

Music was very good. The singing matched the noises and it was pretty ok. Sounded like Beatles vibes

Winsome, groovy and trippy (maybe to a fault with “Space Odyssey” and the uber-outre “Moog Raga” on the expanded version). Such a great brand that went from strength to strength during these years, despite turmoil. This album holds up excellently well and their influence shines through.

Don't think I've heard any of these tunes...but they all sound really nice. I need more Byrds in my life.

The Byrds are the kind of band that I like but from which there's no albums I'm totally crazy about. This one's a good example, extremely pleasant and a really nice transition from their more psychedelic first years, but in the end nothing from it will really stick with me. I'll be really glad every time I hear it, but it won't become a personal classic.

Sunny album for a sunny day. Great folk rock bangers in this one, I really enjoyed it!

Love the fact that hey put exotic instrument and psych sound into a more mainstream ablum. Pioneer of the genre. Great folk song as well. I Always enjoy The Byrds.

As usual, The Byrds have produced a soft and well-crafted album, which has the effect of a sunny day where it is good to live peacefully. I love their vibe and would be ready to listen to them at any time.

A delightful album full of quality tracks from the folk rock era with some new instrument experimentation going on as well (but you can keep the awful Space Odyssey).

Oh yeah, I like this. Great use of brass on the opening track, getting Beatles vibes. Absolutely love "I wasn't born to follow"! I knew it from Easy Rider, pleasantly surprised to hear it here.

I’m surprised there are this many Byrds albums on here, but I guess I’ve found them all pretty enjoyable I mean Sweetheart of the Rodeo was probably the most obnoxious but I think all the ones I’ve heard had something I liked anyway this gets an 8/10 from me the songs (I think there were multiple?) that used 5/4 were really impressive and sounded surprisingly good

Great instrumentation on most of the songs, the pedal steel countrified psychedelics, and I can listen to McGuinn play a Rickenbacker 12 all day long. Plus the harmonies! On the other hand, the stereophonic effects are bit much, but I guess a bit novel for the time or thought to contribute to mind expansion, using what I imagine were the terms in the day. There are couple misses. Moog Raga should have been cut and not used up precious studio time and recording tape.

Not bad.

LSD was good in 1968 👍👍. The strongest 7/10 I can give without it being an 8/10. In all honesty it probably is an 8/10 album, might be a 9/10, I'm not sure yet. I'll rate it how I feel right now after just listening to it.

Sweet melodies and harmonies. Lush and a treat

Who knew that David Crosby was holding the Byrds back? Some argue this is the band's finest work. I'm not ready to co-sign that statement yet. I seem to prefer my Byrds with a splash of Gram Parsons. There are still too many Byrds albums on this list (they shouldn't have more than 3). So cut two off, but this one stays.

C’est eclaté. Du bon rock psychedelique. Comme il ne s’en fait plus. K’ai bcp aime. 4.5

This was just a generally solid 60s album. Some psychedelic, some blues, some other stuff. Just very enjoyable

A nice mix of folk and psychedelic with some heavy phasing and a weird synth song, but it all manages to hold together well, even with the changing cast of characters. It’s a bit of a time capsule of some of the different movements of the (rich) music scene of that time, especially in the US. The vocals are very recognizable as The Byrds. I only listened to the original 29 minute vinyl release and would be far less enthusiastic if the Moog Ragga was part of the package.

Such a cool sound, probably the most catchy and easy going psychedelic sound I’ve heard from all of the 60s bands. It knows just how far to push it and it works. The album has a bit too much country in it for me to really get into it. A generous 4/5 - Pretty good, added to my list

Very good

Good vibes! Will likely listen to more

Cool psychedelic country album

Groovy.

wasn't born to follow so good!

I liked it. The flanger effects were probably overdone but I'm sure it was a novelty at the time.

I was a little skeptical about some of the raving critical reviews this album has gotten, especially starting out with the weird "Artificial Energy." But after the rough start, I was completely sold. This is a gorgeous collection of songs, full of rich vocal harmonies and some stunningly lovely guitar work. The Byrds beautifully marry a pop sensibility with psychedelic experimentation and a bit of a country twang. It really shouldn't all work together, but it does. Roger McGuinn's guitar work is ridiculously good, some of the best put to record. I really enjoyed this. Fave Songs: Get to You, Change is Now, Wasn't Born to Follow, Draft Morning, Goin' Back, Natural Harmony

Love this album. Not my favourite Byrds lp, but close enough.

Ever heard this album before. I'm very familiar with their first three albums which are classic in their own rights. The Notorious yrd Brothers has a different sound, a jazzier sound that works very well. I enjoyed each and every song. Can't quite give it a five bit I'm tempted. 4.25 🌟

I enjoyed this album a lot. My favourite song was Get To You.

Good stuff! I like the soundscapes and harmonies on this album a lot, and it seems to twist and turn into some at times dark and at times transcendent places. Very creative!

Thoroughly enjoyable, if a little repetitious. The instrumentals pieces I could live without.

¿Por qué este albúm que suena tan estándar es tan importante? En mi punto de vista es quizá el album que mejor encapsula a la banda. Combina pop, rock psicodelia y country con mucha maestría. Es un album que suena tanto feliz y sencillo como misterioso y profundo. Quizá el punto en que la banda se siente en su mayor capacidad de escribir y experimentar. Canciones como Get to You quizá suenan como algo normal pero continuando con el punto de estar a mediados de los 60s es una fusión interesante de folk, pop barroco y psicodelia que en su momento no se veía y que da la que quizá es su mejor canción. No, no son una banda que hoy suene espectacular para la mayoría, pero son una excelente banda y, como ya se ha dicho, mucho de la manera en que sonaban grupos que quizá fueron hasta más famosos es gracias a la base sentada por ellos y a la gran variedad de estilos en los que incursionaron.

Good ol' fashioned Americana.

Started off a bit too soft for me, but picked up. Weird elements of southern rock and psychedelic that somehow work pretty well.

Pretty fun and experimental, still sound like worse Crosby Stills and Nash. 7

3.5/5. Another great Byrds record, they had this psychedelic rock thing down pat. Standout Tracks: Artificial Energy, Draft Morning, Get to You, Dolphin's Smile

Classic sound.

Great journey.

Easy listening, understandable it was so popular for the time.

Love dat 12 string guitar sound.

very good eclectic sound, enjoyed it overall.

Pretty great. You can really hear the Crosby.

Loved this tbh

Nothing really outstanding, but it's still a pleasant album.

Nice and comfy

Rock psicodélico sesentero.

I never thought I’d like this kind of music. It was actually pretty nice

Guter gitarrenpop. Teils noch folkig.

Some jangly rock

Love the harmonies.

9.3/10

Psychedelic folk rock that mostly works. Best track: Draft Morning.

Extremely pleasant to listen to. I like folk in general, and this is no exception. Nearly perfection.

7/10

This is pretty cool, nice and cruisy. Well written, good songs, almost doesn't feel like it's 50 years old. 4/5.

pretty good but there's nothing exceptionally memorable about it

would listen again

middle of the road

Uma pegada meio inspirada em Beatles, creedance.. achei bem legal.

Fun little album that flies by. A nice blend of folk and psychedelic rock elements that make for a really enjoyable 30 minutes or so. 3.5

I never knew this was the source of Crosby’s “Triad.” I’ve known the solo live version from CSNY’s 4-Way Street and it was a lovely surprise here. The rest is McGuinn’s vanilla vocals over increasingly experimental tracks.

Mer sextiotal än sextiotalet. Men jag är inte övertygad. En trea

A fun little record with bite-sized moments of folk rock, psychedelia, and experimentation. I definitely jumped to conclusions about this record from the album cover but the experience is far less country-oriented than you would think from it. It’s experimenting and coolest moments are subtle so I think this is one where appreciation for it could grow with time. 1 listen Favorite Track: Goin’ Back

від moog raga ледь не здохла ахаха

Very pleasant but just a bit nondescript for my tastes. A solid 3.

Sweetheart of the Rodeo will always be my favorite. But this foray into folk psychedelia holds his own.

Our next door neighbor, Andy, is a huge fan of this group and Roger McGuinn in particular. I like the David Crosby penned tracks and there are two by Goffin-King (Carole King, i.e.) that are nice but seem odd on an album by a band like this. For 1968 this must have been pretty cool.

Not too bad. Definitely has that sort of 60s hippy sound to it. Better than some of the slower 60s stuff.

Some good tunes on here, couple of stinkers. I would’ve loved this at 17/18

Not bad.

much more diverse than the last album we listened to. Cool to see the growth and experimentation come out on this one.

Boomers, I understand the hype now. Solid.

This was just OK. It had some of that classic Byrds sound but they were starting to add modern touches to it. I waffled between 2 and 3 stars.

Another Byrds album. From what I remember I didn't like their album I listened to some months ago. But this one is great? Turns out they make good music when they're not doing a whole album of Dylan covers 3/5

Sounded very good but I don’t find any songs that I really need to listen to again. Maybe my hopes were too high. 3.5/5

Didn’t really leave much of an impression on me. At some point i just thought this kinda sounds like The beetles

Number: 151 Date: 06/03/2026 Artist: The Byrds Album: The Notorious Byrd Brothers Year: 1968 Style: Psychedelic Rock Familiarity: Familiar (3) Rating: 3 Before: ======= Of course I'm familiar with The Byrds but not that much as they were active a little before my time. Probably my favorite band making music in the late 60's would be The Doors. During: ======= 3 Artificial Energy 3 Goin' Back 3 Natural Harmony 3 Draft Morning 4 Wasn't Born To Follow 4 Get To You 3 Change Is Now 3 Old John Robertson 4 Tribal Gathering 3 Dolphins' Smile 2 Space Odyssey ----------------------------------------------------- 3.10 WEIGHTED AVERAGE (accounts for song lengths) After : ======= I'm only giving it a 3 for suitability as there are 5 albums from The Byrds on this list and my feeling is that there should not be more than 3 from any one artist and only more than one if the albums are significantly different from each other. Since I'm not that familiar with their work, I have no idea, other than from what I've read, if this album is one of their best and is significantly different from the others included on this list. 3 my personal rating 3 suitability for this list 4 impact ----------------------------------------------- 3.3 composite rating

Lovely! No real standout tracks but perfect, easy cooking or dinner party music

Lovely summer listening. nothing stands out though.

Ok, but quite boring

Yeah, good for some chill out music.

This was an album I could have in the background on a road trip - easy listening. It wasn't necessarily the type of music I gravitate towards, however. It was also quiet dated sounding. Some interesting sounds throughout, however.

Trippy as hell. Cosmic Americana.

The more experimental album than Younger Than Yesterday. I am impressed by plenty of the tunes, but I feel the previous has lots of charm. This one adds more flavor but loses a bit of its shine in the process. The beginning of this takes time to get off its feet; it takes until track 4 for a real keeper to come around. Draft Morning is the best song, but Tribal Gathering/Get To You are nice with the time signatures. The rest alternates from great to OK, my verdict here puts it as a fairly good album. It's just not as cool as Younger Than Yesterday (7/10, 3/5 on this scale)

2.5

Die amerikanische Rockband The Byrds betrat die Columbia Studios in Hollywood zwischen Juni und Dezember 1967 unter denkbar schwierigen Bedingungen: David Crosby wurde während der Aufnahmen gefeuert, Schlagzeuger Michael Clarke verließ zeitweilig die Band, und Gene Clark kehrte für wenige Wochen zurück, bevor er die Gruppe erneut verließ. Was unter diesen Turbulenzen entstand, ist ihr fünftes Studioalbum – und gleichzeitig ihr vielleicht vollständigstes Werk. Produziert von Gary Usher und erschienen im Januar 1968 auf Columbia Records, verbindet es Folk Rock, Psychedelia, Country und frühe elektronische Experimente zu einer überraschend homogenen Klangwelt. Technisch ist das Album ein Meilenstein: Usher und die Band setzten Phasing, Flanging und räumliches Panning so konsequent ein wie kaum eine Gruppe zuvor im Mainstream-Rock. Der Pedal-Steel-Gitarren-Sound und der Moog-Synthesizer – einer der frühesten LP-Einsätze überhaupt – verleihen Tracks wie „Draft Morning" oder „Natural Harmony" eine sphärische Qualität, die weit über den Zeitgeist hinausweist. „Wasn't Born to Follow", geschrieben von Gerry Goffin und Carole King, erreichte durch seine Verwendung im Film Easy Rider posthume Bekanntheit und ist bis heute der bekannteste Track der Platte. Bemerkenswert ist, wie wenig das innere Chaos auf dem Klang des Albums hörbar ist. Roger McGuinn und Chris Hillman, übrig nach all den Abgängen, wirkten nicht wie Überlebende, sondern wie Architekten – konzentriert, präzise, mit einem klaren klanglichen Ziel. Das Ergebnis ist kein kommerzieller Erfolg geworden; die Platte erreichte lediglich Platz 47 der Billboard-Charts. Kritisch wird sie dennoch häufig als das beste Werk der Byrds gehandelt, und diese Einschätzung ist schwer zu widerlegen. The Notorious Byrd Brothers ist das Album einer Band im freien Fall – und trotzdem das Dokument einer bewundernswerten ästhetischen Disziplin.

I do like brothers, especially notorious ones... don't like it as much as Sweetheart of the Rodeo tho

Five albums from The Byrds. Over two and a half hours of the most middle-of-the-road psychedelic country folk rock imaginable. Why the hell would anyone need that? At no point during any of my listens was I impressed with The Byrds. When I found myself loving a song, turns out Bob Dylan wrote it. I’m just glad it’s over and I never have to hear these dorks make other peoples’ songs sleep-inducing. Final The Byrds Ranking: 1.) Younger Than Yesterday 2.) Sweetheart of the Rodeo 3.) Fifth Dimension 4.) Mr. Tamborine Man 5.) The Notorious Byrd Brothers

que susto o cara falando comigo

I don't think I'm recognizing any of these tracks by title, though I can imagine I probably know a few of these. Otherwise, I've never listened to this album start-to-finish. It's not bad, but I feel like the only thing I can say about this album is that I listened to it. There's not much particularly special going on here.

The album’s mix of psychedelic textures, harmonies, and folk-rock atmosphere often reminded me of a lighter, more American counterpart to The Beatles. While I could understand its influence and atmosphere, some of the songs felt less distinctive to me overall. Tribal Gathering stood out the most, especially for its explosive guitar work and stronger rock energy.

Good. A little too enamored of psychedelic sounds at times

Typical 60s psych rock that wishes it was the Beatles or Pink Floyd. Nothing ground breaking but not a bad album.

short album but had some tunes

Jangly.

Didn't realise they did so much crazy sh*t to be honest.

Not a bad album, I quite like some Byrds tracks.

It’s abit long winded but the experimentation is impressive given its release window. Pretty good overall

Unremarkable I suppose

Got kinda weird as the album went on but it was a good kind of weird for the most part.

Well, if this isn't the epitome of 60s hippie rock -- chiming guitars, spacey vocals. It's very pretty, but I didn't find any of the songs memorable.

Very weird folk album, a song about a threesome?? Hahahaha kind of funny though

I feel like I should love this more than I do. It's a bit too dreamy in the vocals, missing a clarity and an edge that are there on other records in this era.

Some good typical Byrds tunes but too much experimental stuff here for me.

Flower power lives on. This album, the last of five in the list, is perhaps more spaced out. No real stand out tracks for me. Points off for the 12 minute last track.

Groovy. Sounds like standard 1968 tunes

Holy boring but not the most boring I’ve heard on this list

Moog Raga = Poop Caca because it sound like fart. Anyways, good album, a bit samey throughout but enjoyed most of it.

Yet more Byrds! This album is a pleasant enough a listen but nothing about it grabs you by the lapels and tells you to pay attention and listen. Just became a background album for me sadly as I did other things with my time…

"Triad" is nice and some of their other songs really interested me because of how different they sounded. I also like "Goin' Back" it has a nice sound to it.

(4/7) pleasant

By rights I should like this band and I do but I don’t love them. This was really lovely with intricate tunes and melodies but it didn’t give me a wow moment and its interesting that the only song that resonated with me was Wasn’t Born to Follow, not by them but by Goffin/King.

Pretty fascinated by this one and what they were going for, has a folky country feel but then gets increasingly psychedelic and strange as it goes on. Not all for me but I did enjoy it throughout

My favourites were Get to You, Tribal Gathering (you can't go wrong with 5/4!) and Dolphin's Smile.

3.4/5 pretty good short songs

really nice, i could see this growing on me highlights: goin back, draft morning 3.5/5

Some good shit, some bad shit. That one Moog song was terrrrrible.

3.5

I love The Byrds but they released so much music in such a short amount of time, and that means some of the full albums kinda miss me. Some not so great songs on here.

I know I’m supposed to like this more but it just sounds like another band emulating The Beatles.

tell me that its the last byrds album please. like i know the compilation of the 1001 albums is intended to give us a holistic experience of both good and bad albums from all the eras but is this much of the wrongly spelled birds really what we need to be knowledgable about the different eras of western popular music? and this is boring and bland and... i cant say how much im not interested in this. 3/5

Pretty generic here.

Pretty good but rather ‘samey.’

a great album considering David Crosby during the sessions hence the missing face on the cover.

Not really my thing. But well done. Good energy to it

Van de eerste zes albums (1965-1968) van deze 'gebroeders' staan er vijf in de lijst! Het zijn de Beatles niet, hoor. Ze hebben twee hits en verder klinkt het allemaal hetzelfde. Kabbelende Americana met ijle samenzang. Wel aardig, maar het zoveelste album voegt niets toe.

Solid album, but I didn’t need a 5th album by The Byrds. It shows how much the author really needs to limit the amount of albums per artist are on this list.

No de mi gusto

An experimental groove that lands but doesn’t stick

Faves: Goin Back Draft Morning

Lotta talent in this group, but the album is just alright

1001 albums to hear before you byrd with your brothers 57# At first I thought this was a beatles imitation but no, it has it's character. Pretty cool voice for a byrd. Kinda psychedelic, hitting the bare minimum to be called so.

Surprising. I do not like The Byrds (over played 60s rock) but for some reason this album was pretty good. They try some new recording methods that actually work.

Love the style, and listen to a lot of similar 60s music, but didn't love the album. Wasn't Born to Follow was grand. This album had RANGE, like a journey.

It is very neat

Kind of a slog. Some interesting use of synth, but also seems pretty par for the course for 1968. This is probably just survivorship bias, because I'm betting there's hundreds of forgotten bands from this year, but somehow we're talking about the Byrds.

Standard fare 60's tunes. Not outstanding, but fine.

Folky stuff was nice but a little too much hippy dippy experimental stuff thrown in.

Tame music of the era, nicely recorded and some good tunes.

Ok

Some alright psychedelia, nothing especially interesting, but not bad

3.1 One thing this list has taught me is just how *good* the Beatles were, how many light years ahead of the rest of the pack they were. This was one of the more interesting of the thirty-ish 60's psychedelic pop albums on here, but even then I'm not drawn into loving any of it, and think it will be instantly forgotten in the coming week and lost to time again. Glad it was made, as it actually sounds like an important stepping stone unlike some of the others, but it isn't much more than that.

First listen

Amazing songs and lovely feeling to the album

Artificial energy - 4 Goin' back - 3 Natural harmony - 3 Draft morning - 3 Wasn't born to follow - 3 Get to you - 3 Change is now - 4 Old john robertson - 3 Tribal gathering - 3 Dolphin's smile - 3 Space odyssey - 3

very average, very obvious they were on something?

This is fine. I think I would like it a lot more if it leaned into some of its influences even more. As it stands its sort of like luke warm water. THREE STARS

I’m on the fence about this one. Listened twice and enjoyed a lot more on second listen. I found the instrumental parts more engaging than vocals. Still sounds like Temu doors to me. Not likely to come back but respectable 3 anyway. 3/5

Nice collection of songs, but felt disjointed at times. The Moog coming out of nowhere was a surprise. Favorite songs: Triad, Draft Morning

Listenable, but didn't love it. But I *did* learn that this was the album that was the end of Crosby w/ the Byrds which turned out pretty alright for music.

Placeholder

Gotta be honest this album didn't do much for me. I didn't necessarily dislike it, but it's also just very forgettable for me compared to other albums on this list. I appreciate the 5/4 time on Tribal Gathering as I'm writing this, and there are some other cool aspects of the album but as a whole I don't think I'll be revisiting it. I had some more notes that apparently didn't save. Overall I still enjoyed the album more than not listening to any music at all so it still gets 3 stars.

This album is a mix of fun, catchy, and "what were they thinking." I've been enjoying it but it is difficult to compare to other albums on this list as the structure is much looser. I think I'm going to change my judging criteria to be more weighted by how much I enjoyed the album rather than trying to compare apples to oranges to Moog Raga.

It's fine I guess, it has some nice songs but nothing memorable

Wasn't Born to Follow is by far the best song here.

Not a lot to say about this one, it’s what I expected and what I expected was meh

Probably the most I’ve enjoyed a Byrd’s album, even though there isn’t a single track I recognized beforehand. The cool moments of unrestrained psychedelic guitar work took me by surprise in a good way. This was both chill and exciting all at once. Then, we get to that Moog Raga song, where the synth notes hum in warmly like enormous colorful bubble farts. That one was a no for me. Following a track or so after, the song Triad is then about a dude busted for cheating. He tries the ol’ ‘let’s be like the Mormons’ line. Surry bruh, I doubt that worked out fer ya.

I preferred the first couple of songs over the rest of the album. I thought that the album overall was pretty forgettable, but for the occasional fun instrumental, this one will get a 3.

Ok, um disco de folk da idade da minha mãe... E me manteve empolgado, as músicas curtas mantém a energia alta e achei engraçado como conhecia uma canção do album e não fazia ideia disso. Não sei quando ouvirei outra vez, mas com toda certeza o farei

This felt like a prototype for a better psychadelic album. Still good but just not fully fleshed out

++*: Artificial Energy ++: Natural Harmony, Draft Morning, Get to You, Old John Robertson, Tribal Gathering +: Wasn't Born to Follow, Change Is Now, Dolphin's Smile, Space Odyssey +-: Goin' Back 7,7/10

I should like the Byrds more but I don't.

It's pleasant enough but even after a few listens nithing really stands out or is memorable

Psychedelic rock/pop music from the 1960s. Some parts of this gets very freaky in an "ahead of its time" sense, like "Draft Morning," which becomes a chaotic sound effect collage right in the middle. Unfortunately, despite bringing interesting ideas to the table, the song writing on this one doesn't do much for me. Still appreciate it though.

Artificial Energy 3.4 Goin' Back 3.7 Natural Harmony 3.3 Draft Morning 3.6 Wasn't Born to Follow 3.3 Get to You 3.3 Change Is Now 3.5 Old John Robertson 3.3 Tribal Gathering 3.6 Dolphin's Smile 3.2 Space Odyssey 3.3 Score: 3.409090909

Songs and they sound mostly the same, but pleasant.

This is exactly what I would expect from a band named the Byrds big fan of this. They are notorious. Just noises man. Fuck yeah. Very early folk indie vibes very S&G I'm into this. Giving me very Hobbit vibes. Not a lot of variety in sound however. B ut it's gets a pass bc I like it. Yeah not much to say very enjoyable not very memorable or varied but great listen and definitely in my playlists. Favourite: Tribal Gathering Least favourite: Dolphin's Smile

A nice chill psych folk and rock album not many highlights here except for "Goin' Back" 7/10 Favourite: Goin' Back Least Favourite: Old John Robertson

Decent album. Nothing exciting, but enjoyable enough. 3/5

I didn't mind this but it doesn't really stand out from any given psychedelic rock album from that time.

Innovative at the time, but doesn't hold up too well.

very outdated album, you could tell it was made in the 1960s. I still enjoyed listening to it nonetheless. Best track was Goin’ Back.

Moon Raga is not my jam. Sounds like elaborate farts made by someone who inhaled a lot of helium

***a good, easy listening album

Was not expecting some of the more country forward songs on this album and they were very pleasant sounding.

Washed through, did nothing for me.

Never heard of this. Favorites: Goin' Back Thoughts: Pleasant enough, this is the music I'd listen to if I was next to a babbling brook under the sun.

I no longer get excited by the phrase "late-'60s musical experimentation," but on here it seems to work. The songs are catchy enough and don't overstay their welcome.

It was alright

Better than the previous one the list gave me, still boring, but still mercifully short. Too much stuff from these guys.

Just ok. Not great

Some ok tunes, seemed derivative for time period after a while

Pretty good. Very nice album, enjoyable listening.

es como música de radio que no volvería a escuchar pero no es mala

цікаві електронік саундс

This record was ok. There were some cool parts. The Notorious BYRD was lot more accessible than I thought. Psychedelic folk is probably a good way to describe this record.

I gotta listen to it i forgot 😅😅

Good album. Lots of variety, good production, quick runtime. The country songs are terrible, but that's the genre for you. 3.0/5.0: Good

i blinked and this was over. it didnt leave much of an impression either way.

It was fine. Clearly experimenting and trying some things, most of which mostly worked.

gentle- good calm background

It's only a couple of weeks since I had Younger Than Yesterday by The Byrds and this album has a lot of the same strengths and weaknesses. Mainly, you can have great songs and you can have musical experimentation, but you can't have both on the same track.

Favorite Track: Wasn’t Born to Follow

There’s some interesting experimental stuff mixed in with more “normal” 60s pop rock. They aren’t afraid to try things and there’s some historical context that they were pushing the boat out, metaphorically and musically speaking. Kudos to them but catching up on my reviews from Saturday and apart from the weird (Moog Raga) and interesting (Universal Mind Decoder) it hasn’t really stuck with me. So a 3 it is.

My first reaction was that this is like a less polished Simon and Garfunkel with more experimental elements. After a repeat listen, there is a bit more going on here and it's quite an intriguing album. There is some experimentation and some of those experiments have aged fairly badly ('Moog Raga' I'm looking at you...), but there is also mix of surprising themes and lyrics that add a depth to this album that I originally missed. It is less polished that S&G, but it also has a bit more bite.

Solid folk pop album with some really fun moments. Takes a bit to get going (A side notably weaker in my opinion) and ends on a strange note, but inoffensive and decent to listen to overall. Top tracks: Change Is Now, Tribal Gathering, Dolphin's Smile

One of the okayest albums so far

Goin' Back sounds a lot like House of Cards by Radiohead. Overall average, fun album with solid production.

Klassisk 60/70-skiva. Ett sound som är habilt. Går inte igång riktigt på det, krävs nåt lite mer, som det bjuds på i sången "change is now". Den är grym. Resten ok.

Habil skiva, trevlig lyssning och föredömligt kort. Change is now sticker ut som den bästa låten och hade önskat några till i samma kaliber för högre betyg.

this is an album where i understand that it was perhaps groundbreaking at the time, it doesn’t really hold up today imo. the ideas here were fleshed out later and greatly improved upon. sounds like a prototype CSN&Y. “Draft Morning” is an insane song, and the moog is sick

It was ok, I liked the first half or so of the album but it got pretty old after a bit 3 stars 6/10

Nothing stands out about this album, good or bad. It is truly a whole album with lots of variety and some innovation (early use of the Moog synthesizer and notions of threesomes!).

My complaint with the Byrds' debut record, Mr. Tambourine Man, was that the songs were too similar to one another. They hit their musical stride with the title track and seemed to stick with it a little too closely, since every subsequent track had roughly the same mood and exactly the same instrumentation. The Notorious Byrd Brothers does a better job, though what it boasts in variety, it balances out with a healthy dose of datedness. Old John Robertson and Dolphin's Smile are extremely weak tracks that focus more on sounding as goofy and airheaded as possible without actually being interesting. The latter in particular is just an echoey mess of vocals and other noises. The only solace is that these tracks are the two shortest on the record. Artificial Energy is a strong opener, featuring large-and-in-charge horns and great vocal harmonisation. Reminds me of late-era Simon & Garfunkel. The following track, Goin' Back, alleviates any worries I have of the album being monotonous. It's soft, lilting, and the standout instrument is the bassline. Draft Morning is arguably even better, since it contains a rise and fall in tension. Which is almost invariably a great choice for any song. A Day in the Life, Heroin, Rock 'n' Roll Suicide, Babe I'm Gonna Leave You... some of the finest tracks of artists from this period follow the same pattern. Wasn't Born to Follow makes perfect sense as the most popular track, but I'd have to be in a different mood to adore it as much as more laid-back songs on the record. It's cheery and acoustic-guitar-heavy – a surefire combo to win over the crowds – but the most interesting songs are elsewhere. 3/5 Key tracks: Goin' Back, Draft Morning, Change Is Now

Another pleasant enough yet questionably “essential” album from The Byrds.

at first i was like what is this hillbilly business but then i heard the ending of Get to You , absolutely lovely makes me wanna embody a hippy holding hands with their community and dancing in a circle . Dolphin’s Smile also caught my eye. Out at seaaaaaa

Didn't really do anything for me. Some unique instruments though. I skipped through some of Universal Mind Decoder - Alternative Backing Track.

I don’t think this was the Byrds album that belonged on the list. It started off good but kind or went off the rails.