Byrds- McGuinn, Hillman & Clark

Rip It Up, Issue 12, 1 June 1978, Page 3

Byrds- McGuinn, Hillman & Clark

As Alfred Hitchcock once phrased it, "The Byrds is coming” well some of The Byrds anyway. Founding members, Roger McGuinn, Gene Clark and Chris Hillman tour here this month. The concert format will involve individual solo spots followed by a combined performance. Apparently they are touring without a drummer so whether this indicates a totally acoustic evening is anybody's guess. Acoustic or electric, McGuinn is well prepared. He began his career as a folk guitarist (supporting the likes of Judy Collins) before going it alone on the cafe cir-

cuit. One night in '64, Clark and Dave Crosby approached him from the audience and so began the primal stage of one of the decade’s greatest bands. In many ways McGuinn was the Byrds. The one constant factor in its 9 year history, he always directed flight, utilising the talents of a changing membership. As a guitarist, he contributed the famous electric 12-string sound, being the only original member proficient enough to play on their first record. As a writer, he co-authored “8 Miles High”, "So You Want To Be A Rock and Roll Star” (with Hillman) and “Chestnut Mare”. Since

the band’s demise he has made 4 solo albums, the latest of which song Dylan gave him after McGuinn toured with the Rolling Thunder Revenue. Missouri-born Gene Clark first travelled as a guitarist with the New Christy Minstrels but after a hit and two albums he quit to settle in L.A. The Byrds capitalised on his songwriting skill and when Clark eventually departed, (during the recording of the Fifth Dimension album in ’66) it was, ironically, because of his fear of boarding planes. Subsequently he has made two solo albums and two with a group as coleader. Clark’s best post-Byrds work is probably his latest, the solo White Light. Chris Hillman was a bluegrass mandolinist who switched to bass on joining The Byrds, and developed a great flair for

the instrument. He was a fine musician and songwriter and his departure in '6B marked the beginning of the demise of the group. Since then Hillman has worked with three other bands and made two solo albums, but the most satisfying remains his first with The Flying Burrito Brothers and the first with Manassas. All three men are '6os survivors, exmembers of the group which introduced Dylan to the masses, created a new rock genre, put a passage from The Bible on the top of the charts, wrote the first druggie’ hits, sparked the country-rock resurgence, helped the Easy Rider soundtrack, and generally gave us a great deal of wonderful music. If you've any sense of history you won’t want to miss them. Peter Thomson