(Untitled) / (Unissued) San Francisco CA

(Untitled) / (Unissued)

The Byrds

Epic / Legacy Records, 1970

REVIEW BY: Christopher Thelen

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED: 04/02/2000

Dan Smith has been doing a great job looking at the recent slew of re-issues from The Byrds - so I hope he won't mind if I cut in on the dance for a moment.

You see, while I've appreciated the work of Roger McGuinn and crew, I never really developed a major fascination with the band. Over the years, I've picked up the occasional used Byrds record, but due to time constraints (as well as the fact my daughter always wants to play "Chutes And Ladders"), these platters have sat idly in the halls of the Pierce Memorial Archives.

I recently was sent one of the latest reissues, (Untitled) / (Unissued), the group's 1970 return-to-form release that re-established the band as a serious musical force - even if the band was teetering toward their eventual dissolution. I have the original two-record set in the Archives - and, yes, it's one of the records that has been collecting dust. But after listening to this two-CD set, I've spent a relaxing afternoon kicking myself in the ass - and I mean with steel-toe boots - for not realizing just how good McGuinn and company could be.

If you only listen to the originally-issued material on disc one, you're still ahead of the game. A combination of live tracks and new studio recordings, The Byrds - McGuinn, Clarence White, Gene Parsons and Skip Battin - remind people real quickly that while this isn't the same band that recorded hits like "Mr. Tambourine Man," they still were a powerful band that demanded to be dealt with. Quite a bit of the Dylan-like folk influence was gone (even though there's still plenty of homage paid to Dylan's songs here), as was most of the country-rock that McGuinn eventually found favor in (again, there's spatterings here).