Mr. Tambourine Man
by The Byrds

The Byrds debut album brings folk rock to the masses. It's an enjoyable album although sonically it all sounds the same, still, it's an excellent and influential LP. The jangly guitars dominate, a sound that The Beatles had used on the previous year's, what you're doing, on their, Beatles for sale, LP. As for the album itself, there are some great songs here, a third from the pen of Bob Dylan, including the stunning, Mr. Tambourine man, which takes Dylan's folk classic and turns it into a catchy pop hit. There's, chimes of freedom, and, all I really want to do(I'm still not sure about that middle eight), and, Spanish Harlem incident. Best of the originals is, I feel a whole lot better, and, here without you. There are a few throwaway's, but that was how it was then, still, an important album which would kick of a barrage of folk rock tracks but the Byrds are the original and best. (Edited)

From mdbaxter TOP 100 COMMENTER 10/23/2019 20:33 | #244056 | TOP COMMENT Vote up your preferred comments and the comments with the most votes will be flagged.

An album split between quality covers of old material, namely Dylan, and some interesting original compositions. The covers are solid reinventions of the material and not just ripoffs. They aren't the best Dylan covers ever (those would belong to The Jimi Hendrix Experience) but they are good. I prefer Dylan's Mr. Tambourine Man but theirs is still good. I like what they did with the reverb on"Don't Doubt Yourself, Babe". I can imagine that being revolutionary at the time. It's clear that they are an answer to the British Invasion and they even surpass some of the bands from across the pond but they are nowhere near the Beatles. Their use of electric instruments and their prevalence in music since is a clear mark of their influence. My favorite song is "I'll Feel A Whole Lot Better". The bonus song "She Has A Way" is also a good one. (Edited)

This album starts off with a 1-2 punch not seen in many other albums with the fantastic cover of Bob Dylan’s “Mr Tambourine Man” and the simply infectious “I’ll Feel A Whole Lot Better”. What follows is a consistently good collection of melodic pop songs that doesn't quite live up to the super high standards set by the first 2 songs. Still a very good album nonetheless. (Edited)

These guys had an original sound that proved to be hugely influential from the start. I'll Feel a Whole Lot Better is one of the greatest pop rock songs ever recorded. (Edited)

Fantastic debut album. It still sounds way ahead of its time. Every track is a potential hit! The vinyl still packs a punch! (Edited)