Search - Byrds :: Preflyte Sessions

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Smokey Lynx | Toledo, OH United States | 02/04/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Any fan of the Byrds and Gene Clark should have this in their collection . I never had either half of this material when it was released previously by both Rhino and Together, and put off buying it due to spotty reviews. Throw that mess out of your mind and get a copy . The Sundazed label did a great job on the whole package and it's a valuable addition to my collection. The sets have a lot of fascinating stuff , but hearing the original acoustic version of " you Showed Me The Way " by itself is worth it."

EMBRYONIC JOURNEY

Michael D. Zungolo | Philadelphia, PA USA | 07/08/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"For those of us who believe the Byrds in their heyday were and remain the greatest American rock band, this collection is an essential look into how they got there. Four young men find their "voices" as singers, songwriters and harmonists in a 40-track collection that includes little of the "demo-itis" that usually plagues collections of this sort. The band hadn't yet hit their TAMBOURINE MAN through YOUNGER THAN YESTERDAY stride, of course, but the music contained in this collection is better than much of what was being "officially" released in the U.S. at the time. The sound of the Byrds can be heard today in everyone from 16 Horsepower to REM, and anyone interested in the evolution of great American rock music should check this out."

Essential For Byrds Fans

Hans Pfaall | Connecticut, USA | 12/11/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This is the definitive document on the birth of the Byrds, and how they sounded before recording the "Mr. Tambourine Man" single. All the material included on In the Beginning and Preflyte is included here along with many alternate takes, and four early David Crosby recordings. There is much excellent music on this CD even if the performances are less polished, and songwriting has more of a Beatles influence. The songs are almost always original, and there are great ones (some by Gene Clark in particular) that were not included on their first album on Columbia. The drawback to this release is that the many alternate takes are not as good as the cuts that made up the original In the Beginning and Preflyte. However, this is the only album that collects everything plus, and it is good to have all the material in one place. Perhaps it would have been better if each song were represented once in the best version or occasionally twice. This would have whittled the album down to around twenty tracks, which would have made it easy to play from start to finish. Another reason to get this is because of the well made fifty page booklet of essays and pictures. If you look around, you may be able to find this album for around twenty dollars (in the US). I really feel this is essential for Byrds fans to own."