Greatest Hits

This newly remastered version is truly a standout because it adds three additional bonus tracks, "It Won't Be Wrong," "Set You Free This Time," and "Have You Seen Her Face." I have to admit, "Set You Free," though a pleasant effort by Gene Clark, is a bit too country-ish for my liking and I don't care much for it. However, the other two bonus tracks are KILLER, and I am so glad that these were included. They may not have been hits like the rest of the songs (I believe they were released as singles, but sadly recieved little attention commercially), but "It Won't Be Wrong" and "Have You Seen Her Face" both contain some of the best melodies I have ever heard from this group or anyone else, and I always enjoy listening to them. Pity these weren't hits, they sure deserved to be. As it is, they remain supreme album cuts that make this great collection even greater.

This is a MUST have for any seroius rock fan. Don't let this pass you by. If you are a casual fan, definitely pick this one up and prepare to get hooked. After listening to their classic hits, go back and pickup the remastered versions of the "Mr. Tambourine Man" and "Fifth Dimension" albums (both of which feature phoenomenal album cuts) to see what a truly inventive band the Byrds really were during this era.


Terrific Complilation Of The Byrds Greatest Hits!   April 8, 2001
Barron Laycock (Temple, New Hampshire United States)
12 out of 13 found this review helpful

Anyone alive and kicking in the early 1960s remembers the Byrds fondly. Who but this unlikely group of very talented but inherently quirky young musicians could have made such an instant splash as they did with a quick succession of chart busters such as "All I Really Want To Do", Mr. Tambourine Man", and "Turn, Turn, Turn"? They had tyhe audacity and courage to assaultwhat was then the British-dominated pop charts and in the process became a wildly successful group, one who wound up pioneering the realities of the American rock star phenomenon. As they describe in "So You Want to Be A Rock & Roll Star", the chance to do so was real, at least for them. And they succeeded far beyond their wildest expectations!

All of their best efforts are here, and although it was true that the tender ages and very high level of talent and abilities of each of the members led to their relatively quick demise as a group, it is also true that the abilities of each as musicians and songwriters and performers is evident here. Who can resist the magic of a song like "Eight Miles High" or "My Back Pages"? They had an obvious sense of humor, as is evident in "Mr Spaceman", and also had a social conscience, as they proved with "Chimes OF Freedom". In fact, they helped enormously to establish Bob Dylan's music in the hearts and minds of the sixties generation, and from "Mr Tambourine Man" to "My Back Pages" to "All I Really Want To Do" , they popularized the themes of intelligent questioning of social issues with their music. No one has a complete sixties music collection without this album. Buy it and enjoy!


Up there with Beatles, Beachboys Best ,the 60's "Three B's"   December 20, 2001
S. Henkels (Devon, Pa United States)
8 out of 8 found this review helpful

Yep, even 30-plus years later,the early Byrds have proven their high standing in 60's pop-rock. Where else can you get their unique chimelike 12-string,matched by some superb harmonies,even if the songs don't always stand up quite as well? TURN,TURN,TURN,right out of Eccliasiates, always sounds just fine. "Bells of Rhymney" , Pete Seeger's ballad about a coal mining disaster, has not lost it's sadness. EIGHT MILES HIGH still flies with perfect harmony,even if the guitars get a little too noisy."5 D" and "My Back Pages" fill the package perfectly, the latter a less known example of making a Dylan tune enjoyable. Still, a couple of these don't hold their own ("Spaceman" and "Rock and Roll Star"), and could have been replaced by a couple less known numbers from YOUNGER THAN YESTERDAY. Still, the best one CD Byrds' package. They went off later to do some "country/cowboy" things,etc. but none of that has the uniqueness of this, their earliest and best.


Truly the Byrds' Best!   December 29, 2001
8 out of 8 found this review helpful

Of course there's a bunch of songs "missing" from here, but if you're looking for a PERFECT Byrds compilation containing most of their biggest and best, this is it; there's not a weak track in the bunch! You'd probably want to get "Best Of/Vol. II" as well for, if nothing else, "Chestnut Mare" and "The Ballad of Easy Rider", but for now let's focus on this one here...

From "Mr.Tambourine Man" to "My Back Pages" (incidentally, the two best Dylan covers of all time AND in -at least- my Top 10 of best pop songs ever), this one's just a pure joy anyway, anyhow and anywhere you look at it. More of Dylan's best is flawlessly interpreted in an immaculately Byrdy fashion via both "All I Really Want to Do" and "Chimes of Freedom", with a bit of Pete Seeger thrown into the mix thru "The Bells of Rhymney" and the literally heavenly "Turn! Turn! Turn!" -- the latter of which could make a dead man weep.

But that's just the tip of the iceberg. The Byrds themselves were (and, indeed, are) no slouches in the songwriting department; at least "So You Want to Be a Rock 'N' Roll Star" and "Eight Miles High" are ample proofs of that.

The rest of this disc is just as uninterruptedly glorious and mighty; the Byrds were arguably one of the very best and most important bands of its era -- fourth only to the Beatles, Stones and the Beach Boys, and if that's not a testament to the utter brilliance of this collection, I just don't know what is.

"...and I was so much older then, I'm younger than that now."