Tag Archives: The Byrds

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Song of the Day #6,356: ‘Turn! Turn! Turn! (To Everything There Is A Season)’ – The Byrds

Topping the Billboard Hot 100 the week of Nov. 30, 1965, was The Byrds’ folk rock reimagining of Pete Seeger’s ‘Turn! Turn! Turn!’ Seeger took almost the entirety of the lyric from the Biblical book of Ecclesiastes. He did add the “turn turn turn” part, and for that claimed 5% of the royalties.

He earned another 50% for writing the musical arrangement, and donated the remaining 45% to the Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions, a group “dedicated to ending the occupation of the Palestinian territories and achieving a just peace between Israelis and Palestinians.” Pete Seeger was a woke king.

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Song of the Day #6,188: ‘Mr. Tambourine Man’ – The Byrds

The week of June 15, 1965, found The Four Tops at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 with ‘I Can’t Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch).’ It was the first of two #1s for the group, followed by ‘Reach Out I’ll Be There’ a year later.

In the #2 spot that week was The Byrds’ recording of Bob Dylan’s ‘Mr. Tambourine Man,’ the first single from the band’s album of the same name. The Byrds were so keen to tackle the song that their version was recorded before Dylan’s was even released (they had heard an early take).

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Song of the Day #1,351: ‘Spanish Harlem Incident’ – The Byrds

Mr. Random iTunes Man resisted the temptation to go for a Dylan performance two weeks in a row, but he did choose a Dylan song.

The Byrds basically made a career out of covering Dylan. Their debut album, Mr. Tambourine Man, and first single (of the title song) launched them to stardom and became the template for folk rock in America. Four of the 12 songs on that record, including today’s SOTD, were Dylan covers.

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