Da Boids Is Da Woid, Part Da Toyd

Leave us discuss the cover first. This was Columbia's art department scoring their thyrd ace in a row for the Byrds. It's note-perfect. The first appearance - in eye-popping Psychocolor® - of that beautiful logo. Corporate house style required the tracklist on the cover, but like the previous albums, they add to rather than subtract from the overall composition. Okay, a couple of fillers in there, thanks to the band cleverly edging out their best songwriter over jealousy issues, but who's counting? It's the new Byrds album! Their thyrd in a year!

The album was gorgeously, imaginatively, sumptuously produced by Allen Stanton, Columbia's West Coast veep who'd signed the group in '64. Guy had smarts out th' ass and we ain't never hyrd of him. Keywyrds for this album (should you want to write a review) include drugs, uneven, transitional. Nuts to all that, right? What would we give for an album this swell appearing this week? If we clubbed together and ponied up everything we have, it still wouldn't happen. Never mind. We still got this.

This is the "complete" version, with fifty tracks of minty-fresh teen appeal. The FMF© Medal Of Foaminess® to the original Byrdmaniac who stitched this together in his mom's basement while she yelled at him to take out the trash and get a job. You did swell.