Songs In The Byrdist Tradition Dept.

Steve Shark files screed from his lifeguard hut on th' IoF©'s iconic Baywatch Bay!

For saying [sez Steve - Ed.] that the Byrds were, to all intents and purposes, done and dusted after six years and eleven albums, over half a century later they continue to cast a wide musical shadow.

This article comes from a suggestion that some bloke called Farq (who he?) made, that "Byrdalikes" might be a suitable subject for screedage. I've broadened it to tracks with a Byrdish vibe, although you'll certainly hear music that is more than just a fair approximation of the band's sound.

So, what is the Byrds sound? Put as simply as possible: melodic pop, with occasional folk and country elements, harmony vocals, and jangly guitars. You'll find these in the tracks listed below to some extent or another. As usual, some may be familiar to you - others less so. I had a lot of fum choosing these tracks out of, quite literally, hundreds - if not thousands.

Dom Mariani - At First Sight
Most notably successful with Australian power pop band The Stems, Mariani puts a rather punkish vocal over a dense background of ringing guitars, with added texture from some lovely harmonies and - rather oddly - a totally unnecessary synth at one point.

Eric Voeks - She Loved Her Jangle Pop
Byrds influenced music is also known as "jangle pop" and that's exactly what Voeks serves up here. It's an almost perfect power pop song with beautiful production, and the lyrics are good, too. All I know about him is that he's from the US and he's a bit of a one man outfit.

Martin Newell - The Golden Afternoon
Another loner, Newell releases albums under his own name and also as The Cleaners From Venus, most of which is broadly pop, although there's often an acoustic folky flavour to it. He sounds quintessentially English and this track has lovely broad sweeping guitar chords underpinning Newell's rather gauche vocals. Stunningly good instrumental break.

Mary Lou Lord - Lights Are Changing
You don't usually hear much in the way of female vocals on jangly stuff, but Mary Lou shines on this Nick Saloman (aka The Bevis Frond) composition. An anthemic song that I always thought should have been a huge hit, this has the added bonus of Nick and the marvellous Jon Brion on guitars beefing up the arrangement.

Peter Lewis - Journey to the Crossroads
No harmony vocals, but this still has a very Byrds feel with ex-Grape Lewis sounding rather Crosbyish and his acoustic 12 string channeling Roger McGuinn style raga rock. This became an earworm when I was putting this collection together. Lewis' solo albums are well worth checking out.

Starclock - Glasses
Another one man band. It's the work of one Chris Bradley - better known for his work with punk proggers Look What I Did - in full power pop mode. It's a gorgeous slab of joyful pop - a little bit XTC and a little bit Byrds, all tied up with chiming guitars and lush harmonies.

Starry Eyed & Laughing - The Girl in a Gene Clark Song
From their new album and wearing their influences very clearly on their sleeves - look at that title ferchrissakes! This just shouts BYRDS with every 12 string guitar riff and ethereal vocal line; right down to the Michael Clarke-style drumming.  

The Bevis Frond - He'd Be a Diamond
Another bite of the Byrds cherry from the ultra prolific Nick Saloman - one more musical lone wolf. Quite a sparing production compared to his often very busy style, this features some interesting lyrics, with probably the only use ever of the term "ironing board" in a song.

The Cure - Friday I'm In Love
Once considered just a Goth band, the Cure can make great pop records and what Robert Smith wrote as a bit of a throwaway song is one of the happiest power pop songs you could ever hope to hear. It has all the Byrds' main ingredients but it's very much brighter in tone and Smith's somewhat mannered vocals add to its warmth and fuzzy charm.

The Flowerpot Men - Blow Away
Suggested by Farq (wot? 'im again???) this is a mesh of 12 strings, slide guitar and harmonies from a band first put together by John Carter and Ken Lewis, who were writers and session singers, to promote Let's Go to San Francisco. So, a manufactured band, but more than capable of producing well crafted and often innovative psychedelia.

The Icicle Works - Hollow Horse (Long Version)
There's a lot of the late Scott Walker in Liverpudlian Ian McNabb's vocal and it sits on a busy production with double tracked 12 strings and string synths. What the Byrds might have sounded like if they'd gone a bit alt rock?

The Lemon Pipers - Through With You
After the success of Green Tambourine, the Pipers were pressured to continue as a bubblegum act, but managed to stretch out a bit on album tracks like this - a genuine FREAK OUT! Raga rock 12 string - some with wah-wah - stereo panning, a bass solo and Yardbirdsish vocals all go to make up 9 minutes of prime psychedelia.

The Long Ryders - Never Got to Meet the Mom
Syd Griffin's vocals are very "McGuinn" on this more countryish take on da Boids. Nominally part of the Paisley Underground movement, the Ryders were big in the UK and Europe with their often punky take on folk rock, managing to be creative whilst displaying their obvious influences. The banjo on this track was a very clever production decision.

The Records - Hearts In Her Eyes
Obvious Byrds influence here, but with an almost early "beat" vibe that makes me think of the Searchers, who could also have merited a track in this list. Rising out of the British pub rock scene, the Records never made it big, although many people on both sides of the Atlantic liked them - just not enough of them!

The Scavengers - But If You're Happy
One of thousands of bands formed in the US in the days of garage and psych, this rockin' teenage combo hailed from Iowa, and cut a mere 5 tracks - including the Byrds' She Don't Care About Time. Wobbly vocals and muddy production don't really detract from a classic piece of US folk rock that owed its existence to the Byrds' success. They came from nowhere and ended up going back there.

XTC - The Mayor of Simpleton
It's So You Want to be a Rock 'n' Roll Star innit? Everything about this track is brilliant - the 12 strings, Andy P's lyrics and vocals, the bass line, the production...everything. It shows that you can take all the elements that made the Byrds memorable and still be original.  

Note from Farq - I thought this was such a swell piece of work that I tagged all the tracks with correct metadata and cover art, so it opens up like an album by Various Artists on your device, not like the shotgun blast of random data Steve usually uploads. No, no - don't thank me, I do it because I care. And because, well, I love you *simper*.