Oh good Lord. The Byrds again. How many albums must I suffer through from them? The Notorious Byrd Brothers is their fourth album on the list. Notorious is a great title for the album due to the fact that there was a rotating door for the band members during the recording of the album. It was their most experimental work and critically praised at the time, but only moderately successful.
The Byrds are proof that it does not take much to cause people to argue over stupid stuff. They argued and lost a band member over including “Goin’ Back” written by Carole King. The song staled on the charts. I wonder if it was worth it.
The first three songs did not give me confidence that I would feel any differently toward The Byrds. “Draft Morning” gave me a little hope. It is another song about the Vietnam War.
“Take my time this morning, no hurry
To learn to kill and take the will
From unknown faces”
Then the shooting and bombing happens. People die. That was the time of the 60s, but it has not really stopped. Things have changed, yet they remain the same.
There are some extra songs that are better than some of the songs on the album, except “Triad“. It was the worst song which was cut because it sucked and it is about Crosby’s three way.
The album is very mellow. I think they have been doing a lot of drugs since the last album. Maybe they should have gotten rid of David Crosby and the others long ago. The Notorious Byrd Brothers is a few steps above their previous words. 6/10.
an ocean roars 