Mr. Tambourine Man

Mr. Tambourine Man
Studio album by The Byrds
Released	June 21 1965
Recorded	January 20–April 22 1965
Genre	Folk-rock
Length	31:35
Label	Columbia
Producer	Terry Melcher
Professional reviews
All Music Guide link
The Byrds chronology
Mr. Tambourine Man (1965) Turn! Turn! Turn! (1965)

Mr. Tambourine Man is the debut album by the American folk-rock band, The Byrds. It peaked at #6 on the Billboard Top Pop Albums chart, staying on the charts for 38 weeks; it also went to #7 in Great Britain. The single of the same name, Bob Dylan's "Mr. Tambourine Man," had been released on April 12, 1965, and went to #1 on both the Billboard Hot 100 and in the UK; another single and Dylan cover from the album, "All I Really Want to Do," just made the Top 40, peaking at #40.

The single instantly established the band on both sides of the Atlantic, introducing the new genre of folk rock. Its most distinctive features were the vocal harmonies of Gene Clark, Jim McGuinn and David Crosby, and McGuinn's twelve-string Rickenbacker guitar playing (which complemented the lyric's "jingle jangle morning"). This combination became the band's signature sound in this early period.

Of the album tracks, most of the band originals were penned by Clark, the group's central songwriter over its first eighteen months of existence, including "Here Without You" and "I'll Feel a Whole Lot Better" (the latter becoming a rock and roll standard, inspiring many cover versions). There was also an abundance of Dylan material, with three songs taken from his Another Side of Bob Dylan LP, leading to accusations of the band being too reliant on his work. Other covers included an expansive arrangement of Pete Seeger's "The Bells Of Rhymney", stressing the band's folk music roots, and Vera Lynn's war years standard "We'll Meet Again," given a very sardonic reading influenced by the song's appearance in the final scene of Stanley Kubrick's movie Dr. Strangelove.

The label had replaced the band with session musicians for the single and its b-side, "I Knew I'd Want You". By the time the album was recorded, the group had polished their sound to producer Terry Melcher's satisfaction, and The Byrds themselves played on the remaining tracks.

Rolling Stone selected this album as number 232 for their List of Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

Personnel

• Jim McGuinn, vocals, guitars
• Gene Clark, vocals, tambourine
• David Crosby, vocals, guitars
• Chris Hillman, vocals, bass
• Michael Clarke, drums

Additional personnel

• Jerry Cole, rhythm guitar
• Larry Knechtel, bass
• Hal Blaine, drums
• Leon Russell, keyboards

Track listing

1. "Mr. Tambourine Man" (Bob Dylan) – 2:29
2. "I'll Feel a Whole Lot Better" (Gene Clark) – 2:32
3. "Spanish Harlem Incident" (Dylan) – 1:57
4. "You Won't Have to Cry" (Clark, Jim McGuinn) – 2:08
5. "Here Without You" (Clark) – 2:36
6. "The Bells of Rhymney" (Idris Davies, Pete Seeger) – 3:30
7. "All I Really Want to Do" (Dylan) – 2:04
8. "I Knew I'd Want You" (Clark) – 2:14
9. "It's No Use" (Clark, McGuinn) – 2:23
10. "Don't Doubt Yourself, Babe" (Jackie DeShannon) – 2:54
11. "Chimes of Freedom" (Dylan) – 3:51
12. "We'll Meet Again" (Ross Parker, Hughie Charles) – 2:07

1996 reissue bonus tracks

1. "She Has a Way" (Clark) – 2:25
2. "I'll Feel a Whole Lot Better" (Clark) – 2:28 (alternate version)
3. "It's No Use" (Clark, McGuinn) – 2:24 (alternate version)
4. "You Won't Have to Cry" (Clark, McGuinn) – 2:07 (alternate version)
5. "All I Really Want to Do" (Dylan) – 2:02 (single version)
6. "You and Me" (McGuinn, Clark, Crosby) – 2:11 (instrumental)

Singles

1. "Mr. Tambourine Man" b/w "I Knew I'd Want You" (Columbia 43271) 12 April 1965
2. "All I Really Want To Do" (alternate version) b/w "Feel A Whole Lot Better" (Columbia 43332) 14 June 1965

Release history

Remix information

Mr. Tambourine Man was one of five Byrds albums that were remixed as part of their re-release on Columbia/Legacy. The reason for the remix was stated by Bob Irwin (who produced these re-issues for compact disc) during an interview:

He further states:

Irwin's assertions that no liberties were taken have been proven false in many instances. For one, there is a short section of "Chimes of Freedom" that exists in the stereo remix that never existed in the original mix. The song "Mr. Tambourine Man" appears in a radically different, super-wide stereo remix whereas the original stereo mix was so narrow as to almost be mono. The fades are different on almost every song as well.

Many fans enjoy the remixed album because it's very close to the original mix in most cases and offers noticeably better sound quality. However, there are also a lot of fans who dismiss the remix as revisionist history and prefer to listen to the original mix on vinyl or the 1987 CD release.

References

• Fricke, David. Liner Notes, Mr. Tambourine Man, Columbia/Legacy CK 64845 1996.
• AllMusicGuide.com
• Whitburn, Joel. "Top Pop Albums 1955-2001," ISBN 0-89820-147-0
• Bob Irwin remarks from ICE #108, March, 1996

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