The Byrds
Latest about The Byrds
![[from left] The Byrds’ Clarence White, Skip Battin, Gene Parsons and Roger McGuinn in action in London in 1971](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/UBYneTRLchqapQkXCTFjYm-320-80.jpg)
“Bob Dylan said, ‘Give this to McGuinn. He’ll know what to do with it’”: Roger McGuinn on the making of The Byrds’ countercultural classic
By Andrew Daly published
Roger McGuinn explains how Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper, Bob Dylan and CBS-era Fender amps all factored into the making of The Byrds’ 1969 classic, Ballad of Easy Rider

Roger McGuinn on the Ovation 12-string that fell apart and the infamous Rickenbacker theft of ‘65
By Andrew Daly published
The Byrds’ 12-string-toting folk hero talks Rickys, Roland JC-120s, JangleBoxes and more

How Roger McGuinn’s Byrds Rickenbacker was stolen – from right under his nose
By Phil Weller published
The guitarist’s trust in a ‘fellow musician’ was tragically misplaced

Roger McGuinn on The Byrds’ influential guitar style, and why they didn’t follow The Kinks and The Who into distortion
By Andrew Daly published
The banjo-inspired Rickenbacker guitar icon recalls how Miles Davis got them signed and weighs up the merits of David Crosby and Clarence White

The Byrds needed a hit or they’d be dropped. Releasing a cover of Bob Dylan's Mr. Tambourine Man as their first single was a gamble that paid off
By Janelle Borg published
Byrds guitarist Roger McGuinn was the third person to ever own a Rickenbacker 12-string, following George Harrison – and his timely purchase would completely transform the Dylan song, and the band's entire trajectory

Christian Parker on the Byrds’ legacy as folk-rock trailblazers, gear innovators and righteous players in their own right
By Alan Paul published
Parker’s two consecutive albums of Byrds covers showcase the brilliance of one of the '60s most underappreciated guitar powerhouses

“I'm still slammed with orders. Each B-Bender is made with care and love, just like I did with the first one for Clarence White”: How Gene Parsons reinvented electric guitar playing with the B-Bender
By Andrew Daly published
He was the drummer for the Byrds, but Parsons is best known in guitar circles for pioneering the Parsons/White B-Bender, a mind-bending mechanical contraption that changed the face of country guitar playing and beyond, finding fame in the hands of Marty Stuart, Ricky Skaggs and Jimmy Page

Why The Byrds' Roger McGuinn is one of rock's greatest guitar heroes
By Alan di Perna published
In general, Roger McGuinn has gotten more love from the rock critic fraternity than from the guitar community. Maybe it’s time to turn that perception around
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