The Byrds

Released: December 6, 1965

Songwriter: Bob Dylan

Producer: Terry Melcher

Come gather round people
Wherever you roam
And admit that the waters
Around you have grown
And accept it that soon
You'll be drenched to the bone
If your time to you is worth savin'
Then you better start swimming
Or you'll sink like a stone
For the times they are a changin

Come writers and critics
Who prophesize with your pen
Keep your eyes open
The chance won't come again
Watch what you say
For the wheel's still in spin
And there ain't tellin' who that it's naming
For the loser now
Will be later to win
For the times they are a changin

Come senators, congressmen
Please heed the call
Don't stand in the doorway
Don't block up the hall
For he who gets hurt
Will be he who has stalled
The battle outside raging
It'll rattle your windows
And shake down your walls
For the times they are a changin

Come mothers and fathers
Throughout the land
And don't criticise
What you can't understand
Your sons and your daughters
Are beyond your command
Your old road is rapidly aging
Get out of the new one
If you can't lend your hand
For the times they are a changin

The Byrds /ˈbɜrdz/ were an American rock band, formed in Los Angeles, California in 1964. The band underwent multiple line-up changes throughout its existence, with frontman Roger McGuinn (known as Jim McGuinn until mid-1967) remaining the sole consistent member, until the group disbanded in 1973. Initially, they pioneered the musical genre of folk rock, melding the influence of the Beatles and other British Invasion bands with contemporary and traditional folk music. As the 1960s progressed, the band was also influential in originating psychedelic rock, raga rock, and country rock.

The band’s signature blend of clear harmony singing and McGuinn’s jangly twelve-string Rickenbacker guitar has continued to be influential on popular music up to the present day. Among the band’s most enduring songs are their cover versions of Bob Dylan’s “Mr. Tambourine Man” and Pete Seeger’s “Turn! Turn! Turn! (to Everything There Is a Season)”, along with the self-penned originals, “I’ll Feel a Whole Lot Better”, “Eight Miles High”, “So You Want to Be a Rock ‘n’ Roll Star”, “Ballad of Easy Rider” and “Chestnut Mare”.

The original five-piece line-up of the Byrds consisted of Jim McGuinn (lead guitar, vocals), Gene Clark (tambourine, vocals), David Crosby (rhythm guitar, vocals), Chris Hillman (bass guitar, vocals), and Michael Clarke (drums). However, this version of the band was relatively short-lived. The Byrds' final album was released in March 1973, with the reunited group disbanding soon afterwards. Several former members of the band went on to successful careers of their own, either as solo artists or as members of such groups as Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, the Flying Burrito Brothers and the Desert Rose Band.

more tracks from the album

Turn! Turn! Turn!

From the album

Turn! Turn! Turn! (1965)

The Byrds popular songs

The Times They Are a-Changin’The Byrds

The Byrds

Turn! Turn! Turn!