An Anthology from the Byrds’ Gene Clark: Review

When talk turns to the Byrds, the spotlight mostly shines on Roger McGuinn and Gram Parsons, both of whom made huge contributions to that band and via solo work. But Byrds co-founder Gene Clark, who died in 1991 at age 46, was a massive singing and songwriting talent as well. There’s plenty of evidence of that in the group’s catalog and more in the terrific 2024 release, The Lost Studio Sessions: 1964-1982, which first appeared in a very limited pressing in 2016.

Original compositions dominate the career-spanning set, whose 36-page booklet includes copious liner notes. The album opens with five solo acoustic tracks from spring 1964 and a pair of 1967 recordings—among them the seemingly Bob Dylan-influenced “Back Street Mirror”—that feature Hugh Masekela on horns and arrangements by Leon Russell. Next come seven solo performances from 1970 and five early-1970s tracks with the Flying Burrito Brothers, including one that features Parsons and four that incorporate backup vocals by McGuinn.

The album ends with five 1982 tracks from Nyteflyte, a group whose lineup reunited three original Byrds: Clark, Chris Hillman and Michael Clarke. Their stellar set embraces two tracks from their former group, Parsons’ “One Hundred Years from Now” and Clark’s “I’ll Feel a Whole Lot Better,” as well as Parsons’ “Still Feeling Blue,” Rodney Crowell’s “No Memories Hangin’ Round” and a cover of the Box Tops’ “The Letter.”

The Lost Studio Sessions: 1964-1982 is available here.