When The Notorious Byrds Brothers came out, The Byrds, plagued by line-up changes, had been reduced to a duo after David Crosby left the group during the recording. The psychedelic revolution struck well on the record, which was brought to a successful conclusion by Roger McGuinn and Chris Hillman. The best song was an old-fashioned artisan pop song: Going Back, one of the last great compositions
… of the songwriting duo Goffin and King. The beautiful arrangement is a welcome resting point on a record that seems to have been designed as a concept record entirely in the spirit of the times, with album tracks that flow smoothly into each other. Yet everything expresses a great sense of tradition, even in the pieces in which experiments with effect equipment are carried out to their heart's content. Wasn't Born To Follow and Old John Robertson even anticipate the country rock repertoire of the late Byrds, although these songs are invariably provided with alienating elements. The band would soon lose that unprecedented urge to experiment. But with The Notorious Byrd Brothers, the band did write one of the first 'cosmic American music' records to its name, before quickly breaking new ground. (MS)more
