The Byrds - 1970-09-19 (early show) - Whisky a Go Go, LA, CA

The Byrds
September 19, 1970 (early show)
The Whisky A Go-Go, Los Angeles, CA
Soundboard recording, very good quality
mp3 @ 320 kbps
Artwork Included

Here is a companion to the previously offered combined performance by the Byrds and Flying Burrito Brothers, that constituted the late show on this final night of a memorable run at the Whisky in 1970. This is The Byrds set from the early show, and shows them in very fine form doing a relatively short set (due to the double bill with FBB), but packed with classic tracks and great performances. As noted previously, this was just at the time of the release of Untitled, their popular combined studio/live double album. When taken in conjunction with the highly adventurous late show, also available on this blog and which was essentially a loose jam session with their friends in The Flying Burrito Brothers, this concert helps to complete the picture of this memorable night (although I have not heard of any tape from the FBB early show being available). Once again (as with the last one), this show comes courtesy of Rocking-Byrd and his blog, so much thanks to him for making these available.
 
Tracklist
1. Lover Of The Bayou (3:25)
2. You Ain't Going Nowhere (3:01)
3. I Trust (3:54)
4. My Back Pages (2:23)
5. B.B. Blues - Baby What You Want Me To Do (4:27)
6. Well Come Back Home (8:26)
7. Truck Stop Girl (3:23)
8. Take A Whiff (On Me) (2:57)
9. It's All Right Ma (I'm Only Bleeding) (3:16)
10. Ballad Of Easy Rider (2:22)
11. Jesus Is Just Alright (3:15)
12. Wheels On Fire (5:21)

Roger McGuinn - guitar, vocals
Gene Parsons - drums, harmonica, vocals
Clarence White - guitar, vocals
Skip Battin - bass, vocals

New Link! (Updated 10/08/21)
Byrds_Whisky-A-Go-Go_LA_-_September_19_1970_-_Early

The Byrds & The Flying Burrito Brothers - 1970-09-19 - Whisky a Go Go, Los Angeles, CA

The Byrds & Flying Burrito Brothers
1970-09-19
Whisky A Go Go, Los Angeles, CA
Soundboard recording, very good quality
mp3@320 kbps
Artwork Included

Here is a rare gem of a recording that superbly documents a unique live event, the merging of the Byrds and Flying Burrito Brothers into a one big jam session at the Whisky A Go Go in fall 1970, and with very good sound quality, too.  This is another recording I recently obtained from Rocking-Byrd (Much Thanks!), and apparently it has only recently surfaced. It is such a delight I just had to share it here, too. This is a great pairing, and features what is arguably the best lineups from each band regarding their live shows (with Byrds featuring McGuinn and Clarence White and FBB featuring Hillman, Bernie Leadon, and newcomer Rick Roberts). I've already talked somewhat about the entwined histories of these bands, and the various lineups over the years, so I'll just put in here an excerpt from the review that came along with this recording that more fully explains this event (Full extended review included with download).
"...In 1970, Just three days after the release of Untitled, The Byrds new double album (featuring both live and studio recordings), both The Byrds and The Flying Burrito Brothers were booked for a series of six shows over three nights at the Whisky A Go-Go in their home town of Los Angeles. This run would also be Rick Roberts' debut with The Burritos, who were still yet to recognize the extent of his talent. The Whisky only held several hundred people and The Byrds hadn't performed there since October of 1968, so tickets were a hot commodity. Surrounded by family and friends (in addition to having a common fanbase), this run guaranteed a three-night party, playing to packed houses for every show.
Logistically, these shows were challenging as The Byrds' P.A. system was designed for much larger venues and because, between the two groups, there was a lot of equipment. Strict time constraints required the downtime to be minimal, so all equipment from both bands (including two drum kits) needed to be squeezed onto the tiny Whisky A Go-Go stage. To accommodate the Byrds' P.A., cabinets were wired to multiple locations around the room. Each 90-minute show was structured with the FBBs performing a 45-minute opening set, immediately followed by a 45-minute set by The Byrds. This basic format continued throughout the run until the final night, when the two groups hatched a plan for the late show. For this final show of the run, the FBBs would begin their set as usual, but after several songs, they invited The Byrds out for an informal jam session. The rest of the night would feature both bands performing together for the very first time." [Ed. Note: Actually, not the first time, as both bands, with somewhat different lineups, also performed together a year and a half earlier, on 2/23/69, their final night together in a series of Boston Tea Party shows. Unfortunately, a recording from this previous event, although rumored to exist, has never become available.]
"Until now, this event has been relegated to the stuff of legend, but presented here are the complete recordings of that very set, recorded by Byrds' sound engineer Dinky Dawson. Despite the challenging circumstances of such a tiny room, Dawson's soundboard cassette masters manage to capture a great deal, with all of the instruments and vocals audible. The balance is not perfect, but in this instance, the good far outweighs the bad. Surprisingly, the recording is also in stereo, with McGuinn and Hillman's vocals panned to opposite channels, allowing listeners to clearly enjoy each individually, as they sing together for the first time in years. The setlist is a Byrds-lover's dream, containing material from both Sweethearts Of The Rodeo and The Notorious Byrd Brothers albums, in addition to classic early material. Despite the unrehearsed and somewhat intoxicated nature of these performances, it is obvious these musicians are having an awful lot of fun together. Seemingly eager to dig in to every song, downtime is kept to a minimum, as The FBBs and The Byrds collaborate on stage for the first [make that second] time ever." (Alan Bershaw - text obtained from Rocking-Byrd's site).

tracklist:
The Flying Burrito Brothers
1. The Train Song (1:14)
2. Payday (4:45)
3. Wake Up Little Suzie (4:46)
4. Colorado (4:48)
5. Break My Mind (2:32)
6. Trying To Reach My Goal (3:50)
The Byrds & The Flying Burrito Brothers together
7. Roll Over Beethoven (2:53)
8. You Don't Miss Your Water (4:06)
9. I'll Feel A Whole Lot Better (2:29)
10. Hickory Wind (3:49)
11. So You Want To Be A Rock 'N' Roll Star (2:36)
12. Bells Of Rhymney (3:44)
13. Close Up The Honky Tonks (2:47)
14. Time Between (2:28)
15. Mr Spaceman (3:30)
16. Turn Turn Turn (2:04)
17. Mr Tambourine Man (2:12)
18. Eight Miles High (15:49)
19. Wasn't Born To Follow (1:58)
20. Chimes Of Freedom (3:20)
21. You Ain't Going Nowhere (3:19)
22. Hold It (1:28)

The Flying Burrito Brothers :
Chris Hillman - vocals, bass, guitar, mandolin
Bernie Leadon - vocals, guitar
Rick Roberts - vocals, guitar
"Sneaky" Pete Kleinow - pedal steel guitar
Michael Clarke - drums, percussion

The Byrds :
Roger McGuinn - vocals, guitar
Clarence White - vocals, guitar
Gene Parsons - drums, percussion, vocals
Skip Battin - bass, vocals
Jim Seiter - percussion

New Link! (08/27/21):
 Byrds__Flying_Burrito_Brothers_Whisky-A-Go_1970-09-19.rar.html

Roger McGuinn & Gene Clark - 1978-03-15 - Willamantic, CT

Roger McGuinn & Gene Clark
March 15, 1978
Shaboo Inn, Willamantic, CT
Audience Recording, average quality
mp3 @ 320 kbps
Artwork Included

Here's another rarely heard show from Roger McGuinn, this time with his old Byrds mate, Gene Clark. After touring with his band and solo throughout 1973 & 1974, Roger joined up with Bob Dylan and friends for the Rolling Thunder Revue in 1975&1976 (many bootleg recordings exist for these great Rolling Thunder shows). Then in late 1977 and early 1978 Roger got back together with Gene Clark for a series of concert dates as a duo. Shortly after, in late Spring 1978, they were joined by another of their ex-Byrds mates, Chris Hillman for further touring. This combination proved successful, known as McGuinn, Clark, & Hillman, and they recorded 2 studio albums together (1979-1980), before Clark left again, leaving McGuinn and Hillman to continue on for a time as a touring duo and a subsequent album (1981). Although the McGuinn, Clark, and Hillman combination was successful, many Byrds fans disdained the overly slick production and commercial sound of their studio albums and media appearances, and preferred the more laidback and natural stylings of the McGuinn-Clark shows. So, here is an example of those McGuinn-Clark shows, before the studio glitz of the MCH albums. Again, this is a rarely heard David M. recording, not all that great quality, but certainly plenty listenable and entertaining, and an opportunity to hear these 2 Byrds greats performing together as a duo.    

Setlist:
1. The True One (Gene) (3:19)
2. Denver Or Whenever (Gene) (3:22)
3. Silver Raven (Gene) (3:28)
4. Ballad Of Easy Rider (Roger) (2:09)
5. 5D (Roger) (2:20)
6. Dreamland (Roger) (2:43)
7. Mr Spaceman (Gene & Roger) (3:43)
8. He Was A Friend Of Mine (3:08)
9. Feelin' Higher (4:15)
10. Don't You Write Her Off (3:11)
11. I'll Feel A Whole Lot Better (3:11)
12. Chestnut Mare (6:07)
13. Crazy Ladies (3:44)
14. Train Leaves Here This Morning (4:12)
15. Mr Tambourine Man (5:14)
16. Bagful Of Money (3:53)
17. Release Me Girl (4:00)
18. You Ain't Going Nowhere (4:46)
19. Fair And Tender Ladies (3:06)
20. Turn Turn Turn (3:20)
21. Knockin' On Heaven's Door (4:45)
22. So You Want To Be A Rock 'N' Roll Star (2:33)
23. Eight Miles HIgh (4:29)
24. Season Song (Bye Bye Baby) (3:55)

Many thanks to David for the files, and to Rocking-Byrd for originally making this available through his private blog (rocking--byrd.blogspot.com).

New Link! (Updated 09/18/21)
McGuinn-Clark_Shaboo_Inn_Willamantic_1978-03-15.rar

Roger McGuinn (w/band) 1973-09-23 - Boston, MA

Roger McGuinn (w/band)
September 23, 1973
Orpheum Theater, Boston, MA
"The Adventures of Roger McGuinn"
Audience recording, fair-average quality
mp3@320 kbps
Artwork Included

Here's some more Roger McGuinn, this one was recorded during Roger's first tour with a band after the Byrds disbanded (1973). This comes from just about 6 months before the 1974 solo Cambridge shows featured in the previous posts. So, it's very interesting to compare these full band versions with the solo versions from those shows. Although this show is much shorter, and the audio quality is not very good, I thought it was still worth posting as an example of Roger's band at that time. Thus, although not the best audio, there are very few recordings from this tour, and prior to Rocking-byrd making this David M. recording available through his blog earlier this year, this had never been circulated, so this has some historical significance. Anyway, here is some more Roger from the early '70's, from a somewhat rare show.

1. Get To You (3:41)
2. Hanoi Hannah (3:29)
3. Tiffany Queen (3:00)
4. Bag Full Of Money (3:50)
5. Lost My Drivin' Wheel (4:04)
6. Tuning (1:32)
7. I'm So Restless (2:49)
8. Draggin' (3:34)
9. M'linda (3:30)
10. Same Old Sound (2:27)
11. Chesnut Mare (5:25)

Roger McGuinn (guitar,vocals)
David Vaught (bass)
Mike Wofford (keyboards)
John Guerin (drums)

Concert recorded and files provided by David M. Many thanks to him.
Files re-joined, de-clicked, re-balanced, re-levelled by Rocking-Byrd, and previously made available through his private blog (rocking--byrd.blogspot.com).

New Link! (Updated 10/08/21)
Roger_McGuinn_Boston_Orpheum_Theater_1973-09-23.rar

Roger McGuinn - 1974-03-14 - Cambridge, MA

Roger McGuinn
March 14, 1974 (both sets)
Performance Center, Cambridge, MA
Audience (David M.) recording, good quality
mp3 @ 128 kbps
Artwork (by Rocking-Byrd) Included


Ok, here's the last in this series of Roger's shows at the Performance Center in Cambridge, MA, This one from March 14, 1974, and the last night of his stay. Overall, similar setlists as the previous 2 nights featured, but, as usual, each performance is somewhat unique, and Roger still manages to come up with a couple additional songs not featured on either previous night's shows. Once again, these come from David M's recordings, and as adjusted and prepared by Rocking-Byrd. However, Rocking-Byrd uploaded this show at a much lower bitrate (128 - not sure why), so that is what I have, too. So, once again, here's Roger McGuinn, to complete this set of shows.

Set 1
1. I'm So Restless (4:19)
2. Ramblin' Banjo (1:04)
3. Old Blue 1 (3:43)
4. Old Blue 2 (3:45)
5. Take A Whiff (On Me) (2:28)
6. The Lady (4:48)
7. I'll Feel A Whole Lot Better (2:46)
8. 5D (2:52)
9. Mr Spaceman (2:25)
10. So You Want To Be A Rock 'N' Roll Star (2:34)
11. Chimes Of Freedom (5:30)
12. Chestnut Mare (4:55)

Set 2
1. Knockin' On Heaven's Door (5:08)
2. Bag Full Of Money (3:47)
3. Ballad Of Easy Rider - Wasn't Born To Follow (2:59)
4. Take A Whiff (On Me) (2:27)
5. Pretty Polly (3:25)
6. Mr Tambourine Man (2:57)
7. Lover Of The Bayou (3:00)
8. Eight Miles High (3:08)
9. Turn Turn Turn (2:54)
10. Old Blue (3:28)
11. Chimes Of Freedom (1:22)
12. The Water Is Wide (1:02)
13. Just A Season (1:25)
14. Hanoi Hannah (3:10)
15. Chestnut Mare (6:14)

Concert recorded and files provided by David M. – Many thanks again to him.
Files declicked, re-joined, re-balanced, re-levelled by Rocking-Byrd, and originally offered for download at rocking--byrd.blogspot.com

New Link! (updated 07/04/21)
Roger_McGuinn_Cambridge_MA_1974-03-14.rar

Roger McGuinn - 1974-03-12 - Cambridge, MA

Roger McGuinn
March 12, 1974 (both sets)
Performance Center, Cambridge, MA
Audience (David M.) recording, good quality
mp3 @ 320 kbps
Artwork Included

As promised in the previous post, here is Roger McGuinn's second night show (both sets) at the Performance Center in Cambridge, MA from March 12, 1974. This concert was, once again, recorded and made available by David M. This audio version was prepared (de-clicked, re-balanced, and volume levels adjusted) by Rocking-Byrd and was originally made available through his private blog (rocking--byrd.blogspot.com). However, since that blog was only accessible to invited guests, I wanted to also offer the show here, so it could be made more available to others (as per David M's wishes). For those that have already downloaded the previous night's show, and may be wondering if it is worth downloading this show, which has a somewhat similar setlist, let me just say that, first, I think the sound quality is a little better here (a bit clearer, cleaner sound), and second, although the overall setlists are similar between the 2 shows, Roger  manages to include 10 additional new songs not played the previous night (so between the 2 nights, there are a total of 43 different songs played. Thus, I think any fan of Roger's would want to have both nights shows. But stay tuned, because there is still one more night (3-14) from these shows still coming.

Set 1
1. I'm So Restless (2:55)
2. You Ain't Going Nowhere (2:47)
3. Bagful Of Money (3:45)
4. Ballad Of Easy Rider - Wasn't Born To Follow (3:42)
5. Take A Whiff (On Me) (2:42)
6. Banjo Interlude (1:16)
7. Wayfaring Stranger (1:41)
8. Pretty Polly (4:19)
9. Old Blue (3:31)
10. My Back pages (2:19)
11. The Lady (6:10)
12. I'll Feel A Whole Lot Better (3:25)
13. Bells Of Rhymney (3:47)
14. Chestnut Mare (5:15)

Set 2
15. Skillit Good And Greasy (2:41)
16. Copper Kettle (4:53)
17. He Was A Friend Of Mine (3:05)
18. Lay Down Your Weary Tune (1:26)
19. Mr Tambourine Man (acoustic) (2:30)
20. Mr Tambourine Man (electric) (3:05)
21. So You Want To Be A Rock 'N' Roll Star (2:12)
22. Chimes Of Freedom (4:07)
23. Eight Miles High (3:25)
24. Sweet Mary (2:58)
25. Hanoi Hannah (3:10)
26. Mr Spaceman (3:11)
27. 5 D (3:12)
28. Wild Mountain Thyme (2:09)
29. Draggin' (2:37)
30. Nobody Knows When You're Down And Out (2:42)
31. Chestnut Mare (5:15)

Concert recorded and files provided by David M. Picture used for artwork taken by David M.at the actual concert– many thanks to him.
Files de-clicked, re-balanced, re-levelled by Rocking--Byrd, and originally offered for download at rocking--byrd.blogspot.com.

New link! (Updated 10/8/21)
Roger_McGuinn_1974-03-12_Cambridge.rar

Roger McGuinn - 1974-03-11 - Cambridge, MA (both sets)

Roger McGuinn
1974-03-11, both sets
Performance Center, Cambridge, MA
Audience (David M) recording, Good quality
Available in both Lossless (Flac) and mp3 (320 kbps) versions

Previously, I have featured members of the Byrds in their various post-Byrds shows and bands (with so much invaluable assistance from David M and his recordings), including Chris Hillman, Gene Clark, Michael Clarke, Gram Parsons, Flying Burrito Brothers, Souther-Hillman-Furay Band, Firefall, etc.), yet, so far I have not featured any shows from the one guy that is most closely associated with the Byrds, Mr. Byrd himself, Roger McGuinn. Well, I'm going to fix that oversight right now. Here, then, is another of David M's previously uncirculated audience master recordings, this one from the first night of Roger McGuinn's series of shows at the Performance Center in Cambridge, MA, in March 1974. Here are both sets from that fine night, with Roger going back and forth between acoustic and electric solo versions of many of his classic songs, as well as a very diverse and impressive setlist of various other gems, with only a few songs repeated between the two sets. A pretty amazing performance. I have not done any tinkering with the sound on these recordings, other than some volume enhancements, so these are pretty much David's raw tapes, warts and all, but overall, pretty good sound quality.
David was also present for a couple of the following nights shows, too, and his recordings for those nights have been previously featured on Rocking-Byrd's private blog. But since that blog was not generally accessible to all, I will also post those subsequent nights shows here, too (over the next week or so), and possibly some more Roger after that. Although the setlists are similar for the different nights, Roger still manages to add in a bunch of different songs for each show.  So, here is Roger McGuinn in 1974.
 
Tracklist:
Set 1:
01. I'm So Restless
02. My Back Pages
03. Bagful of Money
04. Ballad of Easy Rider - Wasn't Born To Follow
05. Take a Whiff
06. Banjo Interlude
07. Wayfaring Stranger
08. My Dog Blue
09. Old Blue
10. Draggin'
11. 5D
12. So You Want To Be A Rock 'n Roll Star
13. Mr. Spaceman
14. Lover of the Bayou
15. Chestnut Mare

Set 2:
01. Knockin' on Heaven's Door
02. Rock 'n Roll Time
03. I'll Feel a Whole Lot Better
04. Born to Rock 'n Roll
05. Bells of Rhymney
06. Old Blue
07. Mr. Tambourine Man
08. You Ain't Goin Nowhere
09. My New Woman
10. Draggin'
11. 12-String Interlude
12. She Don't Care About Time
13. The Lady
14. The Water is Wide
15. Pretty Boy Floyd
16. Chestnut Mare
17. My Back Pages
18. Turn Turn Turn

New Links! (Updated 10/08/21)
set1-mp3 - RM_1974-03-11_Cambridge_set1-mp3.rar
set2-mp3 - RM_1974-03-11_Cambridge_set2-mp3.rar

Flac version: RM_1974-03-11_Cambridge_set1-FLAC.rar
                    RM_1974-03-11_Cambridge_set2-FLAC.rar