It's not overstating the case to contend that the Byrds' debut is the font from which all folk-rock spouts. The Bob Dylan-penned title track hit No. 1 two months before the album arrived, in the process heralding a new sound that braided involved lyrics with a driving beat, chiming guitars, and vaguely trippy harmonies. The album (and, indeed, it is an album, rather than a haphazard collection of songs, as was the standard of the day) followed through on the promise of the single. Four of the dozen songs on the original pressing were Dylan compositions, but the originals from Gene Clark and Roger McGuinn nearly matched their appeal, particularly "I Feel a Whole Lot Better," perhaps the quintessential Byrds tune. This 1996 reissue includes a half-dozen previously unreleased tracks. --Steven Stolder
