Music of the Moment: The Byrds - “All I Really Want to Do”
I love the sound of a Rickenbacker in the morning…
I wonder if Fables of the Reconstruction inspired my need for The Byrds this morning. Peter Buck favored the jingle-jangle ringing of Rickenbacker’s in the early days of R.E.M., and The Byrds were pioneers of that sound.
It’s amazing how full a song can sound in under 2 minutes. Technology allows contemporary artists to write epics. In the early ’60s, technology and the marketplace kept a much tighter control on song lengths. I’m glad artists can go longer, but songs like “All I Really Want to Do” and “I Knew I’d Want You” are portraits in economy. A lot can be said in 2-3 minutes. Don’t believe me? Pull out your copy of Mr. Tambourine Man.
These songs feel longer than they are because there’s not a lot of wasted time or space. There’s a real lesson in that. Dylan understood it when he wrote it, The Byrds when they performed it.
Filed under: Music of the Moment, The Byrds
