With Fifth Dimension, released in 1966, The Byrds built upon what they had put together on their debut album, Mr. Tambourine Man, and added a couple of new "dimensions", if you will pardon the play on words. The band still paid great homage to their guru and major influence, Bob Dylan, but they also widened their horizons to include such songs as the sonic Eight Miles High, with it's blatant jazz instrumental structure.

The personnel of the band underwent its' first change on this album also, with the addition of a keyboard player for the recording sessions. The musicians are:

Jim McGuinn, twelve-string guitar, vocals
David Crosby, rhythm guitar, vocals
Chris Hillman, bass guitar, vocals
Michael Clarke, drums
Gene Clark, tambourine, harmonica, vocals
Van Dyke Parks, keyboards

The tracks are:

1. 5D (Fifth Dimension)--The influence of Bob Dylan is overt on the title track--McGuinn even manages to do a pretty passable imitation of his musical mentor on lead vocals. The folk feel is heavy, albeit with that electrified spin that The Byrds made their trademark. The harmonies are rich and the twelve-string guitar jangles away in this song, which deals with the metaphysical themes that so obsessed McGuinn.

2. Wild Mountain Thyme--Another folk song with a traditional flavor--it's not as electrified as some of their other music, but the addition of a very subtle orchestra gives the idea of folk music a whole new "dimension", if you will pardon my play on words again. The harmonies are again rich and beautiful, especially when contrasted with the glittering twelve-string guitar.

3. Mr. Spaceman--Los Angeles meets Nashville in this tune--The Byrds fully explore the country-bluegrass genre with this tongue-in-cheek song about an encounter with extraterrestrial being. Although it was a novelty song, McGuinn whimsically thought that it might enable us to make contact with someone out there!

4. I See You--An upbeat, jazzy song that features some of the psychedelic guitar themes that McGuinn would later explore, this one departs from the electric folk influences that so moved this band and allowed them to play music that was a little harder and edgier. Perhaps it sets the stage for some of their later musical direction.

5. What's Happening?!?!--This was David Crosby's first solo composition to appear on an album by The Byrds--it sounds like some of the British pop that was hitting the United States at about this time. The song itself is pretty forgettable, but McGuinn really plays some fine twelve-string guitar to salvage the track.

6. I Come And Stand At Every Door--The melody of this song was taken from a Judy Collins album, and the words were translated by Pete Seeger from a poem by Nazim Hikmet. The tune tells the story of the ghost of a seven-year old child who was a victim of the Hiroshima bombing. Pretty bizarre stuff, let me tell you.

7. Eight Miles High--Chris Hillman's throbbing bass guitar kicks this one off--it' really a rock 'n roll classic in the truest sense of the word. Popular opinion had it that it was about drugs--not so, said The Byrds--they claimed it was about their flight into London and their subsequent embarking upon the European continent during their first overseas tour. The idea behind the song is not important--what is startling about the song is the blindingly fast jazz licks that McGuinn plays on his twelve-string guitar--really some incredible playing, let me tell you. The harmonies are rich and graceful and the song is really a sonic treat.

8. Hey Joe (Where You Gonna Go)--Everyone did this song at one time or another, and each artist rendered their own unique interpretation of it. The version offered by The Byrds is uptempo and driving, and it features David Crosby on lead vocals. McGuinn offers up some unique blues licks on his twelve-string guitar.

9. Captain Soul--The Byrds do a bluesy instrumental here which gives all of the players room to improvise and create a lot of "soul", which was their avowed purpose. Gene Clarke plays a very notable harmonica solo, and it's interesting to hear McGuinn play traditional blues licks on his twelve-string guitar.

10. John Riley--This is a traditional song which loosely relates the tale of Homer's Odyssey. The harmonies are rich and elegant, and The Byrds put their own twelve-string folk spin on a beautiful ballad.

11. 2-4-2 Fox Trot (The Lear Jet Song)--This song was written by McGuinn by virtue of his friendship with Lear Jet manufacturer John Lear, a fact I didn't know until I read the liner notes of the album. The use of mechanical sounds in place of musical instruments was the type of experiment that McGuinn and Crosby delighted in, and they pull it off quite well here.

Bonus Tracks On The Remastered Version

12. Why (Single Version)

13. I Know My Rider (I Know You Rider)

14. Psychodrama City

15. Eight Miles High (Alternate/RCA Studios Version)

16. Why (Alternate/RCA Studios Version)

17. John Riley (Instrumental Version 1)

As a follow up album to the smash debut of Mr. Tambourine Man, this album stands up pretty well. Although Fifth Dimension is a little uneven at times, it builds upon the premises set up in Mr. Tambourine Man, and adds additional possibilities that The Byrds would expand upon in their future work.





Recommended: Yes

Great Music to Play While: Driving