Good-Bye Wrecking Crew!

The Byrds - Turn, Turn, Turn

I am not a fan of sourcing songs from The Bible but this one works here better than most. Despite being written by Pete Seeger it was transformed into the world of cool by McGuinn and the boys and there's the rub as you will see below this is where the Byrds found they had the power to say no to the Tin Pan Alley pressures to use session players par excellence 'The Wrecking Crew' so called. Now these guys fascinate me in their own right but here they needed to take a back seat and let the boys just get on with it and here's the result 

On this day in music history: December 4, 1965 - “Turn! Turn! Turn! (To Everything There Is A Season)” by The Byrds hits #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for 3 weeks. Written by Pete Seeger, it is the second number one single for the Los Angeles, CA based folk/rock band. Legendary folk singer and songwriter Pete Seeger (The Weavers) writes “Turn! Turn! Turn! ” in 1959 and records his own version of it in 1962. The lyrics are adapted verbatim from the Book of Ecclesiastes in The Bible, giving the song the unique distinction of holding the record for being the number one hit with the oldest lyrics. Produced by Terry Melcher (The Rip Chords, the son of actress Doris Day), The Byrds are insistent that the entire band be allowed to play on their own records, after being replaced with members of The Wrecking Crew (except McGuinn and Crosby) on “Mr. Tambourine Man”. Melcher agrees after realizing the band are competent enough to cut their own tracks in the studio. Though the recording process is relatively slow, with their version of “Turn! Turn! Turn!” being recorded over five days in September 1965, and taking seventy eight takes to complete the final master. Released on October 1, 1965, it takes off quickly. Entering the Hot 100 at #80 on October 23, 1965, it climbs to the top of the chart six weeks later. During its time on the charts and after, the song becomes an anthem of the peace and anti-war movements in the US and abroad. The song is later used on television shows like “The Wonder Years”, “The Simpsons” and “Cold Case”, as well as in the films “Forrest Gump”, “Heart Like A Wheel” and “In America”. “Turn! Turn! Turn! (To Everything There Is A Season)” is inducted into the Grammy Hall Of Fame in 2001.