"Feel a Whole Lot Better" by the Byrds
This is my cover of "Feel a Whole Lot Better" by the Byrds from 1965 using my Rickenbacker 360 12-string electric guitar. This song was a minor hit for the Byrds (it was on their first, "Mr. Tambourine Man" album), but I always thought this sounded like a Beatles song and always liked it. I first learned to play this in 1965 when I was 17 years old. Tom Petty had a no. 3 hit with this song in 1989. I don't know why this song popped into my head lately, but I had a fun time recording this. :) Thanks for listening! - Glenn |
Makes me want to grow my hair long, get some bell bottom jeans, and colored glasses!
Great job Glenn! |
Written by the late Gene Clark; an under-rated and troubled member of
a very iconic band whose music still has an appeal to some of us Boomers, and others,to this day. |
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Thanks for your comments and for taking time to watch! It's a fun song. It has a sound like a street band playing way back almost 6 decades ago. I hope all is well for you Bob! :) - Glenn |
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Yes, Gene Clark was underated and troubled. He wrote many of the Byrds' early songs. There is some comfort in offering the Byrds and Gene Clark this tribute more than 55 years after the published this song. I also think it's interesting that Tom Petty rerecorded this song on his own another 24 years after the Byrds first published this song. It's obvious that Tom Petty was a Byrds fan. :) Be well Nitram! - Glenn |
Glenn,
Nice job on a great classic song! As you noted, it's a catchy song. Also, a fun song to play and sing. The lyrics are "interesting". Love the special sound of a Ric ! Cheers! |
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Thanks so much for listening and commenting! I agree! The Rickenbacker 12-string has a really special and characteristic sound -- a sound I really like, obviously! :D :) Regarding the lyrics, the more I listen to them, the more I wonder just what I was thinking, but I will not go there. ;) Be well and thanks very much for your comments! :) - Glenn |
Loved hearing the gorgeous electric 12-string and that was a nicely played little lead break x2 in there too. Always good to hear what you do!
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Great job Glenn. Loved that song when it came out and loved Petty’s version. You did it proud! Good mix and the Rick sounds fabulous.
Thanks for the hard work (labor of love I know but still hard work). Roger |
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You are always generous with your comments! Thanks so much for listening! Regarding that lead part, that is the one piece of the song I never learned to play before so I had to figure it out. It turns out it was not too hard once my brain clicked in to what he was doing. Roger McGuinn played his Ric 12-string with just the two highest pairs of unison strings, like a mandolin, which was an eye-opener for me. It shows his folk roots from way back. In fact, to keep the Ric 12 from sounding too much like a mandolin, I added a little gain to the amplifier to fatten up the notes so that they didn't sound too tinny. It was an interesting learning experience for me. The guitar amp for the rhythm parts was set totally clean with just some reverb. However, to fatten up the rhythm sound I recorded a second version of the rhythm part and panned one guitar full left, the other full right. Also, I listened to Tom Petty's recording of his cover of this song and I realized that they not only fattened up the 12-string sound by doubling the rhythm sound but also by adding a little chorus effect. So I also added just a little bit of chorus, about a 2% mix, but it's surprising how much difference this small amount makes. I am so enthusiastic about the Ric 12-string sound that I really had to work to not drown out my voice. Thanks for your thoughts Frank! :) - Glenn PS: This is Tom Petty's cover of this song: |
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How wonderful to hear from you! Thanks so much for taking the time! I'm glad you like this song! It surprises me how few players know of this song, but this was not one of the Byrds' big hits. People know "Mr Tambourine Man" and "Turn, Turn, Turn," and probably "Eight Miles High," but for most people that's about all they know of the Byrds. As a high school kid who played the guitar, I was totally immersed in their music. I'm really glad you know and like this song. I provided a link to Tom Petty's version just above in my response to Frank. I liked Petty's version, too, and of course, he had the advantage of more advanced recording equipment compared to the Byrds in 1965. It's hard to believe that was 56 years ago! I did spend a couple of weeks working on this song, so I did put in, as you say, a labor of love. I recorded a first version and then completely gave up on it and started over. Before I started the 2nd try I almost kissed the whole thing off. But I tried again and it turns out I had learned so much that the 2nd time around went so much faster and sounded so much better. Even my background vocals were way better. :) I hope all is well for you Roger. It's going to be a long winter. :) - Glenn |
Good morning, Glenn!
Well that one woke up my brain this morning! LOL! Beautiful playing and singing, and wonderful instrument selection for this one. You do have a heck of a collection! All the best on a Saturday morning, and thanks for the huge amount of time you devote to bringing these tunes to AGF. Fred |
That song is a real classic and one that I too love to cover.
Well done, Glenn! |
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I appreciate your appreciation for this cover -- nice of you to take time to listen and comment. This kind of music is probably not your cup of tea. :) You're welcome for the time I put in on songs like this. For me, it keeps me motivated to have a project like this. And every one of these exercises is a learning experience. I had never played the solo before or the bass part. So figuring them out was good for the ol' brain. :D :) I do have a very nice collection of guitars; I feel very fortunate. The sun is coming up over the wooded hills here in the river valley we live it, so yes, it should be a beautiful Saturday! I hope all is well for you Fred! Take care! :) - Glenn |
Put a big smile on my face, Glenn! Great playing and singing as always, and I love the artwork. Are you playing drums as well? Great rendition of this classic!
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