Oh‚ how sad it must've been for you to hear the news then.

The Byrds: There is a Season (4-cd/1DVD)
Given the comprehensive archiving of the Byrds represented by the first box set in 1991(now out of print) and subsequent expanded remasters of the individual albums‚ this box set might well seem redundant despite a more expansive selection of tracks and booklet full of great photos‚ including a terrific essay by David Fricke that's almost worth the price of the set in itself. Even so‚ There Is A Season may do a disservice to the great band that is The Byrds‚ if only because novices and dilettantes will wonder what the fuss is all about if they watch the bonus DVD. This slightly-less than-half-hour of clips gives virtually no idea of the importance of the eclectic span of the group's history.

The Byrds: Notorious Byrd Brothers
The ambitious production and arrangements include sound effects‚ strings and synthesizers juxtaposed with steel guitars and the familiar chime of 12-string guitar. Like the best of The Byrds throughout their career‚ it remains timeless and timely from start to finish. It's superior to Sgt Pepper because it is a more personal statement than its counterpart.

Roger McGuinn: Cardiff Rose
The most noteworthy and durable work in McGuinn's solo canon includes Bob Dylan's "Up to Me‚" at that point an unreleased outtake from Blood on the Tracks‚ and Joni Mitchell's cinematic "Dreamland" as cornerstones for a sublime combination of instrumental talent and production taken right off the road. Recorded immediately on the heels of McGuinn's participation in The Rolling Thunder Review in 1975‚ McGuinn fronts the finely-honed band. At the helm is producer Mick Ronson (from David Bowie's Spiders from Mars/Ziggy Stardust period) and multi- instrumentalist David Mansfield.

The Byrds: Sweetheart of the Rodeo
This double set is a must‚ containing virtually everything The Byrds -- consummate professionals even as they descended into some personnel disarray -- recorded for this seminal country-rock album. Most importantly‚ herein are all the vocal tracks by both McGuinn and then newcomer Gram Parsons‚ which were ultimately interchanged when contractual disputes arose involving the late country-rock icon (who later abruptly departed The Byrds under mysterious circumstances).