Gene Clark was a founding member of the Byrds and was their leading songwriter for two albums, until a fear of flying forced him to leave the band. His reluctance to tour proved a problem throughout his solo career, along with his labels’ general under-promotion of his albums. He never achieved much commercial success for his recordings.
But he deserves more recognition than he gets. The Fantastic Expedition of Dillard & Clark (1968), with Doug Dillard, is a classic of country rock—better, for my money, than the more well-known Byrds album Sweetheart of the Rodeo. And his ‘70s solo albums White Light and No Other are both excellent. No Other, in particular, has developed a huge cult following, for its innovative production.
Indeed, Clark seems to have some diehard fans out there. I don’t consider myself among them—I don’t love all his stuff, in fact. Each of his albums have at least a couple songs that others rave about for their lyrics that I find musically to be a bit of a snooze. But I find his best songs so arresting that I can’t help but listen to them over and over. (I would say that the greatness of his songs often takes a few listens to really sink in, so give the playlists a couple run-throughs, even if the music doesn’t grab you right away.)
These two playlists fit neatly into the four sides of a double LP:
- Side A, Gene Clark’s work with the Byrds and Gosdin Brothers
- Side B, his work with Dillard & Clark
- Side C, excerpts from White Light
- Side D, excerpts from No Other
Playlist Note: I had to cut a few tracks I quite like to fit this double-LP format. (I wanted to keep things fairly concise, for newcomers to Clark.) Look them up, if you’re interested: with Dillard, “Something’s Wrong”; from No Other, “Some Misunderstanding”; from Roadmaster, “Here Tonight” and “Full Circle Song.”
Cover Art:
- Gene Clark with the Gosdin Brothers: Source, Discogscom
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