The Byrds

Object Details

Artist: Robert Wesley Wilson, born 1937
Sitter: David Crosby, born 14 Aug 1941; Roger McGuinn, born 13 Jul 1942; Michael John Clarke, 1946 - 1993; Christopher Hillman, born 1942

Exhibition Label: The Byrds; Nothing galvanized the youthful counterculture of the mid-1960s like rock music. The Byrds, a group originating in Los Angeles, brought to the scene an influential folk-rock style, fusing contemporary folk music with energetic Beatles-like harmonies and a driving twelve-string guitar sound. Their debut single, “Mr. Tambourine Man,” had topped the charts in 1965. This poster from 1966, featuring band members David Crosby, Roger McGuinn, Michael Clarke, and Christopher Hillman, advertised the Byrds’ appearance at one of impresario Bill Graham’s famous concerts at San Francisco’s Fillmore Auditorium. The Fillmore posters designed by Wes Wilson, with their offbeat colors and sinuous letters, successfully evoked the multisensory experience of many such events, which were often charged with high-decibel music, light shows, frenetic movement, and mind-expanding drugs. The words “Fly 8 Miles High,” using the title of the Byrds’ new hit single, herald the psychedelic rock era.

Credit Line: National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; gift of Jack Banning

1966

Medium: Color lithographic poster
Dimensions: Image: 56.8 x 32cm (22 3/8 x 12 5/8"); Sheet: 62.4 x 35.2cm (24 9/16 x 13 7/8")

Alternate Title: David Crosby, Roger McGuinn, Michael John Clarke, and Christopher Hillman

National Portrait Gallery

Topic: Exterior\Landscape\Rural; Costume\Dress Accessory\Eyeglasses\Sunglasses; Poster; David Crosby: Male; David Crosby: Performing Arts\Performer\Musician\Songwriter; David Crosby: Performing Arts\Performer\Musician\Singer; David Crosby: Performing Arts\Performer\Musician\Guitarist; Michael John Clarke: Male; Michael John Clarke: Performing Arts\Performer\Musician\Drummer; Christopher Hillman: Male; Christopher Hillman: Performing Arts\Performer\Musician; Roger McGuinn: Male; Roger McGuinn: Performing Arts\Performer\Musician\Singer; Roger McGuinn: Performing Arts\Performer\Musician\Guitarist; Portrait

GUID (Link to Original Record): http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/sm479cd910e-e906-4931-91e0-7fd3f9dc9787