Harold Eugene Clark would have been 70 this year. Along with Roger (then Jim) McGuinn, he founded the groundbreaking folk-rock band The Byrds in 1964. Clark was the band's lead singer (and Tambourine Man) and main songwriter. After leaving the Byrds in 1966, he was instrumental in creating country rock, arguably having a greater influence than (and preceding) the more famous Gram Parsons.

Gene went on to lay the groundwork for what became known as "newgrass" with banjo ace Doug Dillard in the group Dillard & Clark. He then released the acclaimed solo albums White Light (1971), Roadmaster (1973), and the psychedelic country rock masterpiece No Other (1974).

Sadly, major success as a songwriter and recording artist eluded Clark, due both to the fact that in all his musical endeavors he was slightly ahead of his time (musicians he inspired, most notably the Eagles, went on to hit huge) and to his propensity for drug and alcohol abuse. There was a dark and melancholy hue to his writing, and his singing voice, pleasant but always on the brink of cracking, conveyed an inner sadness akin to some of the great trad singers.

In 1986, after many years of failed efforts to re-establish himself in the public eye, Gene hit critical gold again with a collaboration with Textones singer Carla Olson, So Rebellious a Lover, which featured some of his best latter-day writing as well as stellar versions of Woody Guthrie's "Deportees" and the traditional "Fair and Tender Ladies" (aka "Silver Dagger").

But commercial success and public acclaim kept eluding him. Clark's health continued to decline as his drinking accelerated. He died of "natural causes" (brought on by bleeding ulcers) on May 24, 1991 at age 46.

During his career and subsequent to his death, Gene Clark's songs have been covered by a number of artists. Ian (now Iain) Matthews was an early promoter of Clark's songs, covering "Polly" on Matthews' 1972 Journeys from Gospel Oak album, and "Tried So Hard" on his 1974 Some Days You Eat The Bear album. In 2007, two of his songs, "Polly Come Home" and "Through the Morning, Through the Night", were recorded by Alison Krauss and Robert Plant on the T-Bone Burnett produced Raising Sand.

Just last year, British filmmaker Paul Kendall released the documentary The Byrd Who Flew Alone, a labor of love that chronicles Gene's trajectory through archive clips and interviews with
his colleagues and contemporaries. Highly recommended!

If there's anyone reading this who has memories of the Byrd who flew alone, of seeing him live or having epiphanies listening to his music, please post here. I'm planning a tribute concert later this year with some of my fellow pickers here in NorCal.

Let Gene Clark not be forgotten!