Time Between: My Life as a Byrd, Burrito Brother, and Beyond
By Chris Hillman
BMG, 2020, 238 pp.

With the arrival of the British Invasion and “Beatlemania” in 1964, folk musicians, Jim McGuinn (twelve-string, lead guitar), Gene Clark, and David Crosby (rhythm guitar) saw the writing on the wall and united to form a rock n’ roll band. Chris Hillman, (bass guitar) and Michael Clarke (drums) were added and the Byrds were born. The band had phenomenal success right out of the gate with their first recording, “Mr. Tambourine Man,” going to #1 on the singles charts and their same-titled album, released in June, 1965, peaking at #6 on the album charts. The Byrds’ unique sound, a melding of folk music and rock n’ roll, influenced a generation of songwriters and musicians.
In this very enjoyable memoir, Chris Hillman recounts his career, beginning with his boyhood years growing up in Rancho Santa Fe, California, his development as a country-bluegrass musician, and his unlikely recruitment into the Byrds at the tender age of nineteen. After several personnel changes, Hillman’s role in the Byrds grew, and he and new recruit, Gram Parsons, steered the band into country music with the pioneering album, “Sweetheart of the Rodeo” (1968). Parsons and Hillman then broke away from the Byrds and founded the influential country-rock band, the Flying Burrito Brothers (1968-1972).
Following the Burritos, Hillman was involved in the following notable ventures while continuing to hone his skills as a musician, singer, and songwriter:
- Manassas with Stephen Stills (1971-1973)
- Byrds’ founding members’ reunion album (1973)
- Souther-Hillman-Furay Band (1973-1975)
- Solo albums, Slippin’ Away (1976) and Clear Sailin’ (1977)
- McGuinn, Clark, and Hillman (1977-1981)
Following MCH, Hillman returned to his country-bluegrass roots with three, small-label albums, leading to the formation of the Desert Rose Band (1985-1994), where he enjoyed his most satisfying professional success as the leader and frontman of the popular country music band.
After DRB folded, Hillman kept busy with a number of small-label releases, always including friend and ex-DRB bandmate, Herb Pedersen.
Hillman intermixes his professional history with many personal reflections including the inevitable internecine squabbles with bandmates. Hillman was sixteen when his father committed suicide in 1961, which scarred the boy and fueled ugly rages throughout his life. Hillman claimed to have accepted Jesus Christ as his Savior in 1973, through the witness of Christian bandmate, Al Perkins, but would eventually “convert” to the legalistic sacramentalism of his wife, Connie’s, Greek Orthodox church.
I enjoyed this book quite a bit. Being a long-time fan of the Byrds and their offshoots, I already knew many of the stories, but Hillman does provide some fresh insights. The preliminaries are a bit too long for my taste. Hillman doesn’t actually document his initiation into the Byrds until page 67, nearly one-third of the way through the book, but that’s a minor criticism. The takeaway is the interesting story of a very shy, young musician of limited abilities, who, despite plenty of adversity, determinedly persisted and made himself into a remarkable talent and showman. No one in attendance at those early Byrds concerts in 1965, including his bandmates, would have guessed that the shy bass player with his back to the audience would go on to carve out a distinguished, fifty-five-year career. Those in the know recognize Chris Hillman, now age 75, as one of the principal pioneers of the country-rock sound, which would later be successfully commercialized by the Eagles.
Status of the other founding members of the Byrds: Gene Clark (d.1991) and Michael Clarke (d.1993) died from drug and alcohol abuse. After achieving fame and success as a member of Crosby, Stills, and Nash, David Crosby nearly ended his life due to drug addiction before spending five-months in prison and drying out in 1986. He continues making albums and touring. Jim (later Roger) McGuinn also became heavily involved with drugs. In 1977, with his life spiraling out of control, McGuinn accepted Jesus Christ as his Savior. He also continues to record and tour and publicly profess his faith. See my post about McGuinn here. For my reviews of all twelve of the Byrds’ albums, see my index here.
Below: The Byrds’ recording of “Time Between,” written by Chris Hillman, from the 1967 album, “Younger Than Yesterday.” That’s guest artist and future Byrd, Clarence White, masterfully delivering some very tasty country guitar licks. Nope, that’s not a pedal steel guitar Clarence is playing, it’s a 1954-model Fender Telecaster modified with a B-Bender.
Dropping by with a hi! Answering your question of my day, I’m about to do Bible study with the girls after homeschooling, we’re a little behind today given one of our girls had to go to a routine doctor’s visit and that took longer, you know, the days of COVID and all (understandably). I think if Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals have someting worthwhile on their site on Rome it might make for a good post on your blog!
LikeLiked by 1 person
👋🏼
Enjoy the day! Good suggestion regarding the ACE. I’m going to check it out.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Alright!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Also will read your blog after I’m done teaching opening study to Genesis 10 to my kids!
LikeLiked by 1 person
👍🏻
Hope you have a good study with your daughters. And I’m hoping you’ll enjoy this post about a fellow SoCal-er and a rock band you already know something about. 😊
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks! Speaking of so-cal, going to walk in the gardens with my family with this SoCal sunny sky
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hope you had a nice walk in the gardens!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks
LikeLiked by 1 person
Ah the Byrds, I remember your many posts on them! You know I have a bad memory with rock bands. Curious were they around the same time as the Van Halens? Apparently I live close to where the Van Halens live at
LikeLiked by 1 person
Let me correct myself: Van Halen’s were during the 80s and the Byrds started out in the 60s
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yeah. Van Halen was a cheesy 80s band with poofy hair, skin tight leather outfits, and embarrassing song lyrics aimed at adolescent males. Whoops! I don’t mean to be insulting if you were a Van Halen fan, which I don’t think you were.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Lol I am not lol
LikeLiked by 1 person
👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
LikeLiked by 1 person
🔊🎸🎧🎼
LikeLiked by 1 person
Lol! know for sure that you enjoyed that video I provided!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I did listened to it!
LikeLiked by 1 person
👍🏻
LikeLiked by 1 person
🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Phew! I was counting on that!
Guess what, my friend? After 15 months of being unemployed, I received a job offer today from the company I interviewed with the past two weeks, one of the last top tier manufacturers left in Rochester. Thank you for all of your prayers over the long haul!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Wow did you interview with them and now they just realized they are pulling out?
LikeLiked by 1 person
No, no. I meant they are one of the last good manufacturing companies remaining. Expanding every year.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Oh sorry I misread; I hope this company grows for the sake of people’s jobs and means of making a living
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks. They make radios for the U.S. military and others.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Wow awesome!! As a former Marine radioman in an infantry battalion I’m glad they provide radio for the military!
LikeLiked by 1 person
You may have used their radio? Harris? It’s now known as L3Harris.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I did not it seems it came later after I got out
LikeLiked by 1 person
I mistakenly assumed Harris manufactured most of the radios for the military but google shows they’re one of four companies.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I think they diversify a little bit for the radios with the companies in terms of the companies and also we had different radios for HF, VHF, UHF, etc, for different types of communications (ground to ground, ground to air, air to air, and types of units to units.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Gotcha.
LikeLiked by 1 person
When I was in the Marines in Iraq there were times I had to carry multiple radios since I was tasked not only with our section’s communication with the other companies in our unit but also the medevac which require another set of radios and they weren’t small radios and they come with accessory bags of their antennas plus batteries plus armor and helmet and weapon and lots of bullets lol. Thanks for the memory lane!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Wow, sounds like a heavy load!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I don’t think I can carry it now lol
LikeLiked by 1 person
Me thirty years ago = 🏋️
Me today = 🛋🛏📺
LikeLiked by 1 person
lol
LikeLiked by 1 person
WOW, the Burrito is the most fun name for a band I’ve heard in awhile. We were just talking to Kayliegh about how rock n roll came about, she thought it was pretty neat but she didn’t really like any of the examples we played for her. 😂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yup, the guys in the band were purposely aiming for the most ridiculous, uncommercial name they could come up with.
LikeLike