What They Heard

There’s a myth attached to ‘A Hard Day’s Night’: the Byrds adopted the 12-string guitar and transformed ‘Mr Tambourine Man’, Dylan went electric as a result, and a pattern of intense competition climaxed with the release in quick succession of Blonde on Blonde, Pet Sounds and Sgt Pepper. A closer look tells us something different. Dylan’s electric ‘Subterranean Homesick Blues’ preceded the Byrds’ version of ‘Mr Tambourine Man’, which owed just as much to the Beach Boys – whose epochal Pet Sounds came out a full year before Sgt Pepper. Using timelines derived from release dates, studio sessions and personal encounters, this book traces the paths of influence during a 3-year period when artists crosspollinated via recordings, rivalry, rumours and drugs – changing music forever.