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They achieved fame in 1965 as the first American rock group to challenge the Beatles, interpreting (and making hits out of) Bob Dylan's "Mr. Tambourine Man" and Pete Seeger's "Turn! Turn! Turn!." McGuinn's guitar work, heard to great advantage on these two singles, became the group's signature. They also performed their own compositions, and in Gene Clark possessed a major songwriter; his songs include "The World Turns All Around Her," "I'll Feel a Whole Lot Better" and "Set You Free This Time." The 1966 McGuinn/Crosby/Clark song "Eight Miles High" is regarded as one of the most innovative top-forty singles in the history of popular music. By the time of 1967's Younger Than Yesterday LP and its single "So You Want to Be a Rock 'N' Roll Star" the Byrds had progressed into one of the most forward-looking pop groups of the time, showing the influence of Ravi Shankar and John Coltrane. Their 1968 The Notorious Byrd Brothers, which featured compositions by the group as well as by Goffin and King , is today regarded as their masterpiece. By this time both Clark and Crosby had left the group, with Hillman and Clarke soon to follow. Gram Parsons joined the group to record another album usually rated as a classic, 1968's Sweetheart of the Rodeo, which featured their ironic, distanced take on the country musicCountry music once known as Country and Western music is a popular musical form developed in the southern United States, with roots in traditional folk music, spirituals, and the blues. Vernon Dalhart was the first country singer to have a nation-wide hit of the Louvin Brothers and Merle HaggardMerle Haggard (born April 6, 1937) is a United States country music singer and songwriter. In the 1950s Haggard emerged as the first native of Bakersfield, California to get involved in the Bakersfield Sound. By the 1970s, he was aligned with the growing, as well as compositions by Parsons and by William Bell.

By 1969 and Ballad of Easy Rider, the group included bassist John York, drummer Gene Parsons and guitarist Clarence White . "Jesus Is Just Alright" from that album was issued as a single, and, in a similar arrangement, became a hit for the Doobie Brothers four years later. The group also recorded an excellent version of Jackson BrowneJackson Browne (born October 9, 1948) was an influential singer songwriter of the 1970s and 1980s. He was born in Heidelberg, Germany, but moved to Los Angeles, California at an early age and began singing folk music locally. In 1966, his career began by's "Mae Jean Goes to Hollywood" during the Easy Rider sessions, but it remained unreleased for some twenty years. The title track, written by McGuinn and Dylan for the movie Easy Rider, was one of their most affecting performances. In a sign of continuing turmoil within the group, York left in September 1969, replaced by Skip Battin. Clark, Clarke, Crosby, and Hillman all briefly rejoined in late 19721972 is a leap year starting on Saturday (click link for calendar). Events January events January 2 the Pierre Hotel Heist Six men rob the safety deposit boxes of the Pierre Hotel in New York City. Loot is at least $4 million January 5 President of the Un for the reunion album Byrds before the group was "officially" dissolved by McGuinn 1973Events January events January 1 United Kingdom, Ireland, and Denmark enter the European Economic Community now known as the European Union January 3 Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) sells the New York Yankees for $10 million to a 12-person syndicate led.

There were disputes over which members owned the rights to the "Byrds" name in the late 1980s. Clarke and Clark toured under the Byrds' name at that time. To soldify their claim to the name and prevent any non-original members from using the name, McGuinn, Hillman, and Crosby staged a series of Byrds' reunion concerts in 1989 and 1990 including a famous performance at a Roy Orbison tribute concert where they were joined by Bob Dylan for "Mr. Tambourine Man." These shows led to McGuinn, Hillman, and Crosby recording four new studio tracks for the Byrds Box Set in 1990.

The band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of FameLake Erie in the background The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum is a museum in Cleveland, Ohio dedicated, as the name suggests, to recording the history of some of the best-known and most influential rock and roll performers, producers, and other pe in 1991.