![]() Any mention of “high” was almost automatically assumed to be a drug reference in those days. The song’s lyrics are, for the most part, about the group’s flight to London in August 1965 for their first British tour, as hinted at by the opening couplet: “Eight miles high and when you touch down, you’ll find that it’s stranger than known.” When Griffiths asked if Jones should’ve gotten a credit for his contributions, Clark said, “I thought he should have been credited at the time, but of course he didn’t care. The melody and lyrics I wrote myself in a hotel room with Brian Jones in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.”Īpparently Jones was not keen to get a songwriting credit. “We were on a bus tour at the time, and we were listening to a lot of John Coltrane, a lot of Ravi Shankar, and they helped me finish the song. He said, “I wrote the song and presented it to McGuinn and Crosby on tour,” Clark later said. ![]() In an interview with Mike Griffiths on 3 November 1983, Gene Clark stated that Brian Jones of the Rolling Stones had a hand in writing this song. ![]() One example is McGuinn’s John Coltrane-influenced guitar work, which gave it a stronger edge. The basic melody and most of the lyrics are his, but input from the others enhanced its final expression. Gene Clark would still have a major contribution on the album, as Eight Miles High was originally his song. A lot could be said about the background to this, but suffice to say that by the time Fifth Dimension was released in July 1966, he was no longer in the group. Unfortunately this seemed to happen at the expense of Clark, who found himself marginalized in the band on other fronts as well. On their third album Fifth Dimension, McGuinn and Crosby stepped up as songwriters in an attempt to increase the band’s reliance on their own material. Tambourine Man (June 1965) and a further two on their follow-up Turn! Turn! Turn! (December 1965), alongside other cover material and some originals. They still did more than a few covers, chiefly by Bob Dylan who was covered extensively – four songs on their first album Mr. The song is credited to Gene Clark, Jim (Roger) McGuinn, and David Crosby – and as we’ll see, some uncredited input from The Rolling Stones’ Brian Jones.ĭuring the first few years of the band, Gene Clark had been its key songwriter. The crux will be what makes something “bona fide” or not, but no matter your view, it was certainly one of the first singles to bring that style and influence to the mainstream. The song was influential in introducing the concept of psychedelia and raga into the pop and rock music of its day.Ĭritics and music historians often site the song as being the first bona fide psychedelic rock song. " Eight Miles High" is a song by the American rock band the Byrds, written by Gene Clark, Jim McGuinn (a.k.a.Eight Miles High is one of the defining songs of the psychedelic rock movement of the 1960s. It was first released as a single on March 14, 1966. Musically influenced by sitar player Ravi Shankar and jazz saxophonist John Coltrane, the song was influential in developing the musical styles of psychedelia and raga rock. Accordingly, critics often cite "Eight Miles High" as being the first bona fide psychedelic rock song, as well as a classic of the counterculture era. radio ban shortly after its release, following allegations published in the broadcasting trade journal the Gavin Report regarding perceived drug connotations in its lyrics. The band strenuously denied these allegations at the time, but in later years both Clark and Crosby admitted that the song was at least partly inspired by their own drug use. The failure of "Eight Miles High" to reach the Billboard Top 10 is usually attributed to the broadcasting ban, but some commentators have suggested the song's complexity and uncommercial nature were greater factors. "Eight Miles High" reached number 14 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and number 24 in the UK Singles Chart. The song was also included on the band's third album, Fifth Dimension, which was released on July 18, 1966. "Eight Miles High" became the Byrds' third and final U.S. Top 20 hit, and was their last release before the departure of Clark, who was the band's principal songwriter at the time. The song's lyrics are, for the most part, about the group's flight to London in August 1965 and their accompanying English tour, as hinted at by the opening couplet: "Eight miles high and when you touch down, you'll find that it's stranger than known." Although commercial airliners fly at an altitude of six to seven miles, it was felt that "eight miles high" sounded more poetic than six and also alluded to the title of the Beatles' song " Eight Days a Week". Īccording to Clark, the lyrics were primarily his creation, with a minor contribution being Crosby's line, "Rain grey town, known for its sound"-a reference to London as home to the British Invasion, which was then dominating the U.S.
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