Comments:

Clark also wrote three strong tracks for "Turn Turn Turn", and in reality his contribution should have been even greater, but for political reasons in the group the very fine "She Don't Care About Time" was relegated to the B-side, while the equally strong "The Day Walk" was dropped entirely and was only released many years later on the compilation "Never Before"; both tracks are fortunately and sensibly included on reissues of "Turn Turn Turn", where they naturally belong.

The Byrds were for a period a little bewildered about which number would be the best bet for a successor to "Mr. Tambourine Man. Another Dylan written single. "All I Really Want to Do" had been released, but the single disappointed a bit in America, but did well in Europe. Another Dylan number, "It's All Over Now Baby Blue" was recorded as a contender for a single, but despite the fact that it turned out to be quite a good result, it was felt that something more different was neede. "It's All Over Now Baby Blue" also remained unreleased for several years, but fortunately the number is also included as a bonus track on "Turn Turn Turn". The number that ended up being chosen was the song "Turn Turn Turn", which is nicely arranged version of a Pete Seeger folksong. With this excellent single, the Byrds were back at the top of the charts.

An atypical number for the group written by Gene Clark, "Set You Free This Time", was chosen as the next single from the album. It's a really nice song, but it didn't have enough commercial appeal and it sold disappointingly little. The B-side, also taken from the album, was McGuinn's "I Won't Be Wrong" had more of the group's familiar sound, and would probably have been a better choice for an A-side. Besides the dropped "It's All Over Now Baby Blue", there are two Dylan tracks; of which especially the evocative "Lay Down Your Weary Tune" is great. "The Times They are a'Changing", doesn't really work; it seems a bit cheesy and should perhaps have been replaced by one of the aforementioned bonus tracks.

Gene Clark's two other contributions, "The World Turns All Around her" and "If You're Gone" are both fine. The former is an upbeat track; a "classic" Byrd arrangement with guitars and fine harmony vocals. The latter is a more experimental track that points towards the subsequent and more experimental next album "Fifth Dimension".

Roger McGuinn's contribution is, in addition to the fine "I Won't Be Wrong", "Wait and See", written together with David Crosby. The track is light, upbeat and quite nice. McGuinn, who was not as prolific a songwriter as Gene Clark, was out to find suitable material from other songwriters, and he has brought in "He Was a Friend of Mine" and "Oh Susannah". The former is quite nice, but maybe a little outdated, but the latter is a definite misstep; it doesn't work at all; unfortunately, as there was so much other quality to choose from. It is said that there was some jealousy in the group towards Gene Clark and that some of his numbers were therefore not selected. One song, probably suggested by Chris Hillman, "Satisfied Mind", points in the country direction that the group later really hit on.

In spite of a few slips and with the nice bonuses in mind, "Turn Turn Turn" appears as a strong album and a nice sequel to "Mr. Tambourine Man”