[7] Clark was invited to join an established regional folk band, the Surf Riders, based in Kansas City at the Castaways Lounge, owned by Hal Harbaum.

[12] Bassist Chris Hillman noted years later in an interview remembering Clark, "At one time, he was the power in the Byrds, not McGuinn, not Crosby—it was Gene who would burst through the stage curtain banging on a tambourine, coming on like a young Prince Valiant.

He had the 'gift' that none of the rest of us had developed yet.... What deep inner part of his soul conjured up songs like 'Set You Free This Time,' 'I'll Feel A Whole Lot Better,' 'I'm Feelin' Higher,' 'Eight Miles High'?

This disappointment, combined with Clark's dislike of traveling (including a chronic fear of flying) and resentment by other band members about the extra income he derived from his songwriting, led to internal squabbling, and he left the group in early 1966.

[14] He briefly returned to Kansas City before moving back to Los Angeles to form Gene Clark & the Group with Chip Douglas, Joel Larson, and Bill Rhinehart.

It received favorable reviews, but unfortunately for Clark, it was released almost simultaneously with the Byrds' Younger Than Yesterday, also on Columbia, and (partly because of his 18-month absence from public attention) was a commercial failure.

[17] With the future of his solo career in doubt, Clark briefly rejoined the Byrds in October 1967 as a replacement for the recently departed David Crosby; following an anxiety attack in Minneapolis, he left after only three weeks.

Both albums by Dillard & Clark fared poorly on the charts, but they are now regarded as seminal exemplars of the country rock and progressive bluegrass genres.

During this period, Clark, Leadon, Jackson and Beck contributed to the debut album of Steve Young, Rock Salt & Nails, released in November 1969.

In semi-retirement, he subsisted on his still-substantial Byrds royalties throughout the early 1970s, augmented by income from The Turtles' 1969 American Top Ten hit "You Showed Me", a previously unreleased composition by McGuinn and Clark from 1964 rearranged for the band by Chip Douglas.

[31] The album was produced by the Native American guitarist Jesse Ed Davis, with whom Clark developed a great rapport, partly due to their common ancestry.

[36] The resulting eight tracks, including "Full Circle Song" and "In a Misty Morning", along with those recorded with the Byrds in 1970 and 1971 ("She's the Kind of Girl" and "One in a Hundred") and with the Flying Burrito Brothers ("Here Tonight"), were released in 1973 as Roadmaster in the Netherlands only.

Clark's compositions "Full Circle" and "Changing Heart" and the Neil Young covers on which he sang the lead vocal ("See the Sky About to Rain" and "Cowgirl in the Sand") were widely regarded as the standout tracks on the critically divisive album.

[40] The label was the home of the most prominent exponents of the singer-songwriter movement of the era and carried the kind of hip cachet that Clark hadn't experienced since his days with the Byrds.

[41] While composing the album, he spent long periods with a notebook and an acoustic guitar at the picture window of his home, deriving inspiration from staring at the Pacific Ocean.

Produced by Thomas Jefferson Kaye with a vast array of session musicians (including members of The Section and the Allman Brothers Band) and backing singers, the ensuing No Other fused elements of country rock, folk, gospel, soul and choral music with poetic, mystical lyrics.

[42] Although the album was praised by critics, its unconventional arrangements (which anticipated the later innovations of Lindsey Buckingham, Stevie Nicks and Christine McVie)[43] limited public appeal.

[45] In 2013, members of the bands Beach House, The Walkmen, Grizzly Bear, and Fleet Foxes performed the album in its entirety in a series of concerts.

The album—a melange of bluegrass, traditional honky tonk, echoes of No Other ("Sister Moon") and strident country rock (a new arrangement of "Kansas City Southern")—was produced by Kaye with an understated touch.

[49] The emotional fallout from his divorce is reflected in the album title and several of Clark's compositions, including the aforementioned "Sister Moon", "Lonely Saturday", "Past Addresses", "Silent Crusade" and "Hear the Wind".

The album also contains covers of the traditional "In the Pines" (a key component of Clark's live repertoire with the Silverados) and "Give My Love to Marie" by James Talley.

In a belated attempt to find an appreciative public, he reluctantly overcame his travel anxiety and launched an international promotional tour with the KC Southern Band.

[51] For his British tour dates, Clark found himself on the same bill as ex-Byrds Roger McGuinn and Chris Hillman, each fronting their own bands.

He wrote four songs for the album, including "Backstage Pass" (a rumination on the ennui of touring and his fear of flying), "Release Me Girl" (a disco-inflected collaboration with Thomas Jefferson Kaye), the UFO-inspired "Feelin' Higher" and "Little Mama".

While waiting for the album to be released, Clark joined up with Chris Hillman and others in an abortive venture called Flyte, which failed to secure a recording contract and was quickly dissolved.

[59] Later in the decade, he embraced his new status by appearing as a guest with the Long Ryders, in a session arranged by Saul Davis and he cut an acclaimed duo album with Carla Olson of the Textones titled So Rebellious a Lover (including the notable "Gypsy Rider" and "Del Gato") in 1986.

A period of abstinence and recovery followed until Tom Petty covered "I'll Feel a Whole Lot Better" on Full Moon Fever (1989), yielding a windfall of royalties from the album (which peaked at No.

Although the circumstances remain nebulous (with Carla Olson citing alleged financial improprieties), the binge also precipitated his final break-up with Terri Messina, who had had a two-decade on-again, off-again relationship with Clark.

[65] During this period, The Byrds set aside their differences long enough to appear together at their induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in January 1991, at which the original lineup performed several songs together, including Clark's "I'll Feel a Whole Lot Better".