Gene Clark’s No Other is an album that I’ve loved with a passion only rivaled by my love of Love’s Forever Changes. Ignored or misunderstood by both critics and audiences, Clark’s cocaine cowboy masterpiece has finally been receiving its due in recent years. A tribute tour including Beach House, Fleet Foxes and Grizzly Bears playing all the songs from No Other toured the East Coast late last year. Four Men With Beards has released a remastered version of the album on 180 gram vinyl that sounds good, though it is most likely pressed from digital sources rather than the original analogue masters. Not perfect, but I’m glad it’s out there. No Other will be a revelation for those of you who haven’t heard it. I promise.
A new BBC documentary, The Byrd Who Flew Alone The Triumphs and Tragedy of Gene Clark , is viewable right now on YouTube and I heartily recommend it. I suggest you watch it as soon as possible. It may not last long and you’ll kick yourself for missing it. It does a terrific job of covering the life and times of one of the greatest and most underrated artists of the past five decades. Gene Clark was like no other.