The Orlando Sentinel from Orlando, Florida • Page 75

iMjftc McGuinn sees no need for Byrds to fly again Roger McGuinn When: 7p.m. Tuesday. Where: Church Street Market, downtown Orlando. What It costs: It free. By Parry Gettelman SEMTiNa.

populab musc cwnc This summer, an evil power created hordes of zombie rock groups. Promoters dangled small fortunes over the graves of long-dead bands, causing them to rise again and stomp dutifully across the country, playing their old hits for baby-boomer audiences. The Byrds, however, did not join the ranks of the living dead. Roger McGuinn said reforming didn't seem like a good thing for the Byrds although it must have seemed like a good thing to other groups. "It must have seemed like a good thing for them to make a going out solo acoustic for the most part" The Byrds formed in 1964, and although their jangly Rick-enbacker guitars and lovely vocal harmonies made for an instantly recognizable sound, they ranged stylistically from folk-rock to psychedelic rock to country rock.

Their classic '60s singles include "Mr. Tambourine Man," "Turn! Turn! "Eight Miles High" and "So You Want to Be a Rock 'n' Roll Star." The Byrds went through many lineup changes and finally split up in 1973. McGuinn recorded again with bandmates Gene Clark and Chris Hillman, but the only Byrds reunion was a brief series of gigs the trio played in order to bolster their legal claim to the band's name. (Drummer Mike Clarke had lot of money," McGuinn said dryly. "We could have made some money if we'd wanted to do it.

David Crosby has been hounding me for years, but I really think their the Byrds' time is past It would be just for the money; it would lack artistic integrity. I'm enjoying what I'm doing. Maybe I'm not as much in the limelight, but it's certainly more rewarding just been using it for a group of ringers.) SPECIAL DAYTONA BEACH McGuinn solo career has been lower-key but satisfying. I I His last album, 1991's Back From Rio, included the hit "King of the Hill," a collaboration with Byrds fan Tom Petty. Side Ocean View Room with 2 Beds and Balcony FREE Continental Breakfast PHOTOCHRIS CUFFARO The past is history for Roger McGuinn, who is perfectly happy these days to just be going his own artistic way.

WW I Complimentary Bottle of Champagne upon arrival 3 P.M. Late Checkout McGuinn and his wife Camilla, who is also his manager, moved to the Tampa Bay area nine years ago. They still have a getaway there but have made their home in Orlando for the past three years. "It's sort of a younger environment, and there are more restaurants and things to do," McGuinn said. McGuinn will play a rare gig in his adopted hometown Tuesday in a free Church Street Sta-tion show sponsored by Per Couple I Expirss 2-2-95 Based on Availability Nol valid dunng holiday or special events.

No valid with othef discounts. Must present coupon at check I I I I I SH0NEYv 1 INN vv Shoney's Inn Boardwalk 400 N.Atlantic Ave. I I 1-800-535-2036 WMMO-FM (98.9). He'll be backed by the Headlights, a Tampa band that sometimes acompanies him on the road and played with him here at the Beacham Theatre in 1991. "I really love what I do; it's fun to do it, and I plan to keep doing it as long as I live," McGuinn said.

"And it's not something I do for the money I'd probably do it if they didn't pay me, but I'm glad they do." pie times. It was kind of romantic, adventurous. That way it keeps it exciting." McGuinn found the nation's rail system a little on the rickety side, but even though there was an Amtrak derailment on the line the week he and Camilla were scheduled to return to Orlando, they came back by train. "You really have to love it," he said. McGuinn has been writing songs for a new album and is getting ready to go back into the studio, but he has neither a label nor a timetable.

"I don't crank them out every year," he said. "I used to do that, and it was kind of a waste of time. You get burned out and tired of doing it." Generally, McGuinn said, he likes to write all new songs for an album, but if he finds an older song that works, he'll use it. And he has found that some songs that weren't appropriate four or five years ago would sound right on an album now. "They're more acoustic, more folk-oriented, and the pendulum has swung in that direction," McGuinn said.

McGuinn does have a cut on the fine compilation Adios Amino: A Tribute to Arthur Alexander, released in August He recorded "Anna." the AIpv. ter for the Recording Arts' studio in Orlando. McGuinn also has been a bit more visible lately thanks to the Forrest Gump soundtrack, which includes the Byrds' "Turn! Turn! Turn!" There is a video for the song playing on VH-1, using footage from the movie, and McGuinn performed the song on Late Night With Conan O'Brien. "I was helping Epic Records plug the Forrest Gump soundtrack. My friend who's vice president in charge of publicity at Epic was kind of throwing me a perk, putting us up at the Four Seasons for five days to do a couple TV shows," McGuinn said.

"I don't think the soundtrack really needed help it was already No. 2 on the chart." McGuinn said he likes to listen to college radio when he's traveling around the country. "I like to see what they're do-' ing they become mainstream six months to a year later," he said. There are still plenty of young bands out there with a strong Byrds influence, most notably the Gin Blossoms, a band McGuinn likes. "I like anything in that direction I guess I would," he said.

"It sounds good I still like that sound. It's melodic, it sustains, and it's kind of classic." ktjirt -r. t.ri.j V--" mtmmmmiJmm ocunnoMt 10 1 ptnon Some artists complain about the rigors of touring, but as a solo artist, McGuinn enjoys touring although he tries to be extra nice to the neighbors' cat, a welcome moocher, when he has been on the road for a while. "I take my wife, and my kids are already grown so I don't have to worry about that. The cat isn't ours, so we don't have any reason to stay in one place," McGuinn said.

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