John York Foley (born August 3, 1946) is an American bassist and guitarist. He is best known for his work with

the Byrds The Byrds () were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1964. The band underwent multiple lineup changes throughout its existence, with frontman Roger McGuinn (known as Jim McGuinn until mid-1967) remaining the sole cons ...

History

Prior to joining the Byrds, John York was a member of the Bees and the

Sir Douglas Quintet The Sir Douglas Quintet was an American Rock music, rock band, formed in San Antonio in 1964. With their first hits, they were acclaimed in their home state. When their career was established (subsequent to working with Texas record producer Huey ...

, and also worked as a

session musician Session musicians, studio musicians, or backing musicians are musicians hired to perform in recording sessions or live performances. The term sideman is also used in the case of live performances, such as accompanying a recording artist on a ...

for

the Mamas & the Papas The Mamas & the Papas were a folk rock vocal group formed in Los Angeles, California, which recorded and performed from 1965 to 1968. The group was a defining force in the music scene of the counterculture of the 1960s. The group consisted of Am ...

and

Johnny Rivers Johnny Rivers (born John Henry Ramistella; November 7, 1942) is an American musician. His repertoire includes pop, folk, blues, and old-time rock 'n' roll. Rivers charted during the 1960s and 1970s but remains best known for a string of hit sing ...

. He was also the bassist in ex-Byrd

Gene Clark Harold Eugene Clark (November 17, 1944 – May 24, 1991) was an American singer-songwriter and founding member of the folk rock band the Byrds. He was the Byrds' principal songwriter between 1964 and early 1966, writing most of the band's best ...

's touring band. York joined The Byrds in September 1968, as a replacement for the band's original

bass player A bassist (also known as a bass player or bass guitarist) is a musician who plays a bass instrument such as a double bass (upright bass, contrabass, wood bass), bass guitar (electric bass, acoustic bass), synthbass, keyboard bass or a low bra ...

Chris Hillman Christopher Hillman (born December 4, 1944) is an American musician. He was the original bassist of and one of the original members of the Byrds, which in 1965 included Roger McGuinn, Gene Clark, David Crosby and Michael Clarke. With frequent ...

. He remained with the group until September 1969, when he was replaced by

Skip Battin Clyde "Skip" Battin (February 18, 1934 – July 6, 2003) was an American singer-songwriter, bassist, performer, and recording artist. He was a member of the Byrds, the New Riders of the Purple Sage, and the Flying Burrito Brothers. Εarly life C ...

. Despite only being with the Byrds for a year, his bass playing and singing appear on two of the group's studio albums, '' Dr. Byrds & Mr. Hyde'' and ''

Ballad of Easy Rider "Ballad of Easy Rider" is a song written by Roger McGuinn, with input from Bob Dylan (although Dylan is not credited as a co-writer), for the 1969 film, ''Easy Rider''. The song was initially released in August 1969 on the ''Easy Rider'' soundt ...

'', as well as on the non-album single "

Lay Lady Lay "Lay Lady Lay", sometimes rendered "Lay, Lady, Lay", is a song written by Bob Dylan and originally released in 1969 on his ''Nashville Skyline'' album. Like many of the tracks on the album, Dylan sings the song in a low croon, rather than in the ...

". He wrote "Fido", which appears on ''Ballad of Easy Rider'', and co-wrote "Candy", which is included on ''Dr. Byrds & Mr. Hyde''. He also appears on the

Columbia/Legacy Legacy Recordings is an American record label that is a division of Sony Music. Formed in 1990 after Sony's acquisition of CBS Records, Legacy originally handled the archives of Sony Music-owned labels Columbia Records and Epic Records. In ...

Byrds' live album '' Live at the Fillmore - February 1969''. Following his departure from the Byrds, York worked with Clark during the mid-1980s, along with Pat Robinson, in the group CRY. He served as an integral member of the Tribute to the Byrds band along with Gene Clark, Michael Clarke, Rick Roberts and others in the mid to late 1980s. York has maintained a lengthy career as a guitarist and bass player, and since the 1980s has worked with artists including Chris Darrow, Katie Trickett, Steven T., Nick Binkley, and Carla Olson, among others. In 1988, he recorded a number of songs with fellow ex-Byrds bass player Skip Battin, and these recordings were issued as the ''Family Tree'' album in 2001. He released three solo albums, ''Sacred Path Songs'' (1991), ''Claremont Dragon'' (1998), and ''Arigatou Baby'' (2006), and recorded the albums ''Clan Mother Songs'' with Jamie Sams, and ''Koto'' with Yukiko Matsuyama. In 2008, York teamed-up with singer-songwriter

Barry McGuire Barry McGuire (born October 15, 1935) is an American singer-songwriter primarily known for his 1965 hit " Eve of Destruction". Later he would pioneer as a singer and songwriter of Contemporary Christian music. Early life McGuire was born in O ...

for a live tour entitled ''Trippin' the 60's''.

Selected discography

The Bees

* "Leave Me Be"/"She's an Artist" ( 7" single – 1965) * "Forget Me Girl"/"

Baby, Let Me Follow You Down "Baby, Let Me Follow You Down" is a traditional folk song popularised in the late 1950s by blues guitarist Eric Von Schmidt. The song is best known from its appearance on Bob Dylan's debut album ''Bob Dylan''. Early years of the song The song was ...

" (7" single – 1966)

Sir Douglas Quintet

* "She Digs My Love"/"When I Sing the Blues" (7" single – 1966)

The Byrds

* '' Dr. Byrds & Mr. Hyde'' (1969) * "

"/"Old Blue" (7" single – 1969) * ''

'' (1969) * '' Live at the Fillmore – February 1969'' (2000)

The

* "Train in the Desert"/"Sweet Names of Spanish Ladies" (7" single – circa 1974–1976)

John York

* ''Sacred Path Songs'' (1991) * ''Clan Mother Songs''

ith Jamie Sams The Ith () is a ridge in Germany's Central Uplands which is up to 439 m high. It lies about 40 km southwest of Hanover and, at 22 kilometres, is the longest line of crags in North Germany. Geography Location The Ith is immediatel ...

(1992) * ''Claremont Dragon'' (1998) * ''Koto'' ith Yukiko Matsuyama(2003) * ''Arigatou Baby'' (2006) * ''West Coast Revelation'' ith_Kim_Fowley.html" ;"title="Kim_Fowley.html" ;"title="ith Kim Fowley">ith Kim Fowley">Kim_Fowley.html" ;"title="ith Kim Fowley">ith Kim Fowley(2007) * ''Trippin' the 60's: The Show Songs Live'' [with

] (2009) *''West Coast Revelation'' ith_Kim_Fowley.html" ;"title="Kim_Fowley.html" ;"title="ith Kim Fowley">ith Kim Fowley">Kim_Fowley.html" ;"title="ith Kim Fowley">ith Kim Fowley(GRA Records; 2011)

CRY

* ''After the Storm'' (2000)

Family Tree

* ''Family Tree'' [with

, Ricky Mantoan, Beppe D'Angelo] (2001)

Selected album guest appearances

* The Mamas & the Papas – ''The Papas & The Mamas'' (1968) * Jack Street Band – ''Jack Street Band'' (1982) * Katie Trickett – ''The Next Time'' (1994) * Mojave – ''Tumbleweed Circuit'' (1995) * Peter Lewis – ''Peter Lewis'' (1995) * Nick Binkley – ''Pin Stripe Brain'' (1996) * Chris Darrow – ''Coyote + Straight from the Heart'' (1997) * Chris Darrow and Max Buda – ''Harem Girl'' (1998) * Anita Kruse – ''Creation Flight'' (1998) * Toulouse Engelhardt and Remi Kabaka – ''A Child's Guide to Einstein'' (2004) * Steven T. – ''Damage'' (2004) *

Carla Olson Carla Olson (born July 3, 1952) is a Los Angeles-based songwriter, performer and record producer. Biography Born and raised in Austin, Texas, Olson moved to Los Angeles, California, in 1978 where she formed the Textones, whose debut album ''M ...

– ''Have Harmony, Will Travel'' (2013) ~ John sings lead on 2 songs: "First In Line" (written by

Paul Kennerley Paul Kennerley (born 1948) is an English singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer working in the American contemporary country music industry. Biography Paul Kennerley was born in Hoylake, Cheshire (now Merseyside), England in 1948. In 1 ...

) and "Upon A Painted Ocean" (written by

P. F. Sloan Philip Gary "Flip" Sloan (born Philip Gary Schlein; September 18, 1945 – November 15, 2015), known professionally as P. F. Sloan, was an American singer and songwriter. During the mid-1960s, he wrote, performed, and produced many Billboard H ...

). He also plays guitar on the album including on the Richie Furay/Carla Olson version of

's "

She Don't Care About Time "She Don't Care About Time" is a song by American folk rock band the Byrds. It was released on a non-album single in October1965, as the B-side to "Turn! Turn! Turn!". The song was written by Gene Clark, the Byrds' main songwriter between 1964 and ...

References

External links

John York bio at Taxim Records website
* http://www.johnyorkmusic.com {{DEFAULTSORT:York, John 1946 births Living people People from White Plains, New York Singer-songwriters from New York (state) The Byrds members Columbia Records artists American rock bass guitarists American country bass guitarists American male bass guitarists American male singer-songwriters American country rock singers American country singer-songwriters American country guitarists American acoustic guitarists American rock guitarists Guitarists from New York (state) American male guitarists Sir Douglas Quintet members 20th-century American guitarists Country musicians from New York (state)