In the Beginning compiles demos, some of which were previously unreleased, that were recorded during 1964 at World Pacific Studios in Los Angeles, before the band had secured a recording contract with Columbia Records.[2][3] Material dating from the band's pre-fame rehearsal sessions at World Pacific had previously appeared on the 1969 album Preflyte,[4] but In the Beginning provides a more comprehensive overview of this period than the earlier compilation.
During preparation for the album, Rhino Records elected to include as many previously unreleased versions of songs as possible, rather than simply duplicate the contents of the Preflyte album.[2] As a result of this, of the seventeen tracks that make up In the Beginning, only five are exactly the same recordings that were included on the earlier compilation album.[5]
In the Beginning also includes six alternate takes of songs that appeared on Preflyte.[5] In addition, the album also features alternate versions of both sides of a one-off single that the group released on Elektra Records in 1964 (under the pseudonym of the Beefeaters); a primitive acoustic demo of "The Only Girl I Adore" which had previously been released on the Early LAvarious artists compilation; a previously unreleased early version of "It's No Use"; and two recordings of the previously unreleased song "Tomorrow Is a Long Ways Away".[5][6]
Noting the album's emphasis on newly released material, the Byrds' biographer Johnny Rogan commented that In the Beginning took "the brave decision to include as many alternate takes as possible, irrespective of their quality", and concluded that the "CD captured the very genesis of the Byrds."[2] Music historian and journalist Richie Unterberger, writing for the Allmusic website, has described the music on the album as "excellent, though more tentative and less polished than their 'official' Columbia work."[5] However, Unterberger also complained that "some of the alternate takes are inferior to those on the original Preflyte album."[5]
NOTE: The following track listing is for the CD release only. The vinyl LP omits the tracks "The Reason Why", "Mr. Tambourine Man", and "Tomorrow Is a Long Ways Away" [acoustic version].
^"Collector's Note". In the Beginning (back cover). The Byrds. Rhino Records. 1988.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
^Brown, Tony (2000). The Complete Book of the British Charts. Omnibus Press. p. 130. ISBN0-7119-7670-8.
