Subud Byrd Connection

Apr 22, 2020 | 6 comments

From Eli Dokson:

Hi Paul,

I enjoy your weekly SICA USA News emails – keep em coming.

Here’s something you might find interesting – In the latest edition of GuitarPlayer magazine (circulation of 134,000+), May 2020, their monthly column Five Acts of a Legend features Roger McGuinn, founding member of the Byrds. The column recalls when the Byrds changed their name from The Jet Set to the Byrds right before “Mr. Tambourine Man” came out in 1965. And then “McGuinn changed his own name from Jim to Roger in 1967 after joining the Subud spiritual association, when he was told a name beginning with R would better ‘vibrate with the universe’.”

I knew that and remember doing latihan with Roger when I was living in L.A. in the late ’70’s, but I think it’s cool that Subud got a shout out in a popular magazine.

Take care and be safe,

Eli

Tags:

Roger McGuinn Subud Member

6 Comments

Halimah Polk on April 25, 2020 at 5:45 pm

thanks Eli for sharing this article I think it’s great and I knew there was a connection between the birds and super but I wasn’t sure exactly what.
Reply
Serena DuBois on April 25, 2020 at 6:56 pm

I first heard of Roger McGuinn in a line in a Johnny Cash song “Songs that Made a Difference”: “Roger McGuinn played a 12 string guitar. It was like nothing I ever heard.” Now I know why. Thanks for sharing this article.
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- seno joko suyono on December 18, 2023 at 12:18 am
  
  Thank u for this infornation.Iam from Indonesia
  Reply
Halimah Collingwood on April 26, 2020 at 1:18 am

I found out about Subud in 1963 while in college in San Jose. When I moved to San Francisco in late ’64, I was living with a bunch of musicians including Paul Kantner who later became a founding member of the Jefferson Airplane. We had a lot of musicians visit us and one night Roger (then Jim) came over to our Fillmore apartment. He was very kind and thoughtful and had a quality which affected me deeply. I knew he was in Subud and because of him, I went to the SF group on California St. and was opened in May 1965. Some months later I was in the Bay Area when they were playing a gig. I already knew David Crosby so they invited me to sing a few songs with them. That was fun!
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- SICA-USA on April 26, 2020 at 3:13 pm
  
  Fantastic Halimah!
  Reply
Solat on May 30, 2020 at 11:34 am

Roger arrived regularly at Hope Street Hall, then home to Subud LA, on a large motorcycle, a warm as well as cool guy.
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