It’s not every day that one has the chance to see a living legend. It’s definitely not every day that the chance is in Baton Rouge. Roger McGuinn of the famous folk band Byrds took the stage at the intimate and acoustically pleasing Manship Theatre on Saturday night. Their stop in red stick was part of a tour which is being conducted in the traditional folk way—the way singers such as Pete Seeger and Utah Phillips are famous for—with songs, storytelling, and intimate experience with the audience.

As he sang each song, he told stories about how the songs were written, what they mean, and how they have evolved over the years. One of the best anecdotes McGuinn told concerns the Byrds’ first hit single, a cover of Bob Dylan’s “Mr. Tambourine Man”, a tune which defined a generation and is still arguably the best folk anthem ever recorded.

In the story McGuinn tells, the Byrds had one shot to record a hit single in order to cement a record deal with Columbia records. None of their own work was polished enough, so the label suggested they re-record a Bob Dylan demo “in which someone was singing out of tune on.” At this point McGuinn paused for laughter before adding, “No, it wasn’t Bob.” He then tells of the transformation of the song that gave birth to folk rock, relating to us first with his acoustic guitar and then with his Rickenbacker 12 string electric how he “added a Beatles beat” to the song to make it a radio hit. After his explanation he played the song for us, and followed it with several of his best, including the rousing and appropriate “So You Wanna Be (A Rock’n’Roll Star)” and Pete Seeger’s “Turn, Turn, Turn!” Other selections included re-worked Irish folk ballads and sea shanties, and some of his solo work.

McGuinn hasn’t lost any quality in his voice over the years, and is a masterful guitar player and performer. Many ‘60s and ‘70s rockers are past their prime, but McGuinn performs with grace and provides a wonderful folk experience.