 The nucleus of the Byrds formed in early 1964 , when Jim McGuinn , Gene Clark , and David Crosby came together as a trio . All three musicians had a background rooted in folk music , with each one having worked as a folk singer on the acoustic coffeehouse circuit during the early 1960s . In addition , they had all served time , independently of each other , as sidemen in various " collegiate folk " groups : McGuinn with the Limeliters and the Chad Mitchell Trio , Clark with the New Christy Minstrels , and Crosby with Les Baxter 's Balladeers . McGuinn had also spent time as a professional songwriter at the Brill Building in New York City , under the tutelage of Bobby Darin . By early 1964 , McGuinn had become enamored with the music of the Beatles , and had begun to intersperse his solo folk repertoire with acoustic versions of Beatles ' songs . While performing at The Troubadour folk club in Los Angeles , McGuinn was approached by fellow Beatles fan Gene Clark , and the pair soon formed a Peter and Gordon @-@ style duo , playing Beatles ' covers , Beatlesque renditions of traditional folk songs , and some self @-@ penned material . Soon after , David Crosby introduced himself to the duo at The Troubadour and began harmonizing with them on some of their songs . Impressed by the blend of their voices , the three musicians formed a trio and named themselves the Jet Set , a moniker inspired by McGuinn 's love of aeronautics . 
