Thunderbyrd

{{Short description|Album by Roger McGuinn}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2020}}

{{Infobox album

| name = Thunderbyrd

| type = studio

| artist = Roger McGuinn

| cover = Album Thunderbyrd cover.jpg

| alt =

| released = March 1977

| recorded = 1976

| venue =

| studio = Wally Heider Studios, Haji Sound

| genre = Rock

| length = 37:34

| label = Columbia

| producer = Don DeVito

| prev_title = Cardiff Rose

| prev_year = 1976

| next_title = McGuinn, Clark & Hillman

| next_year = 1978

}}

{{Album ratings

|rev1 = AllMusic

|rev1score = {{Rating|3|5}}[{{AllMusic|class=album|id=r12716|pure_url=yes}} AllMusic review]

|rev2 = Christgau's Record Guide

|rev2Score = B{{cite book|last=Christgau|first=Robert|author-link=Robert Christgau|year=1981|title=Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies|publisher=Ticknor & Fields|isbn=089919026X|chapter=Consumer Guide '70s: M|chapter-url=https://www.robertchristgau.com/get_chap.php?k=M&bk=70|accessdate=March 7, 2019|via=robertchristgau.com}}

|rev3 = The Rolling Stone Album Guide

|rev3score = {{rating|3|5}}{{cite book |title=The Rolling Stone Album Guide |date=1992 |publisher=Random House |page=462}}

}}

Thunderbyrd is an album by the American musician Roger McGuinn, released in 1977 on the Columbia Records label. Following the success of his 1976 album Cardiff Rose, McGuinn intended to make another album in collaboration with its producer Mick Ronson. This project however never materialized. Instead he put together a new band, Thunderbyrd, and recorded this album with them.{{cite AV media notes

| title = Born to Rock and Roll

| title-link = Born to Rock and Roll

| year = 1991

| first = Andrew

| last = Sandova

|page=10

| type = CD booklet

| publisher = Columbia

| id = CK 47494

}}

The album contains four original compositions by McGuinn and his old songwriting collaborator Jacques Levy. It also includes a version of Tom Petty's "American Girl", originally a hit the year before from Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers's eponymous debut album.

Thunderbyrd was not well received by critics or record buyers and was to be McGuinn's last solo album until 1991's Back from Rio.