Gram Parsons and My Return To The Blogosphere

Hey rock n' roll fans. I know it has been a while and I apologize for the sabbatical, but I unfortunately had to have minor surgery to remove a cyst from my lower back last week and was out of commission. But I want to say that I should be updating this blog several times this week and getting everyone caught up on what you may have missed. I also will take this time to say that most of my blogs from here on out are going to be monotheistic in that I want to concentrate on a few of my very favorite artists. I will splash in some of the logistics, but I feel like until now I really haven't gotten on my soapbox as much as I would've liked and so now I will. Man I changed a lot of verb tenses there.

Today I am going to talk about Gram Parsons. This might not excite some of you, especially since I noticed a lot of puzzled looks on your faces when we listened to his music in class. It's perfectly natural to feel that way, because Gram was always a bit out of his time. He was playing hardcore, Bakersfield-style country at a time when country music and rock n' roll, ideologically were on complete opposite sides of the spectrum. During the mid-60's country and the people who listened to it were seen as unsympathetic, racist, ultra-patriotic rednecks who had no idea where to find the pulse of the world. But that is why Gram was a magical figure for music, because he thought that none of this mattered. Music, to Gram, could not be manipulated or politicized. He often referred to his vision as "Cosmic American Music" a harmonious blend of rock n' roll, jazz, country, and blues. During his time he probably came closest to this vision with his work on "Sweetheart of the Rodeo" with the Byrds and "The Gilded Palace of Sin" with The Flying Burrito Brothers. Both albums I strongly recommend, not only because they are musically fantastic, but because if you care about rock n' roll at all, and its development, these albums are absolutely essential. They influenced bands like The Rolling Stones, The Eagles, Poco, Uncle Tupelo, Wilco, Ryan Adams and The Cardinals, and to a lesser extent, My Morning Jacket. Gram, though albeit slowly at first, showed the 60's counterculture that country music was not far from what they sought and what they listened to. More than any other country artist, he showed me and people like me who had always turned a cold shoulder to country, that there was beauty, poetry and most importantly, soul to the music. Often times people said Gram sang like a soul singer, only with a pedal steel guitar behind him. I think it was because he was such a great historian of country music. Keith Richards always said that Gram knew an endless amount of country songs, and Chris Hillman, his longtime bandmate said that Gram "just felt it." He learned from the styles of George Jones, who he called the king of broken hearts, Merle Haggard, Buck Owens, Hank Williams, Conway Twitty, The Louvin Brothers, and the Everly Brothers. Another great part of being addicted to Gram, he takes you as far backward as he did forward.

Unfortunately for us, Gram left too soon. He died of an overdose at the Joshua Tree Hotel in California at the age of 26. But he left his mark firmly within the world of music, especially the Southern California scene. I remember hearing Gram for the first time about two years ago. It was a duet between him and Emmylou Harris called "The Return of The Grievous Angel." At the time I could not free myself from the song. I listened to it over, and over, and over again. I was mesmerized by the beautiful imagery of America, by the angelic harmonies he sang with Emmylou, and most of all by the pedal steel guitar, which Gram always insisted should flood the song. You'll certainly hear this when you listen to the FFB, it's an album long solo for Sneaky Pete. Much like an Otis Redding, Gram came to perform most whole-heartedly on his ballads, and I feel in love with them. From then I moved on into the rest of his repertoire with The Byrds and The International Submarine Band. Hot Burrito No. 1 still gives me goosebumps, and I think that is why he is so special to so many people. Because he made them feel normal listening to his music. They didn't have to be in Nashville to feel it. They could identify whether they were in L.A. or New York. Gram's biggest downfall, aside from his musical deficiencies which are well documented, (he was an average guitar player at best, and an adequate piano player) was drugs. His privileged childhood as a member of one of the wealthiest families in the first half of the 20th century gave him an unlimited amount of money, an unquenchable thirst for extravagance, and an idea that he was special. Though he couldn't walk into Gold Star studios and ask to sit in with The Wrecking Crew, he knew he was going to be a star from day one, and he did everything to make it happen. Although living like a star drained his ambition and eventually killed him. So, unlike a Jimi Hendrix, or a Janis Joplin, or a Nick Drake or Kurt Kobain, I don't really long for Gram to be alive. He seemed comfortable the way he was, and he knew what he was in for. Musically I don't know if he could have given us much more, because he became increasingly lackadaisical near the end of his career. These other artists had plans, to change music, and they probably would have. Gram would have just said he wanted to and got stoned. Was Gram passionate?Yes, deeply. But was he driven? Fuck no. So maybe the world was fine the way Gram left it, early and unexpectedly. After all, that's what stars long for, unpredictability.

If any of you are interested in Gram, then I recommend you buy many things. For some reason there is a burst of Gram-related media on the market right now, and I have no idea why, but I suppose it's as good a time as any. I found a great book when I was last in New York called "Twenty Thousand Roads: The Ballad Of Gram Parsons and His Cosmic American Music" by David Meyer. It is a fantastically detailed and entertaining biography. I don't normally call bios page turners but Gram's life was extraordinary. Also, the first two albums by the Flying Burrito Brothers, "The Gilded Palace of Sin" and "Burrito Deluxe" are being packaged together right now for like 14 bucks. It's certainly money well spent. Recently released in 2007 was a live double album of the Burrito Brothers live at the Avalon Ballroom in San Francisco. While it's not a spectacular live album it does have some great Merle Haggard, George Jones, WIllie Nelson, Everly Brothers and Roy Orbison covers on it, among fantastic originals. Dr. McKeen also made me an anthology called "Sleepless Nights" which is a double disc chronicling his entire career. I'd be happy to lend any of these things to you, or burn you copies.

Below I've included some youtube links. The first one is a trailer for "Fallen Angel" the documentary. The second is the video for "Christine's Tune" and the third is a performance by Ryan Adams and Emmylou Harris of "The Return of The Grievous Angel" which does the original justice. Bernie Leadon plays guitar. Enjoy. I'll be in touch soon with more blogs, it's been lovely, and I'd have you anytime-DXL.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=9cmUWNO_YSs

http://youtube.com/watch?v=BITiY8M_oDo&feature=related

http://youtube.com/watch?v=z_ie8BDBSZs