Ingram Cecil Connor III, who was known professionally as Gram Parsons, was an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, and pianist. He recorded as a solo artist and with the International Submarine Band, the Byrds, and the Flying Burrito Brothers, popularizing what he called "Cosmic American Music", a hybrid of country, rhythm and blues, soul, folk, and rock.
Country rock is a music genre that fuses rock and country. It was developed by rock musicians who began to record country-flavored records in the late 1960s and early 1970s. These musicians recorded rock records using country themes, vocal styles, and additional instrumentation, most characteristically pedal steel guitars. Country rock began with artists like Buffalo Springfield, Michael Nesmith, Bob Dylan, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, the Byrds, the Flying Burrito Brothers, The International Submarine Band and others, reaching its greatest popularity in the 1970s with artists such as Emmylou Harris, the Eagles, the New Riders of the Purple Sage, Linda Ronstadt, Little Feat, Poco, Charlie Daniels Band, and Pure Prairie League. Country rock also influenced artists in other genres, including The Band, the Grateful Dead, Creedence Clearwater Revival, The Rolling Stones, and George Harrison's solo work, as well as playing a part in the development of Southern rock.
Emmylou Harris is an American singer, songwriter, musician and activist. A highly regarded figure in contemporary music, she is known for having a consistent artistic direction. Harris is considered one of the leading music artists behind the country rock genre in the 1970s and the Americana genre in the 1990s. Her music united both country and rock audiences in live performance settings. Her characteristic voice, musical style and songwriting have been acclaimed by critics and fellow recording artists.
The Flying Burrito Brothers are an American country rock band, best known for their influential 1969 debut album, The Gilded Palace of Sin. Although the group is perhaps best known for its connection to band founders Gram Parsons and Chris Hillman, the group underwent many personnel changes and has existed in various incarnations. A lineup with no original members currently performs as The Burrito Brothers.
Al Perkins is an American guitarist known primarily for his steel guitar work. The Gibson guitar company called Perkins "the world's most influential Dobro player" and began producing an "Al Perkins Signature" Dobro in 2001—designed and autographed by Perkins.
James Edward Burton is an American guitarist. A member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame since 2001, Burton has also been recognized by the Rockabilly Hall of Fame and the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum. Critic Mark Deming writes that "Burton has a well-deserved reputation as one of the finest guitar pickers in either country or rock ... Burton is one of the best guitar players to ever touch a fretboard." He is ranked number 19 in Rolling Stone list of 100 Greatest Guitarists.
The Gilded Palace of Sin is the first album by the country rock group the Flying Burrito Brothers, released on February 6, 1969. It continued Gram Parsons' and Chris Hillman's work in modern country music, fusing traditional sources like folk and country with other forms of popular music like gospel, soul, and psychedelic rock.
Grievous Angel is the second and final solo studio album by Gram Parsons, compiled from summer 1973 sessions and released four months after his death from a morphine and alcohol overdose in September 1973. Prominently featuring a young Emmylou Harris, Grievous Angel received great critical acclaim upon release but failed to find commercial success, a fate shared with Parsons’ previous efforts solo and with The Flying Burrito Brothers. Grievous Angel peaked at number 195 on the Billboard charts. Despite its modest sales, it is viewed as a successful example of the hybrid between country and rock and roll Parsons called "Cosmic American Music".
Burrito Deluxe is the second album by the country rock group the Flying Burrito Brothers, released in May 1970 on A&M Records, catalogue 4258. It is the last to feature Gram Parsons prior to his dismissal from the group. It contains the first issued version of the Mick Jagger/Keith Richards-written song "Wild Horses," released almost a year before the Rolling Stones own take on it appeared on Sticky Fingers.
Pieces of the Sky is the second studio album and major-label debut by American country music artist Emmylou Harris, released on February 7, 1975, through Reprise Records.
"Sweet Virginia" is a song written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, and was the sixth song on the Rolling Stones' 1972 double album Exile on Main St. The song is a slow country-inspired composition with a saxophone solo.
The Complete Reprise Sessions is a box set released in 2006 featuring both of Gram Parsons's early 1970s solo albums, GP and Grievous Angel. The box set features interviews and previously unreleased alternate takes.
Live 1973 is a live album by Gram Parsons and the Fallen Angels. It was recorded at Ultra Sonic Recording Studios in Hempstead, New York on March 13, 1973 during a live radio broadcast from WLIR-FM, a station located in Garden City, New York. The timing of the recording thus sandwiched it between Parsons' only two solo studio albums, GP, and Grievous Angel, although it was not officially released until 1982, long after Parsons' 1973 death at age 26.
Sleepless Nights is a posthumous compilation album by Gram Parsons. Credited to Parsons and his former band The Flying Burrito Brothers, the band appear on nine of the album's twelve tracks. The album features no original songs; the majority are covers of vintage country songs with the exception of The Rolling Stones' song "Honky Tonk Women".
"Hickory Wind" is a song written by country rock artist Gram Parsons and former International Submarine Band member Bob Buchanan. The song was written on a train ride the pair took from Florida to Los Angeles in early 1968, and first appeared on The Byrds' Sweetheart of the Rodeo album. Despite Buchanan's input, "Hickory Wind" is generally considered to be Parsons' signature song. Parsons' decision to play "Hickory Wind" instead of the planned Merle Haggard cover "Life in Prison" during The Byrds' performance at the Grand Ole Opry on March 15, 1968 "pissed off the country music establishment" and stunned Opry regulars to such an extent that the song is now considered essential to Parsons' legend.
"Torn and Frayed" is a song by the Rolling Stones that appears on their 1972 album Exile on Main St. Written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards. In his review of the song, Bill Janovitz called it "a twangy, three-chord honky tonk, but not typically country", and said, "The progression of the chords brings gospel music to mind".
Emory Lee Gordy Jr. is an American musician, songwriter and music producer. A former member of Emmylou Harris' backing band The Hot Band, he is best known for his association with country singer Patty Loveless, to whom he has been married since 1989. Gordy has produced and played bass guitar on nearly all of her albums, in addition to producing albums by Steve Earle, George Jones, and Alabama.
Sacred Hearts and Fallen Angels: The Gram Parsons Anthology is a compilation of Gram Parsons's albums from 1968 to 1976 and was released in 2001. It features segments from the International Submarine Band, The Byrds, The Flying Burrito Brothers, and his solo albums, and includes unreleased live tracks and non-LP tracks. Emmylou Harris, Chris Robinson of The Black Crowes, and Chris Hillman and Roger McGuinn of The Byrds contributed to the liner notes.
Neil Lanny Flanz was a Canadian pedal steel guitarist who grew up in Montreal. In the mid-1960s he moved to Nashville and played on the Grand Ole Opry. He later lived in Florida and Austin, Texas. The Austin Chronicle dubbed Flanz' playing style as "country traditionalist". He is perhaps best known for his performance as a member of Gram Parsons' Fallen Angels. He played and toured for over 30 years with artists including Marcia Ball, Emmylou Harris, Charlie Louvin and Joe Sun. Flanz was inducted into the International Steel Guitar Hall of Fame in 2016.
"Return of the Grievous Angel" is a song written by Gram Parsons and poet Tom Brown. The song depicts the experiences of the character during a road travel across the United States.
