The "Original" Sweetheart Of The Rodeo - UPDATED!

One of the things I like to do here at Setting The Woods On Fire is to compile what I call the "original" version of well-known cover albums.

It's no secret that The Byrds' Sweetheart of the Rodeo was an important album in the development of country rock. (Read about it here, here, and here.) But you might be surprised to learn that nine of the eleven songs were covers.

Listening to earlier versions of the songs covered by The Byrds, along with two originals written by then-member Gram Parsons, gives you a pretty good idea what the band was thinking when it created Sweetheart. It also shows how much of their own unique style The Byrds contributed to these songs.

1. You Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere - Bob Dylan (buy)
2. I Am A Pilgrim - Merle Travis (buy)
3. The Christian Life - The Louvin Brothers (buy)
4. You Don’t Miss Your Water - William Bell (buy)
5. You’re Still On My Mind – George Jones (buy)
6. Pretty Boy Floyd - Woody Guthrie (buy)
7. Hickory Wind - The Byrds (buy Sweetheart Of The Rodeo)
8. 100 Years From Now - The Byrds (buy alternate version)
9. Blue Canadian Rockies - Hank Snow (out of print?)
10. Life In Prison - Merle Haggard (buy)
11. Nothing Was Delivered - Bob Dylan & The Band (buy)

[Note: The alternate take of 100 Years From Now is the original take using Gram Parsons' vocals, as opposed to Roger McGuinn's, which appear on the official release. Also, the Merle Travis and Hank Snow songs here are not the first recorded versions, just ones I liked better.]

UPDATE!

Reader Eric points out that I should have used the Basement Tapes version of You Ain't Goin' Nowhere, which is the version The Byrds would have heard. Read his comment! Also on Eric's suggestion, I'm posting Otis Redding's excellent version of You Don't Miss Your Water:

Bob Dylan – You Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere (Basement Tapes version) (buy)
Otis Redding – You Don’t Miss Your Water (buy)

A man in Kentucky sure is lucky . . .

Last week's theme at Star Maker Machine was the fifty states.

Going through my “state” songs, I wasn't surprised to see that Texas, California, Georgia, Alabama, and Tennessee inspired more than their fair share of good songs. Another top tier state, with a deep roster of quality tunes, is Kentucky.


The Bluegrass State has a great musical tradition. Notable Kentuckians include Bill Monroe, Loretta Lynn, and Tom T. Hall.

In addition to great music, Kentucky is also known for its bourbon, tobacco, horse racing, basketball, and fried chicken.

Sounds like a fellow could have a pretty good time there.

Anyway, here’s a Kentucky mix to enjoy with a nice bourbon over the rocks:

Dwight Yoakam – South Of Cincinnati (buy)
The Gosdin Brothers – Bowling Green (buy)
Emmylou Harris – Blue Kentucky Girl (buy)
Bill Monroe – Blue Moon Of Kentucky (buy)
Bill Monroe – Kentucky Waltz (buy)
Loretta Lynn – Coal Miner’s Daughter (buy)
The Louvin Brothers - Kentucky (buy)
Merle Travis – Kentucky Means Paradise (buy)
Merle Haggard – Kentucky Gambler (buy)
The Kinks – Kentucky Moon (buy)
Randy Newman – Old Kentucky Home (buy)
The Osborne Brothers – My Old Kentucky Home (buy)
Jann Brown - Louisville (buy)
Tom T. Hall – I Flew Over Our House Last Night (buy)
Ralph Stanley & Dwight Yoakam – Miner’s Prayer (buy)
Jimmie Davis – Roll Along, Kentucky Moon (buy)

For more state songs, check out Divinyl's excellent, and growing, list at Ceci N'est Pas un Blog.

Favorite Country Artist Results, Nos. 15-11

The "best damn fiddle player in the world" is only the 13th most favorite country artist according to your votes.

Today’s batch of artists…

11. Loretta Lynn
12. Buck Owens
13. Bob Wills & The Texas Playboys
14. The Louvin Brothers
15. Dolly Parton

Today’s batch of songs…

This one really captures Loretta’s feisty attitude:

Loretta Lynn – Fist City (buy album)

And this one really captures the Bakersfield sound:

Buck Owens – I’ve Got A Tiger By The Tail (buy album)

Here’s one from Bob Wills’ last recording session:

Bob Wills & His Texas Playboys – That’s What I Like ‘Bout The South (buy album)

This Louvin Brothers’ tune later became a hit for Emmylou:

The Louvin Brothers – If I Could Only Win Your Love (buy album)

Maybe the best of Dolly’s many melodramatic hillbilly hits:

Dolly Parton – Coat Of Many Colors (buy album)



Is anybody out there?

The Flying Burrito Brothers Live At The Avalon

One of the great things about having a music blog is that they send you free records. Sometimes you even like them! Case in point, the good folks at Amoeba Music sent over a copy of the new Flying Burrito Brothers' live release. For marketing reasons its being billed as "Gram Parsons with The Flying Burrito Brothers - Live at the Avalon Ballroom 1969."

Gram Parsons gets special billing today because of his historical stature. His work is to country rock what Bill Monroe's is to bluegrass and Bob Wills' is to western swing: It defines the style. Through his work with the International Submarine Band, The Byrds, The Flying Burrito Brothers, and his solo albums (featuring Emmylou Harris), Gram wrote the book on country rock.

If you're already a fan of the genre, you'll like the new Avalon Ballrom set. It's rock musicians playing country music to hippies. The sound quality is good and the set list leans to the country side. The highlight for me was the FBB's cover of "You Win Again," which is one of the greatest Hank Williams songs. Also on the album is an outtake of Gram working through his classic tune Thousand Dollar Wedding. It's interesting to hear an early rendition of what later would become a signature song. (Buy the album to hear that one).

It's also worth noting that the packaging is nice with liner notes by, of all people, noted rock groupie Pamela Des Barres. Hey, she was there, so she should know...

Check out a few choice cuts from the Avalon concert:

The Flying Burrito Brothers – You Win Again (Live) (buy album).

The Flying Burrito Brothers – Train Song (Live) (buy album).

As enjoyable as the live set may be, its not the place to start if you are new to Parsons/Country-Rock. I would recommend starting with the two-for-one CD with his solo albums G.P. and Grievous Angel. Two other seminal country-rock albums that every country and rock fan should own are the Flying Burrito Brothers' Gilded Palace of Sin and The Byrds' Sweetheart of the Rodeo, both of which feature Gram prominently (or at least his influence).

Gram Parsons – She (buy album).

The Flying Burrito Brothers – Sin City (buy album).

The Byrds – The Christian Life (Rehearsal Take) (buy album). This bonus-track version features Gram on vocals.

Just for fun, here's the original version of The Christian Life, by The Louvin Brothers:

The Louvin Brothers – The Christian Life (buy album).

Check the sidebar area for more mp3s