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Country Music v. Rock & Roll

reviewed by FranksWildYears

FranksWildYear s
10/03/2009

Country Music v. Rock & Roll 3

I pity the fool who feels its required to choose one and not listen to anything else. Both forms have gone through periods of great soul and creativity and mind numbingly dull product. And great artists from both fields have made great music in the other. In fact one of my favourite country artsts would be the Rolling Stones.

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fitman commented 54 days ago.
You have Gram Parsons to thank for the Stones' interest in country music...


FranksWildYears commented 52 days ago.
(Edited 51 days ago)
Not to detract from the brief and fascinating career of Gram Parsons, but let's not credit him with inspiring every 60's record that had a steel guitar or fiddle on it. He supposedly showed up in France when the Stones were recording Exile on Main Street but in most interviews Jagger and Richards relegate him to "stoned hanger-on" status and he doesn't even show up in the credits while keyboardists Ian Stewart, Nicky Hopkins, Mac Rebenack and Billy Preston do.

Besides, there were country influences on Stones' records for a few years prior to that, Dear Doctor on Beggars Banquet, Country Honk and Let it Bleed from the next album, Wild Horses, Dead Flowers on Sticky Fingers.

The Byrds were dabbling in country at the time, CCR had country influences in their records, Tony Joe White was a hit maker, Johnny Cash had a prime time TV Show and Dylan had been recording in Nashville since Blonde on Blonde in 1966. The Beatles even recorded a Buck Owens tune.

Gram Parsons was a part of the scene but not the only guy who had a hand in the fusing of country and rock.

fitman commented 52 days ago.
As a very minor figure in the rock'n'roll world, I could provide my own testimony to the contrary, but there's no reason for anyone to believe my anecdotal ramblings, so I'll just resort to a tiny url:

http://tinyurl.com/Gram-Keith1968

FranksWildYears commented 52 days ago.
Fairly decent documentary evidence, however, I'll note the direct quote from the Richards tribute to Parsons - "We both loved that melancholy, high-lonesome shit. We were always looking for the next heart-tugger, looking to pull that extra heartstring." I think they were kindred spirits not mentor and pupil.

fitman commented 52 days ago.
I think it's fair to say that once Gram had pointed Keith in the direction of old country music back in the '60s, Mr. Richards continued to explore the genre, became a 'kindred spirit', and perhaps began to believe he'd discovered the 'high-lonesome' on his own.

Unfortunately, by the time of Exile, Gram was probably more into getting stoned than the Stones.

fitman commented 52 days ago.
Like I know the blues, Gram Parsons knew country music...

http://tinyurl.com/Keith-Gram

FranksWildYears commented 51 days ago.
By coincidence, in the current issue of Rolling Stone there is a long feature piece on Merle Haggard which includes several quotes from Keith Richards who claims that it was his listening to Haggard in 1968 that resulted in the country songs on Beggar's Banquet.

I still say Bob Johnston taking Dylan and Robbie Robertson down to Nashville in 1966 to record Blonde on Blonde was the pivitol moment in the melding of country into the 60's rock.
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