The Byrds Album: “Sweetheart of the Rodeo: Legacy Edition [Digipak]”

Description :

The Byrds: Roger McGuinn (vocals, guitar, banjo); Gram Parsons (vocals, guitar); Chris Hillman (vocals, bass, mandolin); Kevin Kelley (vocals, drums). <p>Additional personnel: John Hartford (guitar, banjo); Clarence J. White (guitar); Lloyd Green, Jaydee Maness (steel guitar); Earl P. Ball (piano); Roy M. Huskey (bass); Jon Corneal (drums) <p>Includes liner notes by David Fricke. <p>In the same year that Bob Dylan stepped back from his electric pilgrimages by releasing an album of roots-oriented morality tales, the Byrds took a symbolic flight to Nashville. Gone was Roger McGuinn's singular 12-string guitar sound and the acid rock that had had an effect on everyone from the Monkees to the Velvet Underground. McGuinn now played banjo, and bassist Chris Hillman doubled on the mandolin, both seemingly reconsidering their musical approaches. And while Dylan remained the songwriter of choice, his tunes now sat alongside a rearranged hymn ("I Am a Pilgrim"), a bluegrass version of a famous outlaw tale (Woody Guthrie's "Pretty Boy Floyd"), and a cover of the Louvin Brothers ("The Christian Life"). This was a musical turn, turn, turn, indeed. <p>The obvious catalyst for all this reconstruction was the arrival of young Gram Parsons, and SWEETHEART OF THE RODEO played as if it was his coming-out party. He introduced Hillman and McGuinn to a musical world that seemed totally foreign to these predecessors of the Summer of Love, but one which lay a scant hundred miles outside their L.A. windows, in Bakersfield. Parsons' most important act was to help shape the overall sound of the album, but he contributed two original songs as well--"One Hundred Years From Now" and "Hickory Wind," a signature composition he'd record again. SWEETHEART OF THE RODEO caused an entire musical community to reconsider the musical traditions of America.

Sweetheart of the Rodeo gets expanded one more time with this 2 cd release. Disc 1 starts off with the album as it originaly came out in 1968 remastered and even cleaner than the 1998 addition. The bonus tracks begin with All I Have Are Memories first heard as an instrumental on the '98 reissue this time with vocals by drummer Kevin Kelly sounding like a Buck Owens tune this should have been on the original album.The rest of disc 1 has the bonus tracks from the '98 reissue.Disc 2 starts off with Gram Parsons previous band The International Submarine Band with three tracks from very rare singles that show a huge debt to the Beatles.Following those are three tracks from The International Submarine Bands sole lp Safe At Home.The rest of disc 2 are outtakes and rehersals of songs that made it on to the original lp. These offer valuable insights to the Byrds inthe studio.This is an excellant set that any Byrds fan should not be without.

I have to agree with the previous reviewer re record company marketing strategies. This is a 5 star album in the first place, the "original" remastered & xtra tracks made it a must for keen byrds / parsons fans (as did all the very good sony byrds re-issue series) but i suspect this is going too far.

On the other hand I expect to find it in my collection once i see it at the right price which probably will not be long as these re-issued re-issues have a fairly limited market.

But as I said once a 5 star album always a 5 star album

Back in the day when credit cards were mostly gas company cards and the one I had disappeared from the Interstate somewhere west of New Orleans, I was desperate to cross the state line to Orange, Texas where my grandparents lived. I had my entire record collection on the passenger floorboard of my 1966 VW Bug. The gas station attendant I offered to trade any LP for a gallon of gas (Lake Charles, La) had a preference for Motown and I didn't have any. I was nervous. He pulled out this album and studied the album cover art of the cowgirl and spurs and rope, etc. I wasn't too happy as this was one of my favorite albums. We made the deal (though he had never heard of the Byrds). I lost the LP but have it now on CD. God bless Gram Parsons, Chris Hillman, and Roger McGuinn. Do not underestimate the power of cover art!

While Sweeheart is not my all time favorite Byrds work (Notorius Byrd Bros. is)

this is one nice addition to any Byrds collection. Some of the cuts feature the late, great Gram Parsons not heard on the standard edition CD.

Listening again to this country-rock gem by the Byrds reminds me of why this is

one of the great American bands of the 60's. McGuinn's young vocals are

spectacular.