Classic Rock Crate Digger is a column I write for the Rhapsody Blog.
The country-rock canon is like an incestuous mafia family. The overwhelming majority of its classic albums, from the Burritos’ Gilded Palace of Sin to Neil’s Harvest to the Eagles’ masterful debut album (and yes, it is masterful), can be linked to just five artists: the Byrds, Buffalo Springfield, the Band, Bob Dylan and the Grateful Dead.
Now that’s one hell of a denim-clad oligarchy, ain’t it?
This got the Crate Digger thinking: Is it possible to tear down and rebuild the country-rock canon — let’s say the genre’s 10 all-time best albums — without including these five core artists, as well as the myriad groups and musicians with significant ties to them?
This, of course, means I can’t include albums from the following:
Crosby, Stills and Nash
Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young
New Riders of the Purple Sage
Gene Clark
Dillard & Clark
Muleskinner
Old & In the Way
The Dillards
Gram Parsons
Emmylou Harris
The Gosdin Brothers
Poco
Linda Ronstadt
Manassas*
Well, below is what I came up with. And despite the self-imposed handicap, it’s pretty sweet as far as alternate Top 10s go. Now mind you: some of the albums on the list were most definitely made with help from session musicians, engineers, producers and composers who also worked with the artists and groups mentioned above. To exclude a record based on these non-core role players, however talented, would’ve made the exercise too hard and most of all totally unfun. A guy like pedal-steel maestro Orville “Red” Rhodes played with just about every hippie cowboy in Los Angeles between the years 1968 and ’75. So yeah, hired guns didn’t count. But hey, if you discover a significant connection that I missed, then by all means post a comment. Hell, post a comment, regardless. We love hearing from our readers! In fact, my challenge to each and every one of you is to post your own Top 10s that adhere to identical criteria. I’d love to see what you come up with.
Now on to my (alternate) Top 10…
Little Feat,
Little Feat
Little Feat’s incredible debut album made my Top 10 before the new criteria. Prior to falling in love with the funky New Orleans R&B of Allen Toussaint and the Meters, Lowell George and company were a killer country-rock band. Little Feat sold no more than 11,000 copies when released in 1971, yet it has slowly grown into one of those cult records that cool musicians always seem to cite. These include a lot of the first-generation alt-country bands, namely Uncle Tupelo, the Bottle Rockets and Blue Mountain.
Pure Prairie League
Bustin’ Out
Bustin’ Out is the product of three really sincere, really white rural rockers from southern Ohio — nice but dry fellas who fell in love with California’s getting-back-the-country fad of the early ’70s (see the Dead’s American Beauty). But you know what? It works. Songwriters Craig Fuller and George Powell exude true cracker soul just by being themselves. The monster hit is “Amie,” an airy, neo-C.S.N.&Y. ballad, but the rest of the album — which includes everything from chunky country rock to full-blown symphonic pop — is equally classic.
Unicorn
Blue Pine Trees
Americans don’t realize how much good country rock came out of England in the early 1970s. Obviously inspired by the Byrds, Unicorn were one of the country’s very best. Blue Pine Trees is a gem of an album, with a pastoral jangle that’s simply hypnotic. Plus, it features Pink Floyd’s David Gilmour, who plays pedal steel in addition to serving as producer. This is one of those perfect road-trip records for sure, though you’ll find yourself playing the pulsating second track, “Sleep Song,” over and over.
Mason Proffit
Come and Gone
Want to know where the Eagles nicked their concept for Desperado? Look no further than the Windy City’s Mason Proffit. These guys, who actually wore bullet belts strapped across their chests, wrote the book on the whole “hippie = outlaw cowboy = Native American visionary” theme that was such a huge part of vintage country rock. Come and Gone is a reissue of the group’s first two albums, and it’s perfect from beginning to end. That said, go straight to “Sweet Lady Love.” Its neo-C.C.R. groove is so heavy.
Iain Matthews
Valley Hi
Iain Matthews’ roots lie in British folk-rock. His soaring high tenor can be heard on Fairport Convention’s first two albums. The singer eventually migrated to California, where he cut a string of stellar country-rock albums, of which Valley Hi is a definite peak. Of course, how could you go wrong, pairing Matthews with producer and former Monkee Michael Nesmith? On top of that, the Brit has excellent taste in composers: Richard Thompson, Jackson Browne and Steve Young, to name just a few.
The Seldom Scene
Act Two
If you read any overview of country rock, the narrative always progresses from innovators like Dillard and Clark and Gram Parsons to the Eagles — end of story. That, however, overlooks hippie bluegrass renegades like the Seldom Scene, whose Act Two, released in 1973, is one of country rock’s great albums. Featuring the sparkling harmonies of John Starling, Mike Auldridge and John Duffey, this record returns Parsons’ cosmic American music to the Blue Ridge Mountains.
Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
Uncle Charlie & His Dog Tedd
Will the Circle Be Unbroken is one of the landmark albums of the 1970s. You could argue the triple-LP set did more for helping rock fans appreciate country music than just about any other record of its era. However, Uncle Charlie & His Dog Teddy, released two years prior in 1970, is the superior album. Here, the Nitty Gritties balance their rustic nostalgia with cutting-edge production and pop-song savvy. Dig the remake of Buddy Holly’s “Rave On”; it sounds like a fusion of glam-rock and 1950s rockabilly.
Link Wray
Link Wray
Yes, the father of reverb-soaked instrumental rock actually made a hippie-country album. And in all honesty, there’s not another record out there that sounds like this magical little disc. Mixing in elements of raw gospel, Southern soul and Native American tribal vibes, Link Wray unleashes a can of funky, smoky jams full of heart and passion. This is true revival music. Make sure you put on your dancing moccasins for the raucous “Fire and Brimstone.” Oh man, is it a groover of epic proportions!
Coulson, Dean, McGuinness, Flint
Lo And Behold: Words and Music by Bob Dylan
A lot of rock fans, including many Dylan followers, aren’t aware of this record’s existence. In 1972 (then working under the moniker Coulson, Dean, McGuinness, Flint) these British country rockers cherry-picked tracks from the yet-to-be-released Basement Tapes and reworked them into something wholly unique. This set of rootsy soul-rock sounds so fresh and original that it’s easy to forget it consists of nothing but cover songs. There’s even a version of one of Bobby’s holy grails: “Sign on the Cross.”
Michael Nesmith
And the Hits Just Keep on Comin’
Considering Michael Nesmith dated Linda Ronstadt, one could argue he should be banned from this list. But oh well. She blew up, while the ex-Monkee never did. So the guy deserves some love. In 1972, Nesmith’s First National Band had basically ditched him because of poor record sales, and RCA wanted a record RIGHT NOW. So he called up pedal steel great Orville “Red” Rhodes, the only guy in the F.N.B. still willing to play with him. Together they made what is quite possibly the best record of Nesmith’s long, productive career. On And the Hits Just Keep On Comin’ the duo doesn’t commit exquisite country pop to tape so much as paint it on canvas like a spacious rural landscape.
Notes:
*Just to make the challenge a wee bit harder, I added John Fogerty/Creedence and all Doug Sahm-related projects to the exclusion list.
