Country meets rock and roll

I was 11 years-old when my uncle gave me a copy of Last of the Red Hot Burrito Brothers by The Flying Burrito Brothers. My uncle was cool (he liked Gordon Lightfoot and had a banjo) but at the time I was probably more into listening to Creed and acquiring grass stains. However, my brother and I liked the name and the unfamiliar sound, so we would often sing along with the Burritos in our best adolescent country twang. For a young kid the Burritos were cool because, in my eyes, they were so uncool. But as my music tastes matured with age (I assure you, Creed is no longer on the top of my playlist) I started to enjoy the Burrito's music for more than just pure nostalgia and grew to realize that Gram Parsons and company's pioneering synthesis of traditional country music and rock 'n' roll was not only extremely ground-breaking but indeed cool.\nThe brainchild of Gram Parsons and Byrds bassist Chris Hillman, The Flying Burrito Brothers formed in 1968 with "Sneaky" Pete Kleinow on pedal steel and The International Submarine Band's Chris Ethridge on bass rounding out the lineup. \nThe Gilded Palace of Sin, the group's debut album, was a record quite different from what was being released in early 1969. Its unique blend of country instrumentation and songwriting played with a hip rock edge introduced the music world to a brand new style and would eventually become the blueprint for the genre in which it helped create. \nThe album contained upbeat countrified rock songs such as the pedal steel filled "Christine's Tune (A.K.A. Devil in Disguise)" and "My Uncle," as well slow R&B inspired ballads like "Do Right Woman," "Juanita" and "Hot Burrito No. 1." As a whole the record feels like a traditional country album, a trait that makes the album seem timeless today. Lyrically, however, the album takes on a more serious tone regarding issues of the day with songs about the dangerous vices of a big city like L.A. ("Sin City"), draft-dodging ("My Uncle") and the 60s'counterculture ("Hippie Boy").\nUnfortunately by the time the band started work on their second album, Parsons' destructive rock' n' roll lifestyle was in full swing and he devoted little time to the recording effort. That album, Burrito Deluxe, released in April of 1970 was sadly the Burrito's final album with Parsons as he left the group shortly after its release.\nDespite recording only two albums with the original lineup, The Flying Burrito Brothers left a legacy on popular music that is undeniable and their influence spans countless artists from all genres. Gram Parsons is also considered by many to be the grandfather of early 90s alt-country, a genre which included Uncle Tupelo, Whiskeytown, the Old 97's and Wilco.