G.P. and Grievous Angel would be the only records country rock pioneer Gram Parsons would make during his twenty-six-year-long life. Released in 1973 and '74, respectively, listeners were finally treated to Parsons' take on country without the confines of a band, as the Byrds and Flying Burrito Brothers were in his past at this point.By this point, Parsons was neck-deep in the quagmire of booze and drugs that would kill him so early, but there's no way to tell from listening to these records. The only evidence of any substance problems is the bloated face on the cover of Grievous Angel, which is only a puka shell necklace away from looking like your average high school jock. But the music is still spot-on.
"Note-perfect" is really the best way to describe these two records. Nothing ever feels misplaced or excessive, and it's recorded so well that it feels spontaneous, although the songs are clearly very well-constructed. G.P. opener "Still Feeling Blue" embodies his whole sound from the start - excellent lead guitar, violin solos, his easygoing vocals, and the always present backup harmonies of Emmylou Harris.
For as much as the genre 'country rock' is thrown around, it's probably much more apt a label for his work with the Flying Burrito Brothers than his solo albums, because this is straight up country in the best sense. Only on a handful of occasions - "Cry One More Time" and "Big Mouth Blues" on G.P. - do things sound like a collision of Hank Williams and Jerry Lee Lewis.
Once Grievous Angel came along, Parsons' problems were worse, and the tracklisting reflects that. Only two of the songs were written by him, but he still sounds absolutely stellar. He comes right out of the gate with one of his own songs, "Return of the Grievous Angel," which maybe features his best-ever harmonies with Harris. In fact, the record was originally to be credited to both Parsons and Harris, but after his death - which preceded the release of Grievous Angel - his jealous widow, who was never a fan of Harris, had her name and image removed from the album's cover. But her presence is even stronger here, adding some flair to Parsons' more earthbound delivery.
This is the second record I've bought this summer to feature a cover of "Love Hurts," a track I always hated, but this time, it's performed the way it should be - as a sensitive, reflective duet, rather than as a boisterous, testosterone-fueled power ballad.
As messed up as he was at this point, it's amazing we got two solo records out of him. But we did, and the universe of non-cheesy, creative, yet mindful of tradition country music is better off as a result. I'd challenge any clown who says "I like everything except rap and country" to not narrow that list down a bit after hearing G.P. and Grievous Angel, and I've also got a few Run-DMC albums they need to hear while I'm at it.
"Big Mouth Blues" live - apparently one of his more coherent performances, as the live setting showed his deterioration far more than his recorded output
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