Life of Gram Parson - Valley Oaks School

Life of Gram Parson

Overview Gram Parsons (Ingram Cecil Connor III ) Member of the Byrd's and The Flying Burrito Brothers, he is best known for a series of recordings that brought on the socalled country rock of the 1970s and the alt-country movement that began around 1990. Parsons described his records as "Cosmic American Music". He died of a drug overdose at the age of 26 Many times performed duets with Emmylou Harris, They formed the named Gram Parsons and the Falling angels when they played across the United States

The Byrds

With their high harmonies, ringing guitars, and obsession with studio technique, the Byrds also became the sonic model for many rock bands. By 1967 the bands members Crosby and the drummer Clark both left as their first album hit stores. At this point a new drummer and Parsons were introduced to the group. Songwriter Gram Parsons took the band to a new level of sound. Incorporating a country feel to their style. A year later releasing Sweetheart of the Rodeo, recorded in Nashville and released in the fall of 1968, remains a milestone of the country-rock movement that spawned groups like the Eagles. October 1968 McGuinn was the only original Byrd remaining, as Parsons and Hillman left to continue their country experiments with the Flying Burrito Brothers.

Flying Burrito Brothers Consisted of, Parsons's bandmates from old bands, plus connections with musicians. Their first album, The Gilded Palace of Sin (1969), did not sell well, but the group had a cult following which included musicians such as Bob Dylan and The Rolling Stones. This album in particular was written by Gram Parsons and Chris Hillman who were former Byrds members. Parsons and Hillman got a house in the San Fernando Valley and dubbed it "Burrito Manor." Hillman Describes "To this day the most productive time I've ever had, including all the bands I was ever in, the most productive time was living with [Parsons] in Reseda in 1968 when I was getting a divorce and so was he and we shared a house and we were putting the Burritos together then. We didn't have a drummer, we had Chris Ethridge and Sneaky Pete. We woke up in the morning and we would write every morning.... It was a great time. To this day I've never peaked like that working with other people."*

The two wrote some of the most memorable tunes of both their careers during this period,

Death •

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Following a brief tour with his band, the Fallen Angels, Parsons returned to the studio to record Grievous Angel. It had just been completed when, in September 1973, Parsons overdosed on a combination of morphine and tequila while relaxing at a favorite desert retreat near the Joshua Tree National Monument. According the amount of morphine consumed by Parsons would be lethal to three regular users and thus he had likely overestimated his tolerance considering his experience with opiates. In his funeral plan his father arranged for him to be barried in New Orleans and inviting none of his friends Although before hand Gram had told a friend Kaufman to cremate his body and to spread the ashes at Joshua Tree . There being his friend stole his coffin from the airport and drove it to Joshua Tree, resulting in a police chase. But they did make it there and poured gallons of gasoline on his coffin and struck a match to a huge fire. Gram was set to his proper barrell.