Saying anything is the absolute first in music history can be a tricky bit of business. But you can fairly argue that The Byrds’ Sweetheart Of The Rodeo, released in 1968, stood out at the time as the most high-profile example of a rock band going country.
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The story of the album revolves around a mercurial member of the band who came and went in a whirl. It was considered a flop at the time. But Sweetheart Of The Rodeo now stands out as a bold move that paid off in the form of rich, lasting music.
Gram’s Influence
Already brimming with charisma and chaos even at the age of 21, Gram Parsons created the environment that created Sweetheart Of The Rodeo. Parsons was hired to be little more than a piano player for The Byrds. It’s a role which he never ended up fulfilling. (He quickly moved to the guitar.)
Parsons might have signed under the pretense that he’d just be in the cog in the wheel of a sturdy rock band. But his ambition insisted that he try and push his artistic ideas on the band’s leaders, Roger McGuinn and Chris Hillman. He envisioned the melding of country music’s traditional instrumentation and structures with rock music’s edge.
It helped Parsons in his plight that he had one simpatico bandmate. Hillman had already imposed a little bit of a country influence on the band on past records. And it also helped that nobody felt too confident about McGuinn’s original concept for the record. He had intended a double album that would touch on every aspect of American music past and future. Parsons and Hillman soon convinced him to narrow the focus.
The Byrds headed to Nashville in the Spring of 1968 to record the album. Like Bob Dylan before them (and after them), they wisely made use of the wonderful session players on hand. Those musicians lent the album the authenticity it needed. Sadly, when they tried to promote the record in the city, they were largely sneered at and rejected.
Other problems were brewing, most notably a power struggle between McGuinn and Parsons. McGuinn replaced several of Parsons’ lead vocals, citing contractual issues that Parsons brought with him into the situation. In any case, Parsons departed The Byrds, even before Sweetheart Of The Rodeo hit shelves in August 1968.
Revisiting the Music of ‘Sweetheart Of The Rodeo’
Only occasionally does Sweetheart Of The Rodeo truly resemble the hybrid record that has always been its reputation. “100 Years From Now” works up a sweaty lather that’s removed from the gentility of some of the ballads. It also stands as the one song that comments on the times in which the album was recorded.
A cover of Bob Dylan’s “Nothing Was Delivered” also kicks into more of a rocking gear. Most of the rest of the record, however, evokes traditional country. Brilliant session work by guys like JayDee Maness on pedal steel, John Hartford on banjo, and Earl Bell on piano ensures that.
Parsons’ contributes originals “100 Years From Now” and “Hickory Wind”, the latter feeling like an instant standard. Give credit to the band for hearing in William Bell’s early Stax hit “You Don’t Miss Your Water” the makings of a great country weeper.
Between the top-notch instrumental work and the killer harmonies of McGuinn, Hillman, and Parsons, there’s not a moment here that sounds anything less than exquisite. Sweetheart Of The Rodeo, oddly enough, ended up being ahead of its time in terms of the country rock explosion, even as it went deep into roots music traditions for inspiration.
Photo by Bower/Daily Mirror/Mirrorpix via Getty Images
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