Nothing wrong with this music
Garry Daniel | Knoxville, TN United States | 02/09/2007
(3 out of 5 stars)
"There are a good number of "purists" out there who believe on the 8th day God created Gram Parsons. Parsons was , in my opinion, over rated. Not that he wasn't good at what he did, he just wasn't the inventor of country influenced rock n' roll that some think he was. Many of these Parsonites
could never see the validity of a Burrito Brothers without him. I've never understood this reasoning. How could there be a Byrds without Gene Clark or David Crosby? Could Genesis survive without Peter Gabriel or the Who without Moon? Of course they could, and did. And the Burritos picked up and carried on without Parsons or Hillman. They should have been given a chance. There's a good deal of good music on FLYING AGAIN and AIRBORNE that was never given a chance and was unjustly overlooked. I had these two on vinyl and kept hoping for a CD to come out, and it did! Yay.
Don't overlook this music. It's honest, it's real , it's made by very good, sincere musicians with a great deal of talent. My favorites are Building Fires, Desert Childhood, and Jesus Broke the Wild Horse. Good stuff. I do think it's interesting that the original Burritos contained the original Byrds Bass player (Hillman) and drummer (Mike Clarke) and the resurrected mid-seventies version contained the latter day Byrds bass player (Skip Battin) and drummer (Gene Parsons). Interesting, and interesting music."
Version 2.0
M. Frost | Alexandria, Va | 08/09/2006
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Make no mistake -- the Flying Burrito Brothers versions 2.0 and 2.1 were not in the same league as the first incarnation of the Flying Burrito Bros. Burritos 1.x were musical pioneers, guided by two genuine musical visionaries, Gram Parsons and Chris Hillman.
In the mid-1970s, a couple years after the original Burritos disbanded, interest in the group was renewed by Emmylou Harris's emergence as a country superstar, frequently covering Parsons's Burrito-era hits.
Steel guitarist Sneeky Pete Kleinow formed the new group, and he was certainly as entitled as anyone to use the name -- he being a key architect of the Burrito's steel-driven arrangements. Original bassist Chris Etheridge was also enlisted, along with Vocalist Joel Scott Hill came over from Canned Heat, Gene Parsons from the latter-day Byrds (though Gene Parsons is a credible musician, one must assume the prospect of having original tunes attributed to "G. Parsons" had something to do with earning a spot in the band). Gib Guilbeau was a cajun musician long in Kleinow's orbit.
The first two releases bore little resemblence to the Burrito sound, but they were well-produced albums and can be described as entertaining country/rock.
These two albums are packaged here for the first time on CD. Had the band chosen a different name, its lot may have been different. Certainly, they were no worse (or better) than albums by bands like New Riders of the Purple Sage, Commander Cody and even the reconstituted Byrds, which received more kindly. But, given the rock press's protectiveness of Gram Parsons and his legacy, these releases were greeted with critical hostility. Flying Again was put out in 1975, and its closing track, "Hot Burrito #3," inevitably invited comparisons to Gram Parsons's first two "Hot Burrito" compositions. Those were classics, "#3" is mere pretending.
The rest of the first album is a mix of country soul (highlighted by two originals by Dan Pann). Hill proves to be an adept lead vocalist on these cuts. Country rockers like "Bon Soir Blues" and a couple of country covers round out the album.
By the time the second record, Airborne, was released a year leader, the band already began losing members (Skip Battin replacing Chris Etheridge). The second album suffers from some strange choices (a reggae version of John Prine's "Quiet Man" and a guest shot by stevie Wonder on his "She's a Sailor"). The group already sounds like it's running out of steam.
After Airborne, Columbia dropped the band, and Kleinow and Guilbeau would spend the next two decades anchoring an evolving cast of b-players from the SoCal country/rock scene, releasing albums under the Burrito monicker every year or two. Which wouldn't be so bad, except that as the band moved further away from Gram Parsons's original vision, it began to evoke his imagery more and more. Ultimately, the charges that the latter day Burritos were merely trading on the reputation Parsons built came true.
Still, for what they are, these two albums are fine bits of 1970s country rock, and contain some tasty Kleinow steel solos. None of the Burritos albums released after these are worth your consideration."
These albums are great.
Tee Mack | Santa Cruz | 08/06/2006
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Ok, all you 'anything w/o Gram Parsons sucks' music fans, move along; this cd is not for you. Now any of you Cajun Gib & Gene fans out there besides me: this is finally on cd for the first time. I don't know too much of the context here, I just know that Sneaky Pete and Chris Etheridge were getting the band back together following a couple of year hiatus following Chris Hillman's departure. Gene Parsons was available since Clarence White's death put their tour on the skids. Maybe Gib Guilbeau was supposed to be a part of that, too. And I don't know who the hell Joel Scott Hill is, but he's pretty swell, too. I'd say the most significant strength of this lineup is that they just play really well together. The ensemble of instruments, steel guitar in particular, just sounds great.
Flying Again:
Easy to Get On: great country tune with nice licks from Sneaky Pete
Wind and Rain: incredible song penned by Gib and Gene, sung by J.S. Hill who does a nice job, but there is a different mix with Gene singing on the out of print Kinding Collection; find it.
Why Baby Why: nice cover here with Gib singing
Dim Lights: great cover of this tune, faster than the Gram lineup version
You Let the Water Running: great cover of a pretty good Dan Penn tune
Building Fires: amazing cover of another Dan Penn tune; you need to hear this to believe it
Sweet Desert Childhood: Gene Parsons just proving that he's the most underrated voice in country music
Bon Soir Blues: another highlight, classic Gib here
River Road: nice country tune by Gib
Hot Burrito #3: Hmmm...
Airborne: (Chris Etheridge replaced by Skip Battin')
Out of Control: fantastic country rocker by Gib & Gene, as always Sneaky Pete really shines here
Waitin' For Loce to Begin: nice country ballad
Toe Tappin' Music: one of the better Airborne tracks, great country romp by Gib
Quiet Man: very strange reggae cover of my favorite John Prine song; doesn't quite fit in, but somebody should be covering this song. nice choice by Skip
Northbound Bus: I don't know where Gene dug this song up, but it's pure magic
Big Bayou: average country rocker from Gib
Walk on the Water: Nice country ballad
Linda Lu: Ehh
Border Town: another nice country ballad
She's a Sailor: good Stevie Wonder cover
Jesus Broke the Wild Horse: another nice country ballad
As you can see, the second album is more uneven. But the highs are pretty high (Out of Control, Toe Tapppin' Music, Northbound Bus) and the nusicianship is top notch throughout both albums. Get it while it's still in print!"
Track Listings (21) - Disc #1