From Compton to Joshua Tree

Today has been a particularly lazy day for me, except for doing laundry. I was out of socks. Anyways, I'm about to do some review for an assignment I have due for an online course, but before I get productive, I'd like to talk about my music experiences today.

This afternoon I watched the N.W.A. biopic Straight Outta Compton, and the BBC documentary Gram Parsons - Fallen Angel. Two completely different artists on two completely opposite spectrums of the music world. This is how my mind works sometimes. I had seen Straight Outta Compton last year, and I thought it was a fantastic film and such an incredible story. The film explores the entire existence of one of the most influential Rap music groups from the late 80s, from the groups inception in 1986 all the way to Easy E's death in 1995. It also goes into the solo career's of Ice Cube and Dr. Dre, as well as Dre's connections with Snoop Dogg, Suge Knight, and Tupac Shakur. This film is very very long, probably one of the long films based on the true story of a musician, and even with that they did still leave a few things out. They also did an open casting call for most of the main cast, including Ice Cube's son O'Shea Jackson, Jr. portraying his father onscreen. I don't know if the public really knew what to expect, considering also that this was a project that had been in the making for many years but was never really able to get off the ground. And when it came out, everybody saw it and love it. Critics loved it, movie goers loved it, and obviously the fans loved. You can tell the filmmakers put A LOT of effort into this project, turning out results that from my perspective exceed everybody's expectations. And for the record, I love N.W.A.. I love the album Straight Outta Compton and the solo records Ice Cube and Dr. Dre put out when they left the group. If you think you know hip-hop and rap, and you've never heard Straight Outta Compton, you NEED to listen to that album and watch this film. 

Now here is where we make a complete 180 and turn the direction towards the desert. I've been meaning to watch this documentary on Gram Parsons that came out many years ago, but only now have I given myself the chance to see it. First of all, if you don't know who Gram Parsons is, you might be a part of the vast majority. He is regarded as perhaps the most influential country artist that has yet to be inducted into either the Country Music Hall of Fame or the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The documentary goes into more detail, but I will mention a few of the important highlights. Parsons joined the Byrds in 1968 and recorded the album Sweetheart At The Rodeo. This is seen as the first modestly successful blend of country, folk, rock, and R&B. Pedal steel guitar, twangy guitar lines, and Gram's Southern Florida soul gave new life to the Byrds, if only for a short while. He was fired and went on to form the Flying Burrito Brothers with Byrds member Chris Hillman. The first album The Gilded Palace of Sin is where Gram Parsons took his innovative brand of country soul rock music to the next level. This record has most of Gram's best compositions, including "Christine's Tune (Devil In Disguise)", "Wheels", "Sin City", and my personal favorite "Hot Burrito #1". We was in the band for one more album then got kicked out due to his erratic behavior and thoughtlessly missing gigs to hang out with Keith Richards and the Rolling Stones. After hanging out with the Stones in France when they were recording Exile On Main St., Gram headed home, hooked up with Emmylou Harris and Elvis Presley's Vegas musicians, and recorded his first solo album GP; but, it was his second, and final, solo album Return of The Grevious Angel that people today consider his greatest masterpiece. The album also contains what some consider one of the greatest country songs ever written "$1,000 Wedding", a tale about a wedding gone awry when the bride doesn't show up, and the meaning and interpretation of the rest of the lyric has been the debate for many years. And no, I can't even understand it completely either, but the beauty of the track also comes from Gram's voice, and when he harmonizes with Emmylou Harris. Because of Gram's indulgent lifestyle of drugs and alcohol, he died in 1973, and the rest is history. No, literally, you wanna talk about one of the most infamous death's in rock and roll history, that happened AFTER the artist had died? It's quite extraordinary and bizarre. I don't want to give it away here, but you are interested, look it up for yourself and/or watch the documentary. It's a beautifully done documentary that captures the spirit, talent, and innovativeness that Gram Parsons possessed, and who, without a doubt, definitely deserves more credit and recognition for his work. 

Gram Parsons - Fallen Angel