Flying Burrito's

She's a devil in disguise you can see it in her eyes
She's telling dirty lies she's a devil in disguise in disguise

Now a woman like that all she does is hate you
She doesn't know what makes a man a man
She'll talk about the times that she's been with you
She'll speak your name to everyone she can

She's a devil in disguise you can see it in her eyes
She's telling dirty lies she's a devil in disguise in disguise

Unhappiness has been her close companion
Her world is full of jealousy and doubt
It gets her off to see a person crying
She's just the kind that you can't do without

She's a devil in disguise you can see it in her eyes
She's telling dirty lies she's a devil in disguise in disguise

Her number always turns up in your pocket
Whenever you are looking for a dime
It's all right to call her but I'll bet you
The moon is full and your just wasting time

When I was younger I always looked for new music to explore.  The music was not what I heard on the radio, but through the albums that I either bought or took from my uncle.  I looked for songs that got my interest and lead me to more adventures.  I also once again had this book about music of the sixties to guide me in the right direction.  I liked the book for many reasons.  One of the reasons this book was great because it's short and full of many adjectives to describe a song or even an album.  The author was direct and to point and I liked that.  He was more accurate then not and put me down paths that I would have never ventured. 

When it came to talk about the one Flying Burrito Bros that came out in the Sixties this book made me want to get that album as soon as possible.  It described the album as a perfect mix of awesome songwriting and even better musicianship.  It started a musical revolution and is a MUST own. The passage on Gilded Palace of Sin had every detail about how much a landmark of an album it was.  If you could see the short sweet paragraph it finds it way at the end to tell you three important words.  "Buy this album..." and it will change your life.  Well it certainly did for me anyway.  Only one problem, between my collection of albums and my family member it was missing in action.  I asked that family member why he did not have this album in his collection.

Over the course of a few years I could understand why this album was not in the collection.  It was ahead of it's time and the music sounded at my first listen very countryish and not what I thought it would sound like.  I figure the presence of Chris Hillman would make my uncle at least give it one listen.  Oh Well, his loss was my gain and hearing this album was a huge gain for me.

The album mixes Country, Rock and Roll, Folk, Gospel, and Soul. This is one of the albums that influenced Son Volt, Wilco, Whiskeytown, and The Jayhawks. It also influenced artists such as Dwight Yoakam, Emmylou Harris and Lucinda Williams. The album was not very popular when it came out, but If I was alive I would have taken the chance to buy it. When I first heard them I was in High School. I had this best of Flying Burrito Brothers tape. I played it to death. I was so impressed with the vision of Gram Parsons and the band. The band also included Chris Hillman who was with the Byrds.

What I think spoke to me about The Flying Burrito Brothers was the fact they did not have any psychedelic feel, but they just played. They had great harmonies and wonderful writing. "Christine's Tune" and "Sin City" are some of the best writing I have heard. If any band owes a big debt to them it's the Eagles. If this never came out I am sure that Eagles success would not be as important as it was.

The two covers on the album "Do Right Woman" and "Dark End of the Street" lean heavy on the R&B side of music. The vision of Gram Parsons fit well with what the rest of the band wanted to do. But no one ever brought rock and country together quite like the Flying Burrito Brothers, and this album remains their greatest accomplishment.

I know I get laughed at for listening to this album, I even get laughed at when I sing these songs in the car, but let me tell you, this album remains the greatest albums in my musical loves. I know that when I play this in front of my family, my mother of all people thinks I have gone to her country side. I may like classic country, but this album is classic cool. So, it may take a while to listen to, but I suggest that it's a required listen that will reward you more then you will ever know. The Lyrics above tell you how great this music truly is.