Customer Reviews

Sweetheart of the Rodeo: Legacy Edition

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

A couple of things up front....

For most people, the excellent single disk "Expanded Edition Sweetheart" is just fine. If you own it, you really don't need to buy this one. If you are thinking about buying "Sweetheart", you will not go wrong with the single disk version.

If you're a serious Byrds fan or collector you'll almost certainly want this lavishly presented 2 disk Legacy Edition with a substantial amount of new material. But you will still need the single disk as well, as some things remain unique to it.

For example, I really like the instrumental 'All I Have Are Memories', but the Legacy Edition places Kevin Kelley's vocal over this track. Two instrumental alternate takes are on the bonus disk, but both are to my ear inferior and in any case are on the wrong disk. So when I just want to hear "Sweetheart" for listening pleasure, I often still choose the 1-disk edition.

Some other outtakes and studio talk are only on the single disk; e.g., McGuinn, Parsons, and producer Gary Usher before 'The Christian Life,' and the exchange between Parsons and Usher after 'One Hundred Years'.

You will also need that edition for its booklet's notes on individual songs, and a reproduction of the back cover of the original vinyl album (only the back cover artwork is on Legacy).

That having been said...

The Legacy Edition has many good things for serious Byrds fans, even if you're not a serious Parson's fan:

(1) Legacy's Disk 1 is clearly intended for listening pleasure, with no false starts or studio talk to interrupt the experience. The original 11 track "Sweetheart" album is presented in its entirety, followed by four songs that failed to make that album, followed by three clean Gram Parsons vocals that had to be replaced by McGuinn/Hillman due to Parsons' contractual dispute with another label. The radio spot for "Sweetheart" which closes the 1998 single disk as an unlisted "hidden track" closes this one as a listed track.

(2) Sound quality is noticeably improved -- even over the excellent 20 bit sound of the single disk. This one plays louder, and with exceptional clarity.

(3) Gram Parsons' vocal for `You Don't Miss Your Water' is here. It was omitted on the single disk, and is otherwise available only on the Boxed Set.

(4) And of course Kevin Kelley's vocal on 'Memories'. I didn't know one of my favorites had lyrics, so I was glad to find this even though I prefer the instrumental.

(5) My favorite of Disk 2's bonus tracks is a completely different version of 'Pretty Polly' that has to be one of the mysteries of life.

This is not just an alternate take -- lyrics and instrumental interpretation are dramatically different. The words sound at times like Old English, despite a reference to Tennessee and expressions like "up tight". Instrumentally it is closer in feel to 'Pretty Boy Floyd', with an opening countdown and cold ending adding to its charm.

The singer seems to be some sort of court reporter, putting down on public record for his township the incident of "Pretty Polly". Despite intriguing snatches of dialogue between Polly and gambler Willie, obscure and fragmented lyrics leave it tantalizingly unclear what has actually happened. It is not even clear that there was a murder -- though one gathers whatever happened was not good.

Both versions of `Pretty Polly' are first rate polished performances and I can't choose between them, but trying to figure out what to make of them has been fun. Legacy "Sweetheart" attributes both to McGuinn-Hillman, but the single disk booklet says the first is "the traditional crime of passion song 'Pretty Polly'". McGuinn covered this version in "Cardiff Rose" where he attributes it, "Traditional, arranged and adapted by Roger McGuinn". It is a straight forward narrative tale of reckless youth, passion, and murder that nails you between the eyes.

The other - well, doesn't. It certainly sounds traditional. But is it a complete song? An abandoned attempt at an earlier traditional version? I don't think it's a joke. I suspect it is abridged fragments of a much longer song. Whatever this is, it's a thoroughly enjoyable performance that confounds only if you try to follow the lyrics.

(6) The new booklet is completely different and lavishly illustrated in color. David Fricke interviewed McGuinn and Hillman for a much more insightful second look into the creation of the album, and has some great stories about its disastrous reception.

(7) The packaging is exceptional throughout, and as much fun to explore as the original "Sgt. Pepper" album with its paper doll Beatles cut-outs insert. Especially dazzling here is a two panel panorama of the "Sweetheart" Byrds silhouetted in performance on stage, with a couple of psychedelic logos ("The Byrds") floating like wisps of smoke across a screen behind them

And finally, for those serious Gram Parsons fans... Even if you have the monaurel Parsons singles and stereo "Submarine" cuts, you've probably never heard them sound this good. Then there are a few more of his "Sweetheart" outtakes with false starts and studio talk. Those interested in listening to these will find the muscians really do try different things, and there are a number of awfully good moments and musical ideas one wishes could have survived into a final polished track.

Bottom line:

Anyone who buys this will easily get their money's worth, and it is a delicious treat for serious Byrds fans.

But not everyone needs to go that extra mile...

Sweetheart of the Rodeo gets expanded one more time with this 2 cd release. Disc 1 starts off with the album as it originaly came out in 1968 remastered and even cleaner than the 1998 addition. The bonus tracks begin with All I Have Are Memories first heard as an instrumental on the '98 reissue this time with vocals by drummer Kevin Kelly sounding like a Buck Owens tune this should have been on the original album.The rest of disc 1 has the bonus tracks from the '98 reissue.Disc 2 starts off with Gram Parsons previous band The International Submarine Band with three tracks from very rare singles that show a huge debt to the Beatles.Following those are three tracks from The International Submarine Bands sole lp Safe At Home.The rest of disc 2 are outtakes and rehersals of songs that made it on to the original lp. These offer valuable insights to the Byrds inthe studio.This is an excellant set that any Byrds fan should not be without.

Since the extensive remastering project of the Byrds' entire Columbia catalogue that begun to appear in the shops in 1996, Sweetheart Of The Radio is the only Byrds CD to have been subsequently revised and expanded into this 2CD Legacy Edition. This says something of the importance and stature that this album has gradually acquired over the four decades since its release, to the point that it could be argued to be their most important release. Ironically, when released in 1968 it was widely reviled and nearly brought about the destruction of what was left of the band. Half of them had left during the recordings of the previous album, Notorious Byrd Brothers, leaving only Roger McGuinn and Chris Hillman from the original line-up.
Even the magnificent single You Ain't Going Nowhere (with a safer B-side, Artificial Energy, drawn from Notorious Byrd Brothers) faltered at no. 74 in the US charts and did hardly any better in the UK, just nudging the Top Fifty; this despite being one of their famous interpretations of a new Dylan song, culled, like the album closer Nothing Was Delivered, from the unreleased Basement Tapes. Its follow up, Pretty Boy Floyd/I Am A Pilgrim, sunk without trace.
The new members were drummer Kevin Kelley and singer-guitarist Gram Parsons, fresh from the International Submarine Band, and it was his love of country music, widely regarded at the time to be the exclusive provenance of Southern rednecks, that had led to the startling new direction of the band - a fusion of rock music, country, bluegrass, Southern soul (filtered through William Bell and Otis Redding) and folk - at a time when country rock had not previously existed.
Furthermore, the new band had relocated from Los Angeles to Nashville and added a collection of top session men including honky tonk pianist Earl Ball and steel guitarist Jaydee Maness (Lloyd Green plays steel on One Hundred Years From Now, one of six tracks recorded later in Los Angeles), and they were unusually given license to play freely throughout, adding whatever they wished as the band played live in the studio. The country audience thought the band was a parody, and jeered at them on a Grand Ole Opry radio appearance to promote the new album, whilst previous Byrds fans could not connect with the new material, and the album stiffed.
Gram Parsons was still under contract to the Lee Hazlewood-owned label with whom he had recorded with the International Submarine Band and this led to all but three of his vocals being removed or buried, and replaced by those of Roger McGuinn (with Chris Hillman's help on One Hundred Years From Now). As he points out in the liner notes, he was embarrassed by the lyric on The Christian Life, and his version sounds sardonic and insincere, which can't have helped at the time, but by the time the album was released Gram Parsons had left the band anyway, so at least the new vocals gave a more accurate representation of the band that was to tour the record. Three Gram Parsons masters that were replaced are included as bonus tracks on disc one of the Legacy Edition (rehearsal takes were included on the 1997 special collector's edition), making it possible to program the record the way it had been originally intended. Four outtake masters are also included, including Pretty Polly, Lazy Days, later to be revived by Gram Parsons in the Flying Burrito Brothers, and the previously unreleased All I Have Are Memories featuring a vocal by Kevin Kelley (an instrumental version was included in the 1997 edition).
The bonus disc includes fourteen previously unreleased working demos, outtakes and rehearsal versions (there are four others on the 1997 disc that are not found here) including a radically different arrangement of Pretty Polly, and these make an insightful addition into the workings of making the album, and all the rehearsals, though flawed, have unique elements within them that are fascinating to hear. Although all the rehearsal takes are numbered, what other take was used as the final master is not disclosed, nor how many of each song were made, though apparently sixty attempts were made at You're Still On My Mind in Los Angeles before Take One was used on the record.
The clincher over the single disc version, apart from the improved, phenomenal sound quality throughout, is the inclusion on the second disc of six tracks by proto-country rock band the International Submarine Band, showing how much Gram Parsons brought to the Byrds. Three tracks from the album Safe At Home include an embryonic version of Luxury Liner. This was released as a single in 1967 with Blue Eyes on the flip, and was later famously taken up by Emmylou Harris and Albert Lee; whilst the other three, making their CD debut, comprise both sides of their second single, and, showing where it all began, Truck Drivin' Man, the B-side of their first single in 1966. Whereas I would recommend this over the single disc version, collectors will doubtless need both, whilst the single disc will suffice perfectly for those less given to scrutiny.

I have to agree with the previous reviewer re record company marketing strategies. This is a 5 star album in the first place, the "original" remastered & xtra tracks made it a must for keen byrds / parsons fans (as did all the very good sony byrds re-issue series) but i suspect this is going too far.

On the other hand I expect to find it in my collection once i see it at the right price which probably will not be long as these re-issued re-issues have a fairly limited market.

But as I said once a 5 star album always a 5 star album

Though it might be overkill to some, and shine a bit more light on Gram Parsons than some may care for, it's still a great album not to be overlooked. Go with the single CD set if you're not a huge GP fan, though.

Due to either Roger McGuinn editing out Grams vocals on some songs and subbing himself in because he feared Gram was taking over the group. Or if an earlier contract and the threat of a lawsuit made the record company edit Gram out and Roger in, we may never know. Gram thought all the lawyers would simply work out the details and to me that makes the most sense.
In any case you get the good , the bad and the ugly with this 2 disc set - you get the original album as it was released and you also get the original versions before Gram was removed. And it is those tracks that are GOLD on this 1968 album. Grams influence cannot be overestimated. I am a huge Gene Clark fan as well and I know a lot of people think Gram is more popular than Gene and that it is not fair. Sometimes I agree. Sometimes I dont. Gram is easier to listen to. Gene was a very tortured guy and it shows in everything he did. Gram was more fun. Christian Life, Dont miss your water, Your still on my mind, it goes on and on, one great tune after another. And of course "Hickory Wind" Grams tribute to his grandmother. These are all classic's and I highly recommend this "Lagacy" edition of the album with all the extra cuts.
And a bonus including a few cuts from Grams International Submarine band make this expanded edition a great deal.

While Sweeheart is not my all time favorite Byrds work (Notorius Byrd Bros. is)
this is one nice addition to any Byrds collection. Some of the cuts feature the late, great Gram Parsons not heard on the standard edition CD.

Listening again to this country-rock gem by the Byrds reminds me of why this is
one of the great American bands of the 60's. McGuinn's young vocals are
spectacular.

It turns out that a lot of those outtakes could have been left buried, but I still would rather dig them out once a year and listen to them. The world still needs Gram, and we're happy to have him wherever we can find him.

SWEETHEART OF THE RODEO punctuated the end of The Byrds most creative period, and in a big way! This classic album was ground breaking not only for The Byrds, but also for rock'n'roll. Almost pure country music, it bears no resemblance to any of the group's previous work, which was among the most seminal and definitive albums of the 1960s. This dramatic departure from their past also bears an eerie resemblance to the career of their mentor Bob Dylan. SWEETHEART OF THE RODEO seemed almost designed to alienate their own fan base. Dylan created an uproar when he went electric, while The Byrds left their fans befuddled by going all acoustic for this album. Roger McGuinn's distinctive 12 string electric Rickenbacker guitar was not allowed to touch this music. Although Dylan kindly tipped his hat in the direction of country music with his 1967 album JOHN WESLEY HARDING, it was The Byrds who, in 1968, became the first big name rockers to take an album all the way to country. Although considered the first major country-rock album, you will struggle to hear much rock on SWEETHEART OF THE RODEO. Despite the flawless playing, and strong lyrics of the songs, the album itself feels a bit staid, although not stodgy. There are hardly any hooks, and the vocals, while highly competent, lack distinctiveness. It is as if The Byrds were so committed to making a very pure country music album that they forgot to make the songs interesting. I suspect this was the main reason that the album was a commercial flop at the time of its release. Yet The Byrds were already falling apart as a group and thus commercial failure hardly mattered at this point. Following this album only Roger McGuinn remained from the original quintet, and although he led a band called The Byrds well into the 1970s, it was literally not the same group which recorded the electrifying MR. TAMBOURINE MAN and the glorious TURN, TURN, TURN. If you don't know The Byrds, seek out those albums, or their GREATEST HITS, where you can find the music that established, and still sustains, their reputation.

P.S. -- SWEETHEART OF THE RODEO is available in a both a single disc and a double disc version. Disc two of the double disc offering is truly for collectors or completists only, and is mostly of historical value. If you do not already own any Byrds albums, then buy the single disc version, take the money you save and buy one of the early Byrds albums. I highly recommend MR. TAMBOURINE MAN and TURN, TURN, TURN; as well as YOUNGER THAN YESTERDAY. The other two early albums, FIFTH DIMENSION and THE NOTORIOUS BYRD BROTHERS, are also excellent but sound rather dated because of their 60's hippie flavor.

Yeah, this pretty much shows why this , along with other pop/rock music of the late 60'sand 70's
this was the pinnacle for music in the U.S.A. It's been pretty much downhill for both since those Glory Days.