The Gilded Palace Of Sin – THE FLYING BURRITO BROTHERS***

Christine’s Tune/Sin City/Do Right Woman/Dark End Of The Street/My Uncle/Wheels/Juanita/Hot Burrito No. 1/ Hot Burrito No. 2/Do You Know How It Feels/Hippie Boy

The Flying Burrito Brothers were a country rock band formed by two exmembers of The Byrds, best remembered for their influential but overrated debut album The Gilded Palace Of Sin. (US:164)

“It contains some good enjoyable country rock. Definitely pleasant to listen to, but nothing amazing. The singing is pretty good, and the band created some catchy melodies. There is a mix of more upbeat tunes but many ballads are also present, which can get a bit boring. Instrumentation ranges from guitars to violins, and at times it really sounds overly melodramatic.”

“I was very eager to hear this album, but it ends up disappointing me, perhaps because of unfulfilled expectations. Like many other overrated albums, the fame is greater than its originality. Country-rock well played and well sung, but no major attractions.”

“About three quarters great and one quarter dull. I love the sound of the authentic style country songs. I really wouldn't even call them country-rock but just old school honky-tonk style country, of which I'm a fan. Some of the more rock oriented tracks really aren't that good though and bring the album down a little.”

“The album is endlessly listenable: the melancholic beauty of the pedal steel guitar wrestles with an omnipresent sanguine energy on the standout Christine's Tune. Wheels is a superb country ballad with a tremolo effect that adds a pleasant piece of psychedelia. Dark End Of The Street is probably the closest thing on this album to rock 'n' roll, but it still retains a genuine rootsy charm. All of the songs here are at least above average and a few of them flirt with transcendence. Gram Parsons was and still is an unsung genius of American roots music.”

“There is no real revolutionary amalgam of sounds here, instead the listener may be surprised to hear that the shaggy hippies depicted on the cover are more often than not attempting to achieve authentic country sounds. The boys crank up the tempo on occasions, but overall the tunes are simple and the arrangements rustic.”