![]() ![]() That's right, after stops in Los Angeles and New York, this rare tour rolled into the cozy, sold-out Beacon Theatre on Thursday, Sept. In a wise move, McGuinn and Hillman called in country legend Marty Stuart and his Fabulous Superlatives to back them up on a select tour of "Sweetheart" in big cities – oh, and Hopewell. On its 50th anniversary, Byrds founder Roger McGuinn wanted to cheer up his old bandmate Chris Hillman, who was having a bad year with the loss of Tom Petty (his friend and producer) and the loss of his home to a fire. ![]() And although a commercial dud at the time, the work's reputation has grown and today many consider it the greatest country rock album ever. These were accomplished songs that would manage to make country music more hip for younger audiences (covers of Dylan’s “Nothing Was Delivered” and “You Ain’t Going Nowhere” probably helped). Recorded in Nashville and Hollywood, “Sweetheart” is filled with gorgeous harmonies, brilliant pedal steel work by Lloyd Green and thrilling electric guitar by Clarence White. Until then, the Byrds were known mostly for folk rock covers of Bob Dylan and a hit take on Pete Seegar’s “Turn Turn Turn.” But their sixth album surprised fans with a total immersion into traditional country music, spurred by the enthusiasm of the group’s new young vocalist, Gram Parsons. But from what I’ve since read and heard, it marked a turning point not only for the band, but for the history of rock and country music. We love and greatly admire both of them and I have to believe this is a show not to be missed.When the album “Sweetheart of the Rodeo” by the Byrds came out in August of 1968, I wasn’t quite born yet. It is truly an honour for me and the Superlatives to get to go out and play music from Sweetheart with Roger and Chris. “From that day forward, I considered Sweetheart of the Rodeo a blueprint as to how I should live my musical life. Upon my first listen, I was mesmerised at the effect of the combined power country music, rock & roll, bluegrass, gospel and folk music had on me. “I bought my first copy of the record in 1972. “The Byrds’ Sweetheart of the Rodeo recording stands as a milestone in American music,” observed Stuart. The concert will include songs that led up to that ground breaking trip to Nashville and all the songs from the album.” I can’t wait to be on stage with Chris Hillman, Marty Stuart and those Fabulous Superlatives! We’re all looking forward to taking the fans through the back pages of the recording. McGuinn added: “Celebrating the 50th anniversary of Sweetheart of the Rodeo with a group of my favourite musicians is an honour. The LP was bookended by the Bob Dylan covers ‘You Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere’ and ‘Nothing Was Delivered’ and included Parsons’ ‘One Hundred Years From Now’ and songs by the Louvin Brothers, Woody Guthrie and Merle Haggard. Sweetheart of the Rodeo, the Byrds’ sixth album, marked the arrival of Gram Parsons in the line-up, who encouraged their evolution to a sound that came to be regarded as a prototype of the country-rock style. The tour, which begins on 24 July at the Ace Hotel in Los Angeles, will see the musicians perform the album in full, and tell the stories behind its making. They’ll be joined by another great name in US roots music, Marty Stuart, with his band the Fabulous Superlatives, with whom they played a short set to introduce the tour at Stuart’s Late Night Jam on 6 June at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium. Chris Hillman and Roger McGuinn, two of the founder members of American music giants the Byrds, are reuniting for US dates to mark the 50 th anniversary of the band’s landmark Sweetheart Of The Rodeo album.
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