Safe At Home (Mono Edition)

Reissue of the 1968 album by one of the first country-rock bands, fronted by cosmic Americana legend Gram Parsons before he joined the Byrds. Parsons started this band with other Boston folk scenesters, and their respectful twist on country earned praise from Glen Campbell and Merle Haggard. The album is a mix of covers and Parsons originals. The performances are emotionally somewhat thin, but the band's sound is very pleasant and could fit in easily with the Grand Ole Opry programming from the same time. Worth checking out for fans of classic country and sixties pop. Favorites: 1, 3, 6, 8, 10. No FCCs detected.

1. *(2:51)—Medium-fast, jaunty, nice pedal steel solo. Parsons original.
2. (2:20)—Mid-tempo, barroom feel, Merle Haggard cover.
3. *(2:34)—Slow waltz, pretty, version of a song previously performed by everyone from Ella Fitzgerald to the Byrds.
4. (4:23)—Mid-tempo chugging groove, Johnny Cash into Arthur Crudup.
5. (1:54)—Mid-tempo, no-frills arrangement of a Melvin Endsley song.
6. *(2:48)—Mid-tempo rendition of a "Cowboy" Jack Clement song, sunny and with nice harmonies.
7. (2:51)—Mid-tempo take on a Johnny Cash classic. Lively piano.
8. *(2:48)—Fast, with nice guitar flourishes. Parsons original.
9. (2:04)—Mid-tempo Parsons original about jealousy.
10. *(3:33)—Slow, with a big reverberant sound. Parsons original cowritten with Barry Goldberg.

Alternate mixes follow. Tracks 11–20 have Parsons's voice somewhat isolated, and 21 and 22 drop the vocals. I recommend sticking with tracks 1–10.
11. (2:53) 12. (2:16) 13. (2:48) 14. (4:40)
15. (2:54) 16. (2:54) 17. (2:19) 18. (2:14)
19. (3:35) 20. (1:52) 21. (2:56) 22. (2:05)