The Gilded Palace of Sin is the first album by the country rock group the Flying Burrito Brothers, released on February 6, 1969. It continued Gram Parsons' and Chris Hillman's work in modern country music, fusing traditional sources like folk and country with other forms of popular music like gospel, soul, and psychedelic rock. Although it was not a commercial success, peaking at #164 on the Billboard 200, The Gilded Palace of Sin has been widely regarded as an important album in 1970s rock. It was included in Robert Christgau's "Basic Record Library" of 1950s and 1960s recordings, published in Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies (1981). It is also listed at number 192 in Rolling Stone magazine's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time in the 2012 edition and number 462 in the 2020 edition.
This record is the result of an ill-advised experiment between four men and their insatiable lust for having sex with burritos. It burnt each of their dicks off, Peter. For Christ's sake, their handsome penises are ruined. In tatters. They can still fly though. But what use is flying if your burnt, limp cock is hanging on by a thread?
Nah mate, I'm a taco man and generally I prefer my Mexican food not to be airborne.
A beautiful slow burn. Everything I love about the Eagles but with way more substance. Gram Parsons was an interesting character by all accounts.
Band choose After three listens, I still wasn't feeling like any of it had drawn me in, or that I was able to distinguish any key tracks/moments. I expected an album called "The Gilded Palace of Sin" by "The Flying Burrito Brothers" to be daring, bold, eclectic. It may have been all of those things at the time for country fans and rockers, bringing the genres together in a new and radical way at the end of the 60s. But it doesn't feel any more special than the other albums already attempting this: Neil Young's early output, Dylan's Nashville Skyline, the Band, even the Byrds' own "Sweetheart of the Rodeo" before Parsons and Hillman broke away to set up the Burrito Brothers. The album feels very of its time to me, and seems more like they were following a trend than making a bold move against the grain. Some reviews (and Wikipedia) seem to herald the album as an exciting crossover between country and 60's rock/soul/psych, which could have been amazing. But to my ears, country is by far the strongest flavour, from the lap steel guitars to the incessant piano trills, simple two part harmonies, four chord strum-a-longs, and generic lyrics. A couple of soul covers thrown in don't do a great deal to change this. And the songs are... okay. "Christine's Tune" gets things going at a decent pace, the two "Burrito" tracks have decent melodies and chord progressions. None of it is offensive or head-turning... but that's part of the problem, it just doesn't leap out of the speakers. It's also supposedly significant for spurring on 70s country-rock bands like the Eagles... I'm dreading them coming up on here.
bless up
The progenitors of country-rock/cosmic American music create one of the greatest albums of all time and Gram Parsons cements himself as one of my favorite songwriters and arrangers. 9.7/10 Best Tracks: "Christine's Tune" "Sin City" "Dark End of the Street" "Wheels" "Hot Burrito #1" "Hot Burrito #2"
I reaaaaally liked this
So very good. Great covers along with some stellar originals that live on.
Cool country rock vibes. Best song is the last one Hippie Boy. High 3.5
I had zero expectations for this record and was really pleasantly surprised. I'll come back to this one.
Seminal...
This has a California drug-fueled country rock vibe.
Great fun album. Reminds me of Cake and PUSA that I listened to growing up. Cool tunes and offbeat lyrics.
I'm not usually a fan of country and western, but the Gram Parsons and the Burrito Brothers had a different approach to the genre. While the music has styling of folk and country, they also fused in elements of gospel, soul and rock. The results are heard on this album and were influential to the country-rock genre and alt-country rock bands from the late 80's and 90's. They owe a lot of their influence from this record. Gram Parson proved in his short tragic career that quality over quantity was more important and Gilded Palace is a good starting point when examining Parson's career.
meh. I'm an anxious mess today. inoffensive enough.
Pretty gloomy and not a lot of variation. 5/10
Genre: Country Rock 3/5 Gram Parsons, one of the founding members of The Flying Burrito Bros, is the man who is credited with being one of the first artists to truly push the envelope of country music. He, along with band member Chris Hillman, took country music to a much more rockin' place, generally speaking. They never received the commercial success contemoprarily, but posthumously, Parsons is lauded by artists and critics alike. While I thoroughly enjoyed The Byrds album that Parsons was a part of, released just a bit before this album was, Sweetheart of the Rodeo, this album almost plays like you'd expect an old country album to play like. There are some new ideas here, heavier usage of steel guitars being the main and most prominent one, but it sounds too much like its influences rather than sounding like something brand new. Enjoyable, but not groundbreaking or breathtaking.
Not my thing at all but I can hear it's very well executed and I can see how the different styles meld together very pleasantly. I do like it but from a distance.
I expected and hoped for something more ridiculous from “The Flying Burrito Brothers” Instead I got relatively straight forward dusty trail music. Not my cup of tea, but it’s decent. Wheels I think I liked best.
Can’t believe I’ve listened to this before
Amazing!
His own health aside, anything Gram Parsons touched was gold. While I don’t think anything can top Sweetheart of the Rodeo, this is one of the defining alt-country albums. It’s a blast to listen to, and the songwriting is excellent throughout. There are too few country records like this on the list!
I love this genre. The Byrds have a great album in it too.
Just teeters the line a bit dangerously between the early country/western sound I like and the polished country sound I disdain, but the back end really pushes it up to that final star. Great lyrics, great performances, concise album.
I love when an absolutely ridiculous band name shows up and DELIVERS. This had great songwriting, great performances, and I can see the way it trickled into country after it came onto the scene. Excellent.
Beautiful. They sure love their 3/4 time. Not at all what I expected from the band name, but it's great!
Fantastic stuff, really great old folk-country
Better than any and every Byrds album. Better than a number of country albums on this list. It should be a requirement that one only listens with good headphones, as you get Gram Parsons' vocals on the left and Chris Hillman on the right, and whoever's voice you choose to focus on tells me everything I need to know about you.
I didn't always love this album, but it grew on me over time. It's the kind of album I could have on repeat all day long. It's one of the great seminal albums of country rock and has also got to be one of the best debut albums by a band ever. Musically, the Burritos are stellar, with gorgeous pedal steel guitar, heartfelt vocal harmonies, and disarmingly vulnerable lyrics. Gram Parsons' artfully flawed vocal style can be a bit of an acquired taste, but once you settle into it, it's really expressive and hauntingly beautiful. Fave Songs (All songs, from most least favorite): Hot Burrito #1, Dark End of the Street, Juanita, Wheels, Do Right Woman, Hot Burrito #2, Do You Know How It Feels, Sin City, My Uncle, Hippie Boy, Christine's Tune
👍
The vibes in this album were elite, great sounds and story telling I really enjoyed this album. Country rock origins album they don’t make them like this no more.
I noticed that the further we are into the 1001 the more I only give top ratings to albums I know. Since I don't want to be that person who thinks good music is made only by bands that I have been listening to since high school / university, I'm so pleased that I really like this album that I never listened to before. I heard of the group's name before but would never take any positive steps to listen to it since their name was too wonky. Well, I really like it. Gram Parsons is an excellent song writer. The music from this album has influenced many bands I quite like such as Wilco and The Jayhawks and also seems to have been an influence on songs like Neil Young's "Roll Another Number" and other tunes from Tonight's The Night. The country styled twangy vocals in "not even trying to be perfect" harmony work very well.
This album just rules. Obviously, Christine’s Song is a banger, but the ballads rule too and I have always loved this cover of Dark End of the Street.
There were 3 ways I just listened to this. An original vinyl (Aust. Stereo pressing), a 1988 vinyl best of (Aust pressing - with the whole album compressed onto one side) and on a 1997 cd with Burrito Deluxe on the same disc. And without a doubt the original vinyl sounds best. I missed The Byrds with Parsons & Really I missed The Burritos with Parsons when they were briefly around. It wasn’t until I discovered Grievous Angel (1974)his 2nd solo album, that I fell in love with Gram Parsons. And by that time he was already gone. I love Grievous Angel & G.P., the 2 studio albums he did with Emmylou Harris, but, as good as they are, they don’t match this album. So accomplished for a debut release by such a talented band. Terrific songwriting by Parsons (sometimes with Chris Hillman, sometimes with Chris Etheridge & even one with the great Barry Goldberg). And beautiful covers of two Dan Penn/Spooner Oldham standards - Do Right Woman, Do Right Man & The Dark End Of The Street. The greatness here lies in the great harmonising of Parsons & Hillman (Parsons vulnerable voice always sounded better with another voice) & the quality of the band’s musicianship, with special mention to the pedal steel of Sneaky Pete, & Etheridge’s bass. So influential - I’d totally forgotten that Elvis Costello had included Hot Burrito #1 on his country album, Almost Blue, but renamed it I’m Your Toy (from the song’s refrain). And hard to believe that the Stones weren’t thinking of Hippie Boy when they did Faraway Eyes. No duds on this one. A pleasure to hear from go to whoa!
Own on Vinyl
Love that you can hear the development of an entire genre. Great music. Transitional and ground breaking.
This is an incredibly influential album; Bob Dylan called it one of his favorites and it has been cited by a diverse array of artists as a formative record from neo-traditionalist country artists in the 80s and 90s, to post-punk and grunge artists. The music is primarily country rock with a dose of psychedelia. This is some of Gram Parsons best work as well.
Love this one great songs throughout I love the subtle irony that seams so ahead of it’s time for a 1969 release
4 stars for the music and I felt compelled to throw on the 5th for the influence Gram and company had on cosmic country and the country-rock blend. I’m a sucker for pedal steel and 3/4 time, and this album had it in bunches. If you like Gram Parsons, it’s also worth checking out: Sweetheart of the Rodeo GP Grievous Angel
Great band name. Great sound
Oh boy. I like this one!!
Some more silly western country music. Do right woman is really good. Very enjoyable actually, a 4 so far. Yea, hot burrito is so good.
Great album, love Gram Parsons.
No idea on what to expect from The Flying Burrito Bros, but I guess country rock makes sense. Loved Christine's Tune right of the bat, rest of the songs were kind of hit/miss for me though. Its a bit better than the rash of 2/3's I've been giving out lately, so lets call it a 3.6/5.
This album worked for me. I like the sound (especially the pedal steel guitar), I enjoyed the lyrics, and it was a lot of fun hearing the originals of some covers I did not realize were not originals. This album reminds me of so much country from 1950 to 1980 that I adore and sent me down a Waylon, Willey, Lefty, Glen, Merle, Buck, Roger Miller rabbit hole. Points docked for the song Juanita where the protagonist, for good cause based on the other songs on the records, is left by a woman. He is going to commit suicide, but instead starts a statutory rape relationship with a 17 year old. Cool.
Nice name
Alright. A bit country.
First of all, that name is incredible. This is really great though. I dig the mix of country and rock. The vocal harmonies are incredible especially on headphones and the mix is really well done.
Already heard it. Very good.
Dawn of the southern rock
Plenty of pedal steel guitar, country but not obnoxious plastic country - yeah, I can get on with this. Fave track - "Hippie Boy", I reckon...
Muy bueno
feels like one of those albums that influenced a million artists and/or a genre. enjoyed it a lot
It's the music style I love!
I've heard this before and really rate it. Of all the neverending country/folk/rock albums on this list I think this is a level above most of them
This was a pretty good time. The songs get a little repetitive but the lyrics are interesting all the way through. First time I heard "Hot Burrito #1" it was a cover by Belly, but didn't realize it was a cover until hearing this. Both versions are really good. Feel like this is just a little below 4 stars but I'll round up.
Yee-haw Prefs: Christine's Tune, Sin City, Dark End of the Street, My Uncle, Wheels, Hot Burrito #1, Hot Burrito #2 Moins pref: Hippie Boy
8/10 nice country rock sounds with ironic lyrics
Great stuff. I think I've heard of the name of the band in passing because of how silly it is but I completely dug it. Fun country-infused rock. 4.5/5
Slaps. Bussin, even
Twangy rock, dope
Hippie Country sounds like an oxymoron but it works for me.
I love how they thread the needle between rock and country.
Gentle bimble through the bluegrass never heard this before
Gram Parson's solo albums were my entry into the world of country rock. I enjoyed this record, which is of the same cut (although no Emmy-Lou Harris, missed here). Hippie Boy finishes the album on an unfortunate and dated joke, but the rest of the album fuses the influences of rock, country and r'n'b in a away not really done before. Parsons is really stretching out what (cosmic) American music can be. The playing of the band and guests should not be underrated either, with weird and wonderful variations on traditional country playing throughout. GP and Grievous Angel are 5 star albums, but this is well on the way.
Loving those Nudie suits almost as much as this middle finger to the country establishment by combining country and rock. Way ahead of its time. Best Tracks: Christine's Tune; The Dark End of the Street; Hot Burrito #1
I like the quality of the music, it’s calming and well done, I would listen to this more. I don’t really have a favorite song I just like the album as a whole.
even with my passionate aversion to country I enjoyed this. sounds like the dead on less cocaine.
Good album.
I really enjoyed this!
Genuinely surprised at how much I enjoyed this one - probably not an album I’d revisit in full very often but there was quite a few great standout tracks. This one left a great impression considering country is not a genre I’ve ever really been a fan of with a handful of exceptions.
muito massa o sonzao meio country e tal
Classy country rock album that’s a joy throughout with the only weak tracks being the soul covers, the purpose of which is hard to discern. A snapshot of an era, full of references to drugs, hippies and the draft.
4.5
4.5
I liked it - kind of hank Williams meets the 60s
Never heard this before. Love the name, and really dug the music. It probably helps that I'm also a fan of the Byrds. :)
Had fun with this one. Apparently lynyrd skynyrd just lifted their whole look from them? More country than rock or soul but you can hear the beginnings of them all melding.
An amazing slice of history. Hard to tell if they are joking most of the time, but legit good music.
Held my attention start to finish. Solid album.
With a name like I that, I didn't expect much, but man this was right up my alley. Still has the 60s country influence with a touch of 70s pizzaz. Would listen again
Muutaman asialle vihkiytyneen henkilön ei-ilmiselvä representaatio siitä, mitä he kuulevat kantrissa, ja hätkähdyttävän onnistunut sellainen. A-puolelta on vaikea löytää heikkoa raitaa - soulkoverit soljuvat kaikessa luonnollisuudessaan muun mukana - ja B-puolikin lässähtää vain osittain. Huomaamattomat saavutukset: My Uncle ja Wheels (Gösta Sundqvist Amerikassa).
Dobry piczek od The Flying Burrito Brothers, czyli glownie pana Grama Parsonsa, ktory po przygodzie z Byrdsami na Sweetheart of the Rodeo postanowil stworzyc cos jeszcze bardziej swojego i tak do zycia zostal powolany sklad Burritowy, od Byrdsow pozyczyl pana Hillmana, a pozostale dwie postacie to Sneaky Pete Kleinow i Chris Ethridge, ktorych nazwiska mowia mi juz mniej niz Grama i Hillmana, na The Gilded Palace Of Sin z 69 jeszcze bardziej rozbudowal swoja wizje muzyczna, ktora jest misterna synteza estetyki country z zadziwiajaco slyszalnymi gospelowymi influencjami, przyprawionymi potezna dawka psychodelicznosci, orginalne brzmienie tej plyty widac juz nawet po samej okladce, te niedzielne gajerki w ktorych pokazac mozna sie zarowno na poranne nabozenstwo jak i wieczorne kwaszenie, a do takiej muzyki mozna spokojnie wrzucac na kable, sporo tutaj opowiesci o glebokich milosciach jak i priczowanie zycia zgodnie z przykazaniami panskimi, 37 minut nagrania wypelniaja gitarowe i organowe dzwieki, klawisze w wykonaniu Grama, a gitary dzielone sa przez reszte skladu, do tego dochodza goscie drumujacy i dziki Crosby jako jeden z wokali na trzecim traku, jedna z tych plyt ktora moglaby u mnie leciec i pol dnia na petelce, 11 trakow z ktorych bije taka oryginalnosc brzmienia, ze czuje dobrze czlowiek po przerwie albumikowania, jestem w stanie wybaczyc techniczne bolaczki dziwnie kierowanego chorkowania, ktorego troche tutaj jednak jest, bo burritowa brac jak nikt inny wykorzystuje pedalowa gitarke hawajska, bo to ona laczy ostre gitarowe przestery z akustycznymi akcentami na tle klawiszowym, co najlepiej slychac na trakach wheels lub drugiej czesci goracego burriciaka, na plejke dodam dark end of the street i wspomnianego wczesniej goracego burriciaka
Fantastic album. The songwriting, vocals, and Sneaky Pete's pedal steel playing are impeccable. Love the fuzz on the pedal steel. A country-rock gem, but as a whole, it's a little too country to make it a personal favorite of mine. I still really enjoy it though, and the more I listen to it, the more I appreciate it. Christine's Tune, Sin City, and Hot Burrito #1 were the standouts for me. 8/10.
Классное кантри. Жанром никогда не интересовался, исполнителя никогда не слышал. Но судя по году издания, это вероятно группа из разряда "мы повлияли на всю будущую музыку". Например, на группу Eagles, имхо. Мне кажется, прям очень похоже, причём даже проскользнула мысль, что у них участники пересекались, но нет. Снова моё нелюбимое стерео из 60-х. В такие моменты у меня возникает фобия, что я перестал слышать определённые частоты одним или другим ухом. Не, ну в целом альбом классный, вполне слушабельный. Для своего времени может он и был культовым, но как по мне, таких песен сейчас тоже хватает уже. Где-то они даже Стинга напомнили... Да в целом, это даже на Битлз чем-то похоже, просто чуть меланхоличнее. Отличный саундтрек для поездок опять же (впрочем, видимо, как и всё кантри). Из интересного, Hot Burrito #1 напомнило мне чем-то My Way Фрэнка Синатры. Не вокальной линией, а аккордовой последовательностью. А My Way был в свою очередь списан с французской песни Comme d'habitude Клода Франсуа, но это совсем другая история...
Очень замедленное кантри, честно говоря не фанат. Но чем дальше слушаешь альбом, тем больше понимаешь сколько знакомых звуков он дает: как и супер очевидные The Eagles, так и горячо любимые мной Black Country New Road. Здорово, приятно звучит, но я не слишком большой ценитель такого медленного кантри
Superb, an influential album predating Americana. Excellent tracks include Sin City, Do Right Woman, #1 Hot burrito and a decent cover of At the dark end of the street. Close your eyes and you could be sat in a diner on a sunny Saturday morning, about to get your second cup of coffee
A great mix of country, rock, and psychedelics that's bring this album to a satisfying whole. Never heard of this band before but I rate it quite highly, I enjoyed the whole album and it's going into my country playlist for more listens. Favourite Tracks - Christine's tune, Hot burrito #2
Excellent album des Flying Burrito Brothers. De multiples compositions et garnitures nous sont proposées afin de créer le burrito qui nous convient, j'ai personnellement opté pour une composition salade/tomates/haricots rouges/oignons, avec une sauce salca et quelques parts de boeufs. Un véritable délice.
Excellent
Top notch Americana that has rarely been surpassed. I do hate the last track and find it almost ruins the album for me
The fusion between country music and rock and roll continued to solidify itself with this debut album from the awesomely named Flying Burrito Brothers. Much has been made and said of Gram Parsons' invaluable contributions to the unlikely events of the two genres colliding and rightfully so but, without the equally important role of former fellow Byrd Chris Hillman, none of this would have been possible without the proper partners coming together. The sweethearts of the rodeo settling down into a sinful reverie in a once pretty palace, this gilded area showcases its unique style of musical harmony across eleven tracks and it feels like a breeze and a weary, weathered tale of time. An important album for an important moment in a genre's history. Favorites: Christine's Tune, Do Right Woman, Dark End of the Street, My Uncle, Hot Burrito # 1 & 2, Do You Know How It Feels.
Leipe maar lekkere pseudo-country. Gezien de bandnaam, albumnaam en albumhoes moet je het allemaal maar niet te serieus nemen, gewoon getikte Americana die fijn wegluistert.
Pleasant late 60s country rock album.
This was a very interesting album. I am someone who likes Country Rock and this did not disappoint. The reason it is interesting is it had songs that clearly were more country sounding and some that were clearly more rock sounding. This was an interesting contrast when compared to other Country Rock groups that came after them like Eagles and Grateful Dead that had a more fluid sound. For instance "Sin City" is basically just a Country song with little identifiable Rock aspects and on the other side of the "Hot Burrito #1" and "Hot Burrito #2" are a lot closer to Rock songs than Country. The Eagles style was much more fluid between the two genres. That being said it doesn't make this album any worse just different. I think though if you are not a big fan of Country this is not gonna be for you. That being said I do like Country so this was good. I really liked the aforementioned "Hot Burrito #1" and "Hot Burrito #2" as well as "Wheels", "Juanita", "My Uncle", "Hippie Boy" and "Christine's Tune". There was really only one song on here I didn't really like and that was "Do Right Woman". I don't know why it is but so many groups try to cover this song and it is never a great cover imo. Their version was okay but once it gets to about a minute into the song the songs starts to feel way too slow for some reason. Despite that all the other tracks are solid to great and I would give the album in totality an 8.5/10. Also as a side note, this album cover is one of my favorites of all time. The way the band name pops on this cover is so good and their Nudie suits are amazing.
Very easy listening, nice to have on in the background. Sounds like the Eagles
what a progressive name for a band this old. what's the genre? butt rock? that's what I thought it was going to be but this is really pleasant country, I do keep thinking they're going to be singing about weird stuff but the lyrics are just normal. strangely regular. another really fucking sick cover photo. not on this album but they originally did wild horses, I didn't realize the Sundays were covering it and I hadn't even listened to the rolling stones version. anyway I think I love them
Old school country music is dope
There is no surprise that this album is not more universally loved, it really is nothing spectacular, but it finds a way to stick around. It deserves to be listened to and the band deserves some place in one's memory. It is hard to say other than that nothing about the album was so incredible as to have made massive impact, but the effect of this album is much more subtle, where the notes tend to hit well after the songs have concluded. It is an album that while it is playing the songs and the journey have little to no meaning, but when the album is over there is a slight shock and even disappointment that it is over. Musically, the idea of country-rock is compelling, the energy of rock is there, but the simplicity of country also comes through. Perfect for a chill album, and interesting enough to pay attention. This is actually a fine album, maybe not groundbreaking or anything, but it just has this aura of importance as though because it exists, so does the genre. It is also a weird happenstance where the album name competes in noteworthiness against the band name.
First of all, it must be said that The Flying Burrito Brothers is a top tier band name. They're at their best when they're truly fusing country and rock, which they sometimes forget to do on this album. Sagged a bit in the middle, but finished strong. Best track: Hot Burrito #2