# 70's playlist - started with Gram Parsons, now what?? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 2, 2015, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/70s-playlist-started-with-gram-parsons-now-what/739164 "2015-12-02T00:42:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![diggerwam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/919ad9/32.png) [@diggerwam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/diggerwam)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/70s-playlist-started-with-gram-parsons-now-what/739164/1 "2015-12-02T00:42:03Z")
I felt guilty because of my total lack of knowledge of Gram Parsons. So I downloaded his music then continued on with more 70’s stuff. I need more ideas. I’d like to think I have the obvious music handled, I need more quality but lesser known stuff, like Gram Parsons. I was alive in the 70’s, but not really aware of modern music. I’ve got a good handle on early punk (Elvis, Patti Smith, talking heads, etc) and I don’t really want to go full disco. Other than that, anything from the 70’s. Please help with artists and albums, not necessarily specific songs. Thanks ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/70s-playlist-started-with-gram-parsons-now-what/739164/2 "2015-12-02T01:54:49Z")
Van Morrison, _Moondance_ The Meters, _Very Best of the Meters_ Sly and the Famiky Stone, _Higher!_ Steeleye Span, _A Parcel of Rogues_ Neil Young, _Decade_ Linda Ronstadt, _Heart Like a Wheel_ Rush, _A Farewell to Kings_ Leo Kottke, _Best of Leo Kottke_ Stevie Wonder, _Innervisions_ ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/70s-playlist-started-with-gram-parsons-now-what/739164/3 "2015-12-02T02:12:02Z")
Joe Jackson Nick Lowe Lou Reed (Early) Blondie Gang of Four mmm ---
**Author:** ![koeeoaddi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/koeeoaddi/32/408_2.png) [@koeeoaddi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/koeeoaddi)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/70s-playlist-started-with-gram-parsons-now-what/739164/4 "2015-12-02T02:49:03Z")
After the Goldrush - Neil Young Blue - Joni Mitchell Eat a Peach - Allman Brothers Tea for the Tillerman - Cat Stevens Blood on the Tracks - Bob Dylan ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/70s-playlist-started-with-gram-parsons-now-what/739164/5 "2015-12-02T03:18:54Z")
Fleetwood Mac - _Rumours_. Yes, it’s pop music. But it demonstrated that pop music can be great. I’d also recommend checking out early Bruce Springsteen, like _Born to Run_ and _The Wild, the Innocent & the E Street Shuffle_. Springsteen’s a genuine seventies artist - ie he didn’t emerge from the sixties. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/70s-playlist-started-with-gram-parsons-now-what/739164/6 "2015-12-02T03:50:57Z")
Lou Reed - Metal Machine Music ---
**Author:** ![snfaulkner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snfaulkner/32/433_2.png) [@snfaulkner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snfaulkner)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/70s-playlist-started-with-gram-parsons-now-what/739164/7 "2015-12-02T04:16:07Z")
Black Sabbath UFO Rainbow Dio ---
**Author:** ![oliversarmy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/eb8c5e/32.png) [@oliversarmy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/oliversarmy)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/70s-playlist-started-with-gram-parsons-now-what/739164/8 "2015-12-02T04:18:22Z")
Ike Witt is kidding. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 4:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/70s-playlist-started-with-gram-parsons-now-what/739164/9 "2015-12-02T04:45:10Z")
I don’t know how “lesser known” The Cars are, but their first album was just fantastic. ---
**Author:** ![Infovore](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/infovore/32/420_2.png) [@Infovore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Infovore)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 5:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/70s-playlist-started-with-gram-parsons-now-what/739164/10 "2015-12-02T05:34:27Z")
Alan Parsons Project. ---
**Author:** ![Mixolydian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/da6949/32.png) [@Mixolydian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mixolydian)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 5:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/70s-playlist-started-with-gram-parsons-now-what/739164/11 "2015-12-02T05:54:04Z")
You did say “lesser known stuff”, right? How about [Cymande](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cymande) - [“Bra”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SuLnxjVo6bk) ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 9:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/70s-playlist-started-with-gram-parsons-now-what/739164/12 "2015-12-02T09:29:26Z")
If you enjoyed Gram Parsons and like country rock in general, check out acts like Poco, Gene Clark, Pure Prairie League, Michael Nesmith (yes, the Monkee) or the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, and of course Emmylou Harris’ wonderful seventies albums. ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 9:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/70s-playlist-started-with-gram-parsons-now-what/739164/13 "2015-12-02T09:36:40Z")
Too late to edit: Re Gram Parsons, not to forget the Flying Burrito Brothers first two albums, especially _The Gilded Palace Of Sin_ (ok, that’s from 1969, but don’t miss it, it’s a masterpiece). ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 10:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/70s-playlist-started-with-gram-parsons-now-what/739164/14 "2015-12-02T10:17:23Z")
> [@Mixolydian](#): > > You did say “lesser known stuff”, right? > > How about [Cymande](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cymande) - [“Bra”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SuLnxjVo6bk) Excellent choice! Believe it or not, I was going to recommend Cymande. I discovered them thanks to a compilation CD called _Soul Gets Psychedelic_, which also features acts like Shuggie Otis (“Strawberry Letter 23”), Mandrill (“Kofijahm”), Terry Callier, and Minnie Riperton. If the OP wants to go international, there’s the delightful 70s Brazilian mix CD _Beleza Tropical_, collected by David Byrne in 1989 – a prototype for all those Putumayo collections from the 1990s and beyond. Getting back to Parsons-ish stuff, my favorite Eric Clapton album is probably 1974’s _461 Ocean Boulevard_. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 11:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/70s-playlist-started-with-gram-parsons-now-what/739164/15 "2015-12-02T11:06:03Z")
> [@EinsteinsHund](#): > > If you enjoyed Gram Parsons and like country rock in general, check out acts like Poco, Gene Clark, Pure Prairie League, Michael Nesmith (yes, the Monkee) or the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, and of course Emmylou Harris’ wonderful seventies albums. This sounds about right. Also try Willie Nelson’s Red Headed Stranger. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 11:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/70s-playlist-started-with-gram-parsons-now-what/739164/16 "2015-12-02T11:11:54Z")
For lesser-known 70s folk music, I’d recommend Gordon Bok’s _Ways of Man_ (US) and Clannad’s _Clannad 2_ (Ireland). Also maybe _Old and In the Way_, a sort of Jerry Garcia side project. For something completely different, try Laurie Anderson’s “O Superman,” a downtown Manhattan late-70s song that points to the future, but is actually a pleasure to listen to, unlike future hubby Lou Reeds’s aforementioned (with tongue in cheek, surely) _Metal Machine Music_. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 12:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/70s-playlist-started-with-gram-parsons-now-what/739164/17 "2015-12-02T12:06:26Z")
Oops – “O Superman” is from 1981. Okay, instead try Big Star. Very 70s quality rock-pop from a group that never quite made it big. And for more Parsons-esque 70s music, don’t forget Jerry Jeff Walker. ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/70s-playlist-started-with-gram-parsons-now-what/739164/18 "2015-12-02T12:48:02Z")
And for more folky music from across the pond, everything from Richard Thompson (with or without Linda), Sandy Denny and Fairport Convention’s seventies albums. Edit: And Nick Drake. ---
**Author:** ![Mixolydian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/da6949/32.png) [@Mixolydian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mixolydian)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/70s-playlist-started-with-gram-parsons-now-what/739164/19 "2015-12-02T15:04:13Z")
My uncle turned me on to this years ago…[Fraser and Debolt (with Ian Guenther) “Them Dancehall Girls”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AFP0gNYJcDQ) ---
**Author:** ![Gordon\_Urquhart](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/db5fbb/32.png) [@Gordon\_Urquhart](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gordon_Urquhart)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/70s-playlist-started-with-gram-parsons-now-what/739164/20 "2015-12-02T15:42:14Z")
There was a lot of cross-pollination left in the wake of Gram Parsons’ solo work as well as his time with The Byrds (it’s from 1968, but _Sweetheart of the Rodeo_ is generally recognized as the first country-rock album – highly recommended if you haven’t heard it yet). For example, Chris Hillman of The Byrds was in the aforementioned Flying Burrito Brothers as well as \*\*Manassas \*\*with Stephen Stills and **The Desert Rose Band** (which was an 80’s country rock band, but I love their stuff – excellent musicianship). In addition, he was in the **Souther Hillman Furay Band** with J.D. Souther and Richie Furay (who helped form the aforementioned Buffalo Springfield and Poco). Souther is a top-notch songwriter, but his solo stuff in the 1970s (_You’re Only Lonely_ is a beautiful song from 1979) is well worth checking out. One of Manassas’ biggest hits was _It Doesn’t Matter_, which was co-written by Hillman, Stills and **Firefall’s** Rick Roberts (who was also in Flying Burrito Brothers). I absolutely love Firefall – not just their hits like _You Are the Woman_ and \*Just Remember I Love You \*-- all of their albums are worth exploring (and they also recorded _It Doesn’t Matter_). [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/70s-playlist-started-with-gram-parsons-now-what/739164.md?page=2)