Gram Parsons EARLY YEARS 1 & 2

Most fans are presumably aware that Gram Parsons must have been doing something before he formed the International Submarine Band in 1966 and began drawing the blueprints of country-rock, but not many of them have actually heard the recorded evidence that's surfaced from Parsons' earliest recordings. The Early Years, Vols. 1-2, an augmented reissue of two out of print LPs from the archivists as Sierra Records, would be useful if only for preserving some of Parsons' first musical endeavors, but it also offers an entertaining snapshot of Gram's fledgling years as a folkie. The first ten songs were taken from a demo Parsons recorded in 1965 at a radio station with the Shilos, a Kingston Trio-type folk group he sang with for a few years. While the audio is less than ideal, the demo makes it clear the Shilos were one of the more accomplished groups following this path, with crisp instrumental work, excellent harmonies, and strong, subtly impassioned lead vocals from Parsons, and his origina