Died On This Date (April 23, 2012) Chris Ethridge / International Submarine Band; Flying Burrito Brothers
themusicsover Chris Ethridge
1947 – April 23, 2012
Chris Ethridge was an American musician who is best remembered for playing in the International Submarine Band and the Flying Burrito Brothers. Born in Meridian, Mississippi, Ethridge was already playing in local bands by the time he moved to Los Angeles at 17. It was there that he joined the International Submarine Band, playing alongside with Gram Parsons. The year was 1967, and Ethridge played on that year’s release, Safe At Home. Parsons left ISB the following year and Ethridge followed suit. He worked with Parsons on solo projects even co-writing several of his songs. In 1968, Ethridge co-founded the Flying Burrito Brothers with Parsons, Chris Hillman, and Sneaky Pete Kleinow. Although Ethridge played on just the band’s first album, The Gilded Palace Of Sin before leaving in 1969, it can’t be denied that he played a role in the birth of country rock while influencing the likes of the Eagles, Wilco, and Ryan Adams. In 1975, he participated in a reformed version of the Burrito Brothers for the recording of Flying Again. Over the course of his career, Ethridge played on records by such acts as Linda Ronstadt, Jackson Browne, Randy Newman, and Ry Cooder. He also spent more than seven years playing in Willie Nelson’s live band. Chris Ethridge was 65 when he passed away on April 23, 2012. He was 65. Cause of death was not immediately released.
Thanks to Bruce Kilgour at Slipped Disc Entertainment for the assist.
What You Should Own
Even though Alex Chilton was one of indie rock’s biggest influences, many don’t realize he sang lead on one of the biggest pop hits of the ’60s. While still in high school in Memphis, Tennessee, 16-year-old Chilton was asked to join a local rock band that soon became known as the Box Tops. Later that year, the group released “The Letter” which quickly became a #1 hit around the world (Chilton’s lead vocal track was slowed down to make him sound older). That was soon followed by “Cry Like a Baby” and “Soul Deep,” both moderate hits also sung by Chilton. After leaving the Box Tops, Chilton joined 
Gram Parsons was a highly influential singer-songwriter who helped launch what would later be called country rock and then alt-country or Americana. Parsons began playing the guitar as a teenager to escape a less than ideal home life. The first group he played with, the Shilohs, were a folk band in the tradition of the Kingston Trio. When the band broke up, he and other Boston area folk musicians formed the International Submarine Band with whom he began to develop a sound the borrowed the best from country, folk and rock. They enjoyed moderate success, primarily getting airplay on the up-and-coming progressive radio stations. In 1968, Parsons was asked to join the Byrds as a replacement for David Crosby and Michael Clarke. He started on keyboards but soon switched to guitar, helping guide the group down a more country rock path. Parsons left the Byrds in the summer of 1968. He joined back up with the Byrds’ Chris Hillman soon after to form the Flying Burrito Brothers whose debut, The Gilded Palace of Sin would be a direct influence on the likes of the Eagles, Dwight Yoakam and later, Wilco and Ryan Adams. By the early ’70s, Parsons was working as a solo artist while recording and performing with good friend, Emmylou Harris. It was during this period that Parsons’ inner demons were taking control in the form of substance abuse. He was also spending more and more time in an area he had become fond of, Joshua Tree National Monument in the desert outside of Los Angeles. He liked to go there and take LSD while searching for UFOs. It was during one of these trips that Gram Parsons apparently overdosed on morphine and alcohol and died at the age of 26.
