“Stick around and I’ll make you famous,” my father would say when I was impatient. I’m repurposing the jest as I’m introducing a fantastic performance. To set it up, I need to give some background. Stick around! In 2015, Emmylou Harris was awarded the Polar Music Prize. Established by ABBA manager Stig Anderson in 1989, the award is often called the Nobel Prize of music. Like the Nobel, the King of Sweden presents the prize, and the events include a banquet and an award ceremony in Stockholm.
In honoring Emmylou, the Prize committee selected the young Swedish country/folk duo First Aid Kit to perform. What an inspired choice! At the banquet, First Aid Kit played their hauntingly beautiful song Emmylou. The chorus namechecks Emmylou & Gram and June & Johnny. June and Johnny are the Cashes, of course. Gram is the “cosmic cowboy” and “patron saint of Americana” Gram Parsons. Emmylou joined Gram’s solo band in 1971. They were both in their early 20s. Gram died in 1973, aged 26. Ready?
It’s no surprise that Emmylou Harris teared up! Speaking to The Guardian’s Marissa Moss in November 2018, Emmylou said she discovered her singing voice through singing in harmony with Gram. Moss writes, “After Parsons’ death, Harris was reeling and inconsolable.” In the words of Jem Aswad of Variety, Emmylou has “burned a candle” for Gram throughout her subsequent career. Gram was a big deal. His time in The Byrds produced the seminal country rock album Sweetheart of the Rodeo.
After he left The Byrds, Gram Parsons formed the legendary Flying Burrito Brothers. Gram’s friendship with Keith Richards led to the Rolling Stones embracing country music in songs like Wild Horses and on the Exile on Main St. album. Gram’s solo career, backed by the Fallen Angels (which included Emmylou), produced two lauded albums, G.P. and Grievous Angel. Of all the songs she sang with Gram, Emmylou singles out the Felice and Boudleaux Bryant classic Love Hurts as the pinnacle. Let’s listen.
Jem Aswan comments, “Of the many premature deaths from the wave of great ‘60s musicians, Gram Parsons is one of the most tragic.” Damn right!
After listening to Love Hurts, you get a sense of how skillfully Johanna and Klara Söderberg (First Aid Kit) evoke the spirit and sound of Harris and Parsons on their tribute song Emmylou. It’s a great achievement. I’m particularly enchanted by the opening lines, especially “Stockholm’s cold but I’ve been told/I was born to endure this kind of weather.” Sublime. The song was 10th on Rolling Stone Magazine’s Singles of the Year list in 2012.
The person sitting next to Emmylou Harris at the Polar Prize banquet in our first video – the man bobbing his head enthusiastically – is Carl XVI Gustaf, King of Sweden. This was not the only time First Aid Kit sang for Emmylou. At the prize-giving ceremony, the duo performed Harris’s Red Dirt Girl (2000) in her honor. Here it is. Thanks for sticking around. Enjoy!
The Music Man salutes the wonderful, legendary, and important Emmylou Harris. If you would like to hear more from this talented duo, you can subscribe to their YouTube Channel for more incredible music. Connect with them on Facebook and Instagram for updates and insights into their journey.