Safe at home

"In February 1968, [Gram] Parsons was offered the chance to audition for The Byrds, got the job and left [The International Submarine Band] in the lurch. Their album was shelved while lawyers weighed in. The Byrds' next album was planned as a double album about the history of music, with a few hillbilly songs, but Parsons pushed for it to be all-country, thus 'Sweet heart Of The Rodeo'. When it was finally released in 1968, 'Safe At Home' wasn't as ahead of the curve as it would have felt a year earlier and few noticed it ... Short and sweet (...), 'Safe At Home' rattles along pleasantly, full of energy and enthusiasm, but that enthusiasm replaces the emotional charge this material usually requires ... The confident command of [Parson's] best writing, like "Hot Burrito #2", is not yet audible".

"Before launching his solo career, [Parsons] played with the Byrds, but just prior to that he led a quartet called The International Submarine Band, whose solitary 1968 LP, featuring Parson's classic song "Luxury Liner", has now been reissued. The expanded CD version features new "Lonesome" mixes that place Parson's voice in the foreground, allowing ud to hear the beauty of his singing in isolation. They offer a unique perspective of a pioneer who revolutionised country music".