New Riders of the Purple Sage

In the early 1970s, with the likes of the Band, the Grateful Dead, and Crosby, Stills & Nash all turning away from the orgy of the senses that was the '60s, toward a simpler, more deeply rooted place, country rock became de rigeur. Shortly after the Dead made their move from acid tests to hoedowns, their pals Dave Torbert and John "Marmaduke" Dawson followed suit. Torbert and Dawson were the heart of New Riders of the Purple Sage, aided on their debut album by Dead buddies Jerry Garcia and Mickey Hart. There's a still-slightly-stoned, morning-after feel here that works well with the New Riders' low-key style. Their cowboy/hippie/outlaw ethic is espoused on the likes of "Last Lonely Eagle" and "Glendale Train" as horse trails meet Haight-Ashbury in an agreeably ramshackle manner.