Goose Creek Symphony: Est. 1970 (1970)

Goose Creek Symphony are a long-running country-rock outfit hailing from Phoenix. I'm only familiar with their first 3 albums, from 1970-1972, which were straight out of the Gram Parsons cosmic Americana songbook, shades of Workingman's Dead and the Band, only with a lot more old-school bluegrass in the mix. And while I'm not really a country-bluegrass kinda guy, the albums have an eccentric charm to them that keeps them interesting, even for more traditional rock fans (at least those who don't mind a bit of twang) and contemporary jam band aficionados.

Beyond the pleasant acoustic guitar jangle and fiddle, you've got some lovely harmonies throughout (like on the brief opener, a gospel/Beach Boys hybrid, and the gorgeous closing hymn "Symphony Music"), and some impressive electric guitar jams as well. "Charlie's Tune" is silly Appalachian fun; "Big Time Saturday Night" is Dead-friendly harmony-rich country-rock; "A Satisfied Mind" is simply lovely and reminds me of the early Nick Lowe/Brinsley Schwarz pub rock take on Americana. Elsewhere, the sprawling "Talk About Goose Creek" combines rustic jaw harp with a blazing jam, while "Beautiful Bertha" is a Band-like electric stomp.

Give it a shot, you might be surprised.

Here's an audio rip of "Big Time Saturday Night":

...and an audio rip of "Charlie's Tune":

Here's a complete 2011 concert which highlights their merger of traditional country-bluegrass-rock with a jam band vibe: