Original Nudies - Great Performances

This is how it IS done -- the Flying Burrito Bros. in first run Nudies giving a first rate performance -- watch and learn!

Nudie Knockoffs

I really don't have much to say about all the Nudie knockoffs - except they really are exactly that - cheap imitations that really don't work. Case in point - this Wilco video - I can't get through more than 30 seconds of this song before stopping it. . . even though the suits are referenced in the pre-song patter . . . maybe they hope the Nudie knockoffs will make up for the lack of songsmanship or musicality, I don't know. Anyway, here is how it is NOT done . . .

Gram and Emmylou Duet on "Love Hurts"

So, to bring it full circle, I'm going to end tonight with another tear jerker from Gram Parsons -- this time with the incomparable Emmylou Harris... their live take of the classic "Love Hurts."

And Speaking of Hank Snow

The video here is of poor quality, turning Hank's Nudie Suit into a muddled melon mess, but the audio is clear on this classic Country hit.

Hank was managed by Colonel Tom Parker, and we all know that the Colonel had an eye for talent . . . and Nudie Suits. The Colonel and Nudie were very dear friends and always kept in touch through thick and thin. Mr. Parker wrote a very touching letter to Nudie when Elvis passed, urging him not to believe the things about Elvis and the Colonel that were circulating in the press.

Here Comes Hank Snow

Dolly must have really resented being the understated accessory to Porter Wagoner's incredible Nudie Suits . . . still, she coordinated without competing with his resplendence. Was it any wonder, this partnership was doomed to fail? Here is a lighter version of "The Last Thing on My Mind," by Porter and Dolly, followed by any early rendition of Gram Parsons' version . . . where he is in fine, fine voice if I do say so myself.

I loved him like a father, and I loved him like a friend

This really tears me up -- and goes right to the heart. Grams lyrics of "In My Hour of Darkness." Gram should've outlived Nudie, but tragically he didn't. Nudie lived to the ripe old age of 81 . . . he lost many friends young and old along the way . . he took Gram's passing especially hard.

Bobbie Nudie who outlived them all, always said "there was a sadness about Gram." That may seem like an understatement, but what else can you say?

Gram on Labels

Gram really loved his Nudie, but that is where his love of labels ended. It irked him no end to be called "Country Rock" and even though he is widely thought to be a founding pioneer in that mash-up of a genre -- he HATED the term. I'll let him explain . . .

Nudie Loved Gram

I look at these pictures of Nudie and Gram, and they just break my heart. Nudie really loved Gram, and Gram really loved Nudie. It was a sort of father/son relationship . . . and Nudie knew Gram was at risk, much like Hank Williams was . . . but what was Nudie to do?

He posted Gram's bail, he mentored him, he tried to keep him from teetering on the edge, he gave him the second most famous Nudie Suit of all time -- one that would take the shaggy haired country/folk/rock singer from this world into a whole 'nother cosmic dimension. He immortalized Gram . . . and Gram gave Nudie that wide-eyed hero worship a son gives a father.

They were quite a pair, Nudie and Gram. So sad, how it ended. . . still we have the few still photos, moving images, and the recordings to live forever. I want to thank Raeanne Rubenstein for being there . . . those are her photos of Nudie and Gram, she rarely gets credit for them.