Album of the Day

Technically, Emmylou Harris' first album was GLIDING BIRD, released on the Jubilee label in 1969, but the musical growth spurt she underwent in the few years that followed makes her 1975 PIECES OF THE SKY sound like a new beginning. That Reprise debut is clearly marked by Harris' stint with The Fallen Angels; the 10 tracks include a tribute to fallen bandleader Gram Parsons (“Boulder To Birmingham”) as well as vintage country favorites like the Louvin Brothers' “If I Could Only Win Your Love,” which would become Emmylou's first hit. But the album looks forward as well as backward, including contributions from Linda Ronstadt (on harmony vocals) and Dolly Parton (the song “Coat Of Many Colors”), both of whom would collaborate with Harris on the TRIO project a decade later. Released 45 years ago this month, the superb PIECES OF THE SKY gave notice that country-rock had an exceptional new voice.