Gene Victor Parsons (born September 4, 1944, in Morongo Valley, California) is an American drummer,

banjo The banjo is a stringed instrument with a thin membrane stretched over a frame or cavity to form a resonator. The membrane is typically circular, and usually made of plastic, or occasionally animal skin. Early forms of the instrument were fashi ...

player, guitarist, singer-songwriter, and engineer, best known for his work with

the Byrds The Byrds () were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1964. The band underwent multiple lineup changes throughout its existence, with frontman Roger McGuinn (known as Jim McGuinn until mid-1967) remaining the sole con ...

from 1968 to 1972. Parsons has also released solo albums and played in bands including Nashville West,

the Flying Burrito Brothers The Flying Burrito Brothers are an American country rock band, best known for their influential 1969 debut album, ''The Gilded Palace of Sin''. Although the group is perhaps best known for its connection to band founders Gram Parsons and Chris ...

, and

Parsons Green Parsons Green is a mainly residential district in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham. The Green itself, which is roughly triangular, is bounded on two of its three sides by the New King's Road section of the King's Road, A308 road ...

. Along with guitarist

Clarence White Clarence White (born Clarence Joseph LeBlanc; June 7, 1944 – July 15, 1973) was an American bluegrass and country guitarist and singer. He is best known as a member of the bluegrass ensemble the Kentucky Colonels and the rock band the Byrd ...

, he is credited with inventing the

B-Bender A B-Bender is a guitar accessory that enables a player to fluidly alter the pitch of a guitar's B-string. This works by mechanically bending the B-string through the use of a series of levers and/or pulleys attached to an external lever that is ...

(also known as the StringBender)—a device which allows a guitarist to emulate the sound of a

pedal steel guitar The pedal steel guitar is a console-type of steel guitar with pedals and knee levers that change the pitch of certain strings to enable playing more varied and complex music than any previous steel guitar design. Like all steel guitars, it can ...

. The device is often referred to as the Parsons/White B-Bender, a trademarked name.

Early career and the Byrds

Gene Parsons was born on September 4, 1944, on his family's farm in

Morongo Valley Morongo Valley is a census-designated place (CDP) on State Route 62 in San Bernardino County, California, United States. The population was 3,552 at the 2010 census, up from 1,929 at the 2000 census. The town is bordered by Yucca Valley, Californ ...

in the

Mojave Desert The Mojave Desert ( ; mov, Hayikwiir Mat'aar; es, Desierto de Mojave) is a desert in the rain shadow of the Sierra Nevada mountains in the Southwestern United States. It is named for the indigenous Mojave people. It is located primarily ...

, California. His professional musical career began when he joined up with guitarist and

Fiddle A fiddle is a bowed string musical instrument, most often a violin. It is a colloquial term for the violin, used by players in all genres, including classical music. Although in many cases violins and fiddles are essentially synonymous, the ...

player Gib Guilbeau in the duo Guilbeau & Parsons. Later the duo was joined by Clarence White, former guitarist with the

Kentucky Colonels The Kentucky Colonels were a member of the American Basketball Association for all of the league's nine years. The name is derived from the historic Kentucky colonels. The Colonels won the most games and had the highest winning percentage of ...

, and bassist Wayne Moore to form the band Nashville West, named after a club where the band often performed. After the dissolution of Nashville West, Parsons was brought into

by White (who had recently become the band's guitarist), to replace drummer Kevin Kelley. Parsons remained with the band for four years, principally as a drummer, but he also contributed guitar, banjo, harmonica and a number of his own songs to the albums '' Dr. Byrds & Mr. Hyde'', '' Ballad of Easy Rider'', '' (Untitled)'', ''

Byrdmaniax ''Byrdmaniax'' is the tenth album by the American Rock music, rock band the Byrds. It was released in June 1971 on Columbia Records at a time of renewed commercial and critical success for the band, due to the positive reception that their two pre ...

'' and '' Farther Along''.

Post-Byrds career

His first solo album, '' Kindling'', was released in 1973 on Warner Bros. Records, after the Byrds broke up. Although ''Kindling'' received positive reviews in music publications such as ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...

'', it failed to reach the ''Billboard'' Top LPs & Tapes chart. Following this, Parsons joined

, like other ex-Byrds

Chris Hillman Christopher Hillman (born December 4, 1944) is an American musician. He was the original bassist of and one of the original members of the Byrds, which in 1965 included Roger McGuinn, Gene Clark, David Crosby and Michael Clarke. With freque ...

Gram Parsons Ingram Cecil Connor III (November 5, 1946 – September 19, 1973) who was known professionally as Gram Parsons, was an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, and pianist who recorded as a solo artist and with the International Submarine Band, ...

(no relation) and Michael Clarke had done before him. While he was a member of the Burritos, with

Sneaky Pete Kleinow Peter E. "Sneaky Pete" Kleinow (August 20, 1934 – January 6, 2007) was an American country-rock musician. He is best known as a member of the band The Flying Burrito Brothers and as a session musician playing pedal steel guitar for such ar ...

, Chris Ethridge,

Skip Battin Clyde "Skip" Battin (February 18, 1934 – July 6, 2003) was an American singer-songwriter, bassist, performer, and recording artist. He was a member of the Byrds, the New Riders of the Purple Sage, and the Flying Burrito Brothers. Εarly life C ...

, Joel Scott Hill and Gib Guilbeau, Parsons contributed a number of songs to the band's '' Flying Again'' and ''

Airborne Airborne or Airborn may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Airborne'' (1962 film), a 1962 American film directed by James Landis * ''Airborne'' (1993 film), a comedy–drama film * ''Airborne'' (1998 film), an action film sta ...

'' albums, including "Wind and Rain", "Sweet Desert Childhood", and "Out of Control". After his tenure with the Flying Burrito Brothers ended in 1978, Parsons released a second solo album entitled ''Melodies'' in 1979. Since the mid-1980s, he has also released two albums with his ex-wife, California based folk musician Meridian Green, under the moniker of

. During 1994, he was a member of "The Byrds Celebration", a

tribute band A tribute act, tribute band or tribute group is a music group, singer, or musician who specifically plays the music of a well-known music act. Tribute acts include individual performers who mimic the songs and style of an artist, such as ...

formed by guitarist Terry Rogers that had originated with former Byrds' drummer Michael Clarke, who had died in 1993, and which also included fellow ex-Byrd Skip Battin. Parsons was also part of the band Haywire (not to be confused with the Canadian band of the same name), along with

Joe Craven Joe Craven is an American freestyle folk, world and roots music multi-instrumentalist, singer and educator. He is the Director of RiverTunes Music Camp and a Co-Director of the Wintergrass Youth Academy. He plays a wide variety of string instr ...

, Bill Douglass and Will Siegel, and features on the band's 1998 album, ''Bluegrass Christmas''. In 2001, Parsons released a third solo album, this time a live recording, entitled ''Gene Parsons in Concert – I Hope They Let Us In'', which was released on his own StringBender record label. He also collaborated with British singer-songwriter

Julian Dawson Julian Dawson (born 4 July 1954 in London) is a British singer–songwriter, guitarist and author. His style has been compared to Wilco and Ron Sexsmith. He is fluent in German and French. Outside his solo work, acts he has recorded with (as si ...

on the 2002 album ''Hillbilly Zen''. Parsons teamed with David Hayes in 2016 to release the ''Gene Parsons & David Hayes'' album, and, in 2017, the pair formed the Mendocino Quartet with Gwyneth Moreland and Steven Bates, releasing the album ''Way Out There''.

Other work

As well as his work with Nashville West, the Byrds and the Flying Burrito Brothers, Parsons has also played on records by

Arlo Guthrie Arlo Davy Guthrie (born July 10, 1947) is an American folk singer-songwriter. He is known for singing songs of protest against social injustice, and storytelling while performing songs, following the tradition of his father, Woody Guthrie. Gu ...

the Everly Brothers The Everly Brothers were an American rock duo, known for steel-string acoustic guitar playing and close harmony singing. Consisting of Isaac Donald "Don" Everly (February 1, 1937 – August 21, 2021) and Phillip "Phil" Everly (January 19, 193 ...

, the Gosdin Brothers,

Randy Newman Randall Stuart Newman (born November 28, 1943) is an American singer-songwriter, arranger, composer, and pianist known for his Southern-accented singing style, early Americana-influenced songs (often with mordant or satirical lyrics), and vari ...

, and

Elliott Murphy Elliott James Murphy (born March 16, 1949) is an American rock singer-songwriter, novelist, record producer and journalist living in Paris. Biography Elliott Murphy was born in Rockville Centre, New York, grew up in Garden City, Long Island ...

. He also played on the soundtrack album of the 1970 film ''

Performance A performance is an act of staging or presenting a play, concert, or other form of entertainment. It is also defined as the action or process of carrying out or accomplishing an action, task, or function. Management science In the work place ...

'', contributing both drums and guitar. His work on the album included playing drums on the track " Memo From Turner", which would end up being

Mick Jagger Sir Michael Philip Jagger (born 26 July 1943) is an English singer and songwriter who has achieved international fame as the lead vocalist and one of the founder members of the rock band the Rolling Stones. His ongoing songwriting partnershi ...

's first single release as a solo artist. Gene Parsons currently lives in

Caspar, California Caspar is a unincorporated community in Mendocino County, California, Mendocino County, California, United States. It is located on the Pacific Ocean, north of Mendocino, California, Mendocino, at an elevation of . It is bounded on three sides by ...

, spending much of his time in his

machine shop A machine shop or engineering workshop (UK) is a room, building, or company where machining, a form of subtractive manufacturing, is done. In a machine shop, machinists use machine tools and cutting tools to make parts, usually of metal or pla ...

and customizing guitars with the StringBender device.

Selected album discography

The Byrds

* '' Dr. Byrds & Mr. Hyde'' (1969) * '' Ballad of Easy Rider'' (1969) * '' (Untitled)'' (1970) * ''

'' (1971) * '' Farther Along'' (1971) * '' Live at the Fillmore – February 1969'' (2000) * '' Live at Royal Albert Hall 1971'' (2008)

Gene Parsons

* '' Kindling'' (1973) * ''Melodies'' (1979) * ''Gene Parsons in Concert – I Hope They Let Us In'' (2001)

The Flying Burrito Brothers

* '' Flying Again'' (1975) * ''

'' (1976) * ''Red Album: Live Studio Party in Hollywood'' (2002)

Nashville West

* ''Nashville West (a.k.a. The Legendary Nashville West Album)'' (1976)

Parsons Green

* ''Birds of a Feather'' (1988) * ''Live From Caspar'' (2001)

Haywire

* ''Nature Quest: Bluegrass Christmas'' (1998)

Guilbeau & Parsons

* ''Louisiana Rain'' (2002)

Gene Parsons & David Hayes

* ''Gene Parsons & David Hayes'' (2016)

The Mendocino Quartet

* ''Way Out There'' (2017)

References

External links

Gene Parsons Stringbender Custom Shop

Gene Parsons radio interview spring 2009

* * Gene Parsons KDRT radio interview, 60 minutes total
part one
an
part two
August 2016 * Gene Parson
KDRT radio interview on the Mendocino Quartet and ''Dr. Byrds and Mr. Hyde''
September 2018 {{DEFAULTSORT:Parsons, Gene 1944 births Living people People from Morongo Valley, California The Byrds members American rock drummers American session musicians American country drummers American country guitarists American male guitarists American banjoists American harmonica players American country singer-songwriters American male singer-songwriters Guitarists from Los Angeles 20th-century American drummers American male drummers 20th-century American guitarists Nashville West members The Flying Burrito Brothers members Singer-songwriters from California