Kleinow and Ethridge instigated a reformation of the band in 1975 which continued through 1984. The band was reformed once again in 1985 and were disbanded for a final time in 2001.
The band best known as the "Flying Burrito Brothers" actually 'borrowed' their name from the original "Flying Burrito Brothers", composed of bassist Ian Dunlop and drummer Mickey Gauvin, bandmates of Parsons from the Boston-based International Submarine Band, plus any of a loose coalition of musicians, including Parsons himself from time to time. In a deliberate choice of focusing on just creating and playing music without the distractions of the music industry, in 1968 the original Brothers moved from Los Angeles to New York City. From this base they continued to tour the Northeast playing their eclectic traditional/rockabilly/blues/R&B-oriented version of rock, using the name "The Flying Burrito Brothers East" after Parsons' group became famous.
Meanwhile, on the West Coast, Parsons and guitarist/mandolinist/bassist/vocalist Chris Hillman thought this same moniker would be perfectly suited to the band they had been dreaming of since early 1968, when, as members of Roger McGuinn's band The Byrds, they created one of the first country-oriented rock albums, Sweetheart of the Rodeo. They immersed themselves in their vision in their house in the San Fernando Valley, dubbed "Burrito Manor", even replacing their wardrobe with a set of custom country-Western suits from tailor to the C&W stars, Nudie's Rodeo Tailors (Parsons's had marijuana leaf embroidery) and began a period of intensely fruitful creativity. At this juncture, the band also included pianist/bassist Chris Ethridge and pedal steel guitarist "Sneaky" Pete Kleinow.
Their first album The Gilded Palace of Sin (1969) did not sell terribly well, being a radical departure from anything most of the record-buying public (either rock or country) had ever seen, but the group had a cult following which included several famous musicians, such as Bob Dylan and The Rolling Stones. Parsons soon became friends with Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones and left the group after 1970's Burrito Deluxe, which also saw the departure of Ethridge and addition of guitarist/dobro player/vocalist Bernie Leadon and drummer Michael Clarke (of The Byrds). Rick Roberts replaced Parsons and released a self-titled album with the group in 1971. Kleinow then left to become a session musician and Leadon joined The Eagles. Al Perkins and Roger Bush replaced them, and Kenny Wertz and Byron Berline joined as well, releasing The Last of the Red Hot Burritos (1972), a live album. The band fell apart. Hillman and Perkins joined Manassas, while Berline, Bush and Wertz formed Country Gazette. Roberts reassembled a new group for a 1973 European tour, and then began a solo career before forming Firefall with Michael Clarke.
As Gram Parsons's influence and fame grew, so did interest in the Flying Burrito Brothers, leading to the release of Honky Tonks (1974), a double album, and the recreation of the band by Kleinow and Ethridge in 1975. Floyd "Gib" Gilbeau, Joel Scott Hill and Gene Parsons (no relation to Gram) also joined, and the band released Flying Again that year. Ethridge was then replaced by Skip Battin for Airborne (1976), followed by an album of unreleased early material, Sleepless Nights. For the next few decades, the group released albums and toured and had a country hit with "White Line Fever" (1980, a cover by Merle Haggard) and then became the Burrito Brothers. Headed by prolific songwriter and ace guitarist John Beland and Gib Guilbeau, and normally featuring Sneaky Pete, this incarnation scored moderately well on the Country charts in the early 1980s. Through numerous incarnations (including Brian Cadd for a time), the band released albums and toured throughout the 1980s up till 2001 when John Beland "officially" ended FBB. While the bands work during the 1980-1999 period was exceptional, after 1984 none of the many releases had any chart impact. Sneaky created a Burritos spinoff in his new band Burrito Deluxe, which featured Carlton Moody on lead vocals and Garth Hudson from The Band on keyboards. While a good band, there has never been any real continuity with the true Burritos and this group can not be considered anything more than a spinoff. Pete however, left the band due to illness in 2005, leaving no direct lineage to the original masters.
Gram Parsons died on September 19, 1973. "Sneaky Pete" Kleinow died on January 6, 2007. Chris Hillman is still a very successful singer-songwriter, having been part of Souther-Hillman-Furay, McGuinn-Clark-Hillman, then going on to form the Desert Rose Band (1986-1993) with Herb Pedersen. He still sings with Pedersen today as Chris and Herb, having released "The Other Side" (2005).
Crazy Arms
The Flying Burrito Brothers Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And the storm's brewing in this heart of mine
This ain't no crazy dream I know that it's real
And you're someone else's love now you're not mine
Crazy arms that reach to hold somebody new
And my yearning heart keeps saying you're not mine
My troubled mind knows soon to another you'll be wed
And that's why I'm lonely all the time
So please take these treasured dreams I have for you and me
And take all the love I thought was mine
Someday these crazy arms will hold somebody new but now I'm so lonely all the time
Crazy arms that reach to hold somebody new
And my yearning heart keeps saying you're not mine
My troubled mind knows soon to another you'll be wed
And that's why I'm lonely all the time
And that's why I'm lonely all the time
The Flying Burrito Brothers' song "Crazy Arms" is a heartbreaking ballad about unrequited love. The song explores the emotions of a person who has lost their lover to someone else, but still feels the yearning and longing for them. The lyrics convey a sense of desperation and loneliness, as the singer tries to come to terms with the fact that they can never have their love back.
The opening lines "Now blue ain't the world for the way that I feel, and the storm's brewing in this heart of mine" set the tone for the rest of the song. The singer is in a state of melancholy and distress, and the metaphor of a storm brewing in their heart captures the intensity of their emotions. The lyrics also acknowledge that the situation is not just a crazy dream – it is a reality that they have to face.
The chorus of the song – "Crazy arms that reach to hold somebody new, and my yearning heart keeps saying you're not mine" – is particularly poignant. The image of crazy arms represents the futile attempts of the singer to hold on to their love, even though it belongs to someone else. The repeating phrase "you're not mine" reinforces the sense of loss and rejection that the singer is experiencing.
Overall, "Crazy Arms" is a powerful and emotional song that captures the agony of unrequited love. The poignant lyrics and melancholy melody make it a classic country ballad that has stood the test of time.
Line by Line Meaning
Now blue ain't the world for the way that I feel
I'm not feeling happy or joyful, but instead I'm feeling really down and sad.
And the storm's brewing in this heart of mine
I'm feeling really emotional and upset, almost like there's a storm going on inside of me.
This ain't no crazy dream I know that it's real
I know that what I'm feeling is real and not just some wild, unrealistic dream.
And you're someone else's love now you're not mine
You've moved on to someone else and are no longer with me.
Crazy arms that reach to hold somebody new
I have this intense desire to hold onto someone else now that you're gone.
And my yearning heart keeps saying you're not mine
Even though I want you so badly, my heart knows that you're not mine to have anymore.
My troubled mind knows soon to another you'll be wed
I'm aware that you're going to marry someone else soon.
And that's why I'm lonely all the time
All of these feelings of heartache and loss are why I feel so lonely all the time.
So please take these treasured dreams I have for you and me
I'm asking you to take all of the hopes and plans I had for us and let them go.
And take all the love I thought was mine
I want you to take all of the love I had for you and move on with someone else.
Someday these crazy arms will hold somebody new but now I'm so lonely all the time
Eventually, I know I'll find someone else to hold onto, but for now I'm just feeling really lonely.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: CHUCK SEALS, RALPH EUGENE MOONEY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind