The Desert Rose Band: Chris Hillman's Hot Burrito #3

ROCK IS no longer the dirty word it once was in Nashville. But after LA's Desert Rose Band placed four singles on the country charts last year, the group's lead singer/primary songwriter Chris Hillman recalls, "I had a few people come up to me and say, 'Well, I guess you couldn't stay on that rock bandwagon. Had to jump over to country music, huh?'" The former Byrds bassist/Flying Burrito Brothers founder was ready with a quick retort: "Hey pal, I was playing the most traditional forms of this music before I ever played a note of rock 'n' roll."