Watch Daniel Donato Embrace ‘Cosmic Connections’ With Gram Parsons At Joshua Tree

The late Gram Parsons will forever be connected to Joshua Tree National Park due to the tragic circumstances surrounding his death in 1973 in a room at the nearby Joshua Tree Inn and the notorious aftermath. An unofficial memorial to Parsons was soon established inside the park, further cementing his connection with the area.

In 2001, Billboard wrote an article about the unofficial memorial honoring Parsons at Joshua Tree and detailed its presence inside the park:

“Fans continue to make pilgrimages to his makeshift shrine, a concrete slab painted with the title of his Safe at Home album on Cap Rock in the remote desert park 120 miles east of Los Angeles. They have scrawled on the surrounding, ancient sandstone rocks. Recently, the memorial bore a seashell necklace, a bottle of beer, and a message: God’s own singer.”

“But the memorial doesn’t appear on the official park map. Rangers have the option of telling the story in educational programs but the visitors’ center and park brochures are silent on the subject. In [an] email, [Joe] Zarki [chief of park interpretation at Joshua Tree] asked the question: ‘Does Gram Parsons qualify as a historical figure for the park?’ For now, the answer is no.

“Clifford Tobias, a park history program leader in Philadelphia, said it would take time and money to formally recognize the site, including research and exhibit materials.”

In 2023, the Los Angeles Times reported on the current state of the Parsons memorial at Joshua Tree. Reporter Robert Annis wrote about his experience at the National Park:

“Hiking a social trail behind Joshua Tree National Park’s famed Cap Rock, I came across a peculiar sight that, if you know what you’re looking for, actually isn’t so unusual at all: a crude cross made of dark stones below a scribble of orange graffiti.

“It was a makeshift memorial to Gram Parsons, the 1970s rock star who had a deep connection to the park in life — and in death. So much so that fans, nicknamed “Grampires” by some park staff, still haunt this dusty patch of Mojave Desert decades after the 26-year-old’s death at a nearby motel — and impromptu funeral pyre on park grounds.

“Parsons’ fans often leave guitar picks, handwritten letters, empty whiskey bottles and, at least one time, a life-size papier-mâché statue of the singer. Unfortunately, some also spray-paint the rocks, which is more difficult to clear away. ‘Gram loved the park so much,’ said George Land, a former public information officer for the national park. ‘I can’t imagine he’d be happy about someone desecrating it like that …’

“Spokesperson Jennie Albrinck said National Park Service officials are discussing a music-related exhibit at Cap Rock that would spotlight Native American bird singers, Parsons and emerging artists performing at music festivals such as Coachella and Stagecoach today.”

Parsons is as much connected to Joshua Tree as his is his signature style of “Cosmic American Music.” Parsons’ cosmic country rock was profoundly influential through his work as a solo artist and with groups like The Byrds and Flying Burrito Brothers. Sadly, Parsons was only 26 years old when he accidentally overdosed in room 8 at the Joshua Tree Inn, but his lasting influence can still be heard in the Cosmic American Music made by others following his lead.

Rising guitarist Daniel Donato is seemingly connected to Gram Parsons with the former’s expression of music he calls “Cosmic Country.” Donato’s excellent 2023 album, Reflector, was fully credited to his band, as he released the record as Daniel Donato’s Cosmic Country.

When Donato found himself near Joshua Tree on a recent tour, he stayed a night at The Joshua Tree Inn. While there, Donato visited the Gram Parsons memorial to pay respect to his cosmically connected musical brethren.

“We had the sincere pleasure to stay at The Joshua Tree Inn as we closed out our last show of the first tour of 2024 in Pioneer Town, California,” Donato wrote. “The Cosmic Connections were in the air, and this song came to me when I was wondering what song I could sing for Gram Parsons. I hope you find beauty, truth, and goodness in this rendition of an eternally enduring piece of music.”

Donato recorded a solo acoustic rendition of Bob Dylan’s mournful “Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door” in honor of Gram Parsons. Watch the touching performance below: