In their 1985 autobiographical country hit song “Partners, Brothers and Friends,” the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band (NGDB) asked, “Is it folk or rock or country; does everybody care but us?” It was — and remains — a fitting question for a band now going on its sixth decade of making music.
The answer is likely an enthusiastic, “We still don’t know!”
The 1960s were a banner time for folk music, and by the middle of the decade, artists like Bob Dylan had broken through and were captivating young musical minds across the country.
One of those minds was Jeff Hanna, a high school student in California, who longed for the day he could play guitar as well as Dylan. The youngster spent hours in his room practicing the licks to Dylan’s “Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right.” Eventually the sounds from his guitar seemed natural.
Soon a friend, Jimmie Fadden, joined Hanna, and the two began to create the beginnings of a band. Fadden’s drums and harmonica provided the beat, and Hanna’s guitar and soprano voice made up the front line.
It started small.
Initially called “The Dirt Band,” Hanna, Fadden and four other members — including Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Jackson Browne — began recording folk music in 1966.
In Hanna’s words, the group spent most of their time trying to “figure out how to not work for a living.” While success probably seemed fleeting, in the musical world, it came quickly.
By 1967, the group — renamed “The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band” — had recorded an album, “Buy for Me the Rain,” which quickly hit the Top 40 on the pop charts. In short order, the band appeared on “The Tonight Show” and at Carnegie Hall.
In the meantime, all-around musician John McEuen joined the band and brought talents on the guitar, fiddle, banjo and washtub bass. McEuen’s influence brought the band to new heights.
By 1970 they’d crossed over to country music, recording Jerry Jeff Walker’s “Mr. Bojangles,” a song that made the Top 10, albeit on the pop charts. But the influence of Walker’s country roots struck a chord, and music critics debated exactly where NGDB fit in music genres. The band did little to quiet the questions, performing in a bluegrass festival one day and opening for rock band Aerosmith the next.
In the meantime, they built a worldwide following.
In 1976, NGDB became the first ever U.S. group approved to tour the USSR by the Soviet government. They spent a month in Russia, touring incessantly and playing to live audiences and a television audience of nearly 150 million. The tour led to the release of the three-record anthology “Dirt, Silver and Gold.”
Following some personnel changes from 1977-1980, NGDB shifted closer than ever to country.
The band recorded the pop single “Voila (An American Dream)” that reached No. 13 on the charts and crossed over to air on country radio. More pop hits followed, but by the time former member Jimmy Ibbotson rejoined the band in 1982, signs were pointing to Nashville.
NGDB scored its first major country hit with the Top 10 “Dance Little Jean” in 1983, and it set off a whirlwind of activity on the country music circuit. The “Partners, Brothers and Friends” album produced the band’s first No. 1 single, “Long Hard Road” — a song that’s as country as they come.
With Jeff Hanna, Jimmie Fadden, John McEuen, Bob Carpenter and Jimmy Ibbotson, NGDB finally hit the “big time” as Ibbotson said they longed for in “Partners, Brothers and Friends.”
The band received nominations from the Country Music Association and the Academy of Country Music; then proceeded to rattle off 17 consecutive Top 10 country hits. Songs like “High Horse,” “Modern Day Romance,” “Home Again in my Heart” and — perhaps the group’s most popular song — “Fishin’ in the Dark” led the way to over a decade of country music success.
The group was on a roll heading into the 1990s.
In 1989, NGDB worked in collaboration with several country artists and released the second version of the album “Will the Circle Be Unbroken,” a reprise of one they cut in the early 1970s with Roy Acuff and the Carter Family making appearances.
The new version of the album brought back Acuff, along with Johnny Cash, Earl Scruggs and other traditional country artists. It was hailed internationally, won three Grammy Awards and was named CMA Album of the Year.
More Grammys and Gold records followed in the 1990s as NGDB began to take advantage of its staying power and venture into new projects. A PBS television project, the CMA Vocal Event of the Year (“The Holston River” with Johnny Cash) and a duet with Kris Kristofferson represented just a few of the NGDB projects
Their popularity endures in the 21st century.
In 2005, NGDB earned another Grammy for the Best Country Instrumental and “Earl’s Breakdown,” featuring Earl and Randy Scruggs, Jerry Douglas and Vassar Clements.
By 2010, NGDB began to consolidate, reducing its membership to just four. But the band continued to tour and work on various projects. The group was inducted into the Colorado Music Hall of Fame, played a sold-out 50th anniversary special at Ryman Auditorium, taped a PBS special and released “Circlin’ Back: Celebrating 50 Years.”
Eventually, longtime member John McEuen left the band. Losing someone who had been an anchor for so long was a hard blow — but NGDB seems to be a never-ending force. To this day, Jeff Hanna, together with his son, Jimmie Fadden and Bob Carpenter continue to tour, making stops around the country and reminding fans of a unique blend of music six decades in the making.
Until next time, when you’re in the mood for a catchy tune, I urge you to pull up NGDB’s “Dance Little Jean.” The beat will get your toes a-tappin’, and the lyrics will melt your heart.
Since retiring from a career as an outdoor recreation professional from the State of Arkansas, Kris Rutherford has worked as a freelance writer and, with his wife, owns and publishes a small Northeast Texas newspaper, The Roxton Progress. Kris has worked as a ghostwriter and editor and has authored seven books of his own. He became interested in the trucking industry as a child in the 1970s when his family traveled the interstates twice a year between their home in Maine and their native Texas. He has been a classic country music enthusiast since the age of nine when he developed a special interest in trucking songs.
