The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band

The Illegitimate Jug Band(1966)
  • Jeff Hanna - guitar/vocals - b. July 11, 1947, Detroit, Michigan.
  • Jimmie Fadden - guitar/harmonica/washtub bass/vocals - b. March 9, 1948, Long Beach, California.
  • Jackson Browne - guitar/vocals - b. October 9, 1948, Heidelberg, West Germany.
  • Ralph Barr - guitar/clarinet/vocals - b. Boston, Massachusetts.
  • Les Thompson - bass/guitar/vocals - b. Long Beach, California.
  • Bruce Kunkel - guitar/violin/vocals - b. ca 1948, Long Beach, California.
Jackson Browne leaves for solo career.
The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band I(1966 - 1968)
  • Jeff Hanna - guitar/vocals
  • Jimmie Fadden - guitar/harmonica/washtub bass/vocals
  • Ralph Barr - guitar/clarinet/vocals
  • Les Thompson - bass/guitar/vocals
  • Bruce Kunkel - guitar/violin/vocals
  • John McEuen - guitar/fiddle/banjo/mandolin/vocals - b. December 19, 1945, Long Beach, California.
Albums:
  1. "Nitty Gritty Dirt Band" (1967)
  2. "Ricochet" (1967)
The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band II(1968 - 1969)
  • Jeff Hanna - guitar/vocals
  • Jimmie Fadden - guitar/harmonica/washtub bass/vocals
  • Ralph Barr - guitar/clarinet/vocals
  • Les Thompson - bass/guitar/vocals
  • John McEuen - guitar/fiddle/banjo/mandolin/vocals
  • Chris Darrow - guitar/fiddle
Albums:
  1. "Rare Junk" (1968)
  2. "Alive" (1969)
  3. "Alive / Rare Junk" (2-fer) (1995)
The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band III(1969 - 1974)
  • Jeff Hanna - guitar/vocals/drums/washboard/percussion
  • Jimmie Fadden - guitar/harmonica/vocals
  • Les Thompson - bass/guitar/vocals/mandolin
  • John McEuen - guitar/fiddle/banjo/mandolin/accordian/vocals
  • Jimmy Ibbotson - guitar/keyboards/drums/accordian/vocals - b. January 21, 1947, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Albums:
  1. "Uncle Charlie and His Dog Teddy" (1970)
  2. "All the Good Times" (1972)
  3. "Will the Circle Be Unbroken" (1972)
The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band IV(1974 - 1976)
  • Jeff Hanna - guitar/vocals/drums/washboard/percussion
  • Jimmie Fadden - guitar/harmonica/vocals
  • John McEuen - guitar/fiddle/banjo/mandolin/accordian/vocals
  • Jimmy Ibbotson - guitar/keyboards/drums/accordian/vocals
Albums:
  1. "Stars and Stripes Forever" (1974)
  2. "Dream" (1975) - One of the greatest, most unknown and under-appreciated albums of all time, with styles ranging from bluegrass to flat-out rock-and-roll, all done with impeccable taste and musicianship.  If you don't own this, your missing a great album.
Jimmy Ibbotson leaves for solo career.
The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band V(1976 - 1977)
  • Jeff Hanna - guitar/vocals/drums/washboard/percussion
  • Jimmie Fadden - guitar/harmonica/vocals
  • John McEuen - guitar/fiddle/banjo/mandolin/accordian/vocals
  • John Cable - guitar/bass/vocals
  • Jackie Clark - bass/guitar
The Dirt Band VI (1977 - 1978)
  • Jeff Hanna - guitar/vocals/drums/washboard/percussion
  • Jimmie Fadden - guitar/harmonica/vocals
  • John McEuen - guitar/fiddle/banjo/mandolin/accordian/vocals
  • Al Garth - sax/fiddle/horns/keyboards/percussion
  • Merel Bregante - drums/percussion
  • Richard Hathaway - bass
Album:
  1. "The Dirt Band" (1978)
The Dirt Band VII (1978 - 1980)
  • Jeff Hanna - guitar/vocals/drums/washboard/percussion
  • Jimmie Fadden - guitar/harmonica/vocals
  • John McEuen - guitar/fiddle/banjo/mandolin/accordian/vocals
  • Al Garth - violin/keyboards/sax/vocals
  • Richard Hathaway - bass
Album:
  1. "An American Dream" (1979)
The Dirt Band VIII (1980 - 1983)
  • Jeff Hanna - guitar/vocals/drums/washboard/percussion
  • Jimmie Fadden - guitar/harmonica/vocals
  • John McEuen - guitar/fiddle/banjo/mandolin/accordian/vocals
  • Bob Carpenter - keyboards/accordian/vocals
  • Al Garth - violin/keyboards/sax/vocals
  • Richard Hathaway - bass/vocals
Albums:
  1. "Make A Little Magic" (1980)
  2. "Jealousy" (1981)
The Dirt Band IX (1983 - 1987)
  • Jeff Hanna - guitar/vocals/drums/washboard/percussion
  • Jimmie Fadden - guitar/harmonica/vocals
  • John McEuen - guitar/fiddle/banjo/mandolin/accordian/vocals
  • Bob Carpenter - keyboards/accordian/vocals
  • Jimmy Ibbotson - guitar/keyboards/drums/accordian/vocals
Albums:
  1. "Let's Go" (1983)
  2. "Plain Dirt Fashion" (1984)
  3. "Partners, Brothers and Friends" (1985)
John McEuen leaves for solo career.
The Dirt Band X (1987)
  • Jeff Hanna - guitar/vocals/drums/washboard/percussion
  • Jimmie Fadden - guitar/harmonica/vocals
  • Bob Carpenter - keyboards/accordian/vocals
  • Jimmy Ibbotson - guitar/keyboards/drums/accordian/vocals
Album:
  1. "Hold On" (1987)
The Dirt Band XI (1987 - 1988)
  • Jeff Hanna - guitar/vocals/drums/washboard/percussion
  • Jimmie Fadden - guitar/harmonica/vocals
  • Bob Carpenter - keyboards/accordian/vocals
  • Jimmy Ibbotson - guitar/keyboards/drums/accordian/vocals
  • Bernie Leadon - vocals/guitar/banjo/mandolin/mandocello - b. July 19, 1947, Minneapolis, Minnesota - formerly with The Flying Burrito Brothers, The Dillard & Clark Expedition, Linda Ronstadt's backup band, The Eagles, and the Bernie Leadon - Michael Georgiades Band, and performed as Nashville session musician.
Album:
  1. "Workin' Band" (1988)
Bernie Leadon forms Run-C&W country band with Russell Smith (ex-Amazing Rhythm Aces). 
The Dirt Band XII (1988 - Present)
  • Jeff Hanna - guitar/vocals/drums/washboard/percussion
  • Jimmie Fadden - guitar/harmonica/vocals
  • Bob Carpenter - keyboards/accordian/vocals
  • Jimmy Ibbotson - guitar/keyboards/drums/accordian/vocals
Albums:
  1. "Will the Circle Be Unbroken, Volume II" (1989)
  2. "The Rest of the Dream" (1990)
  3. "Live-Two-Five" (1991)
  4. "Not Fade Away" (1992)
  5. "Acoustic" (1994)
  6. "The Christmas Album" (1997)
  7. "Bang Bang Bang" (1998)
Compilations:
  1. "Dirt, Silver and Gold" (1976)
  2. "Twenty Years of Dirt: The Best of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band" (1986)
  3. "The Best of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band" (1987)
  4. "More Great Dirt: Best of Nitty Gritty Dirt Band" (1988)
  5. "Greatest Hits" (1990)
  6. "Super Hits" (2000)
John McEuen solo:
  1. "John McEuen" (1987)
  2. "String Wizards" (1992)
  3. "String Wizards II" (1994)
  4. "Acoustic Traveller" (1996)
  5. "String Wizard's Picks" (1997)
  6. "Round Trip: Live In L.A." (live) (1999)
  7. "Stories And Songs" (2000) (with Jimmy Ibbotson)
Jimmy Ibbotson solo:
  1. "Nitty Gritty Ibbotson" (1977)
  2. "Stories And Songs" (2000) (with John McEuen)
Links:
  • Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
  • The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band Online
  • "DESPERADOS: The Roots of Country Rock" - by John Einarson; published by Cooper Square Press - Let me say right up front that I have been a big fan of country rock music ever since hearing the "Pickin' Up The Pieces" single from Poco's debut album.  Poco has remained a favorite of mine through the years, although I always believed they were overlooked as a significant influence on popular music into the 1970s and the "new country" movement in the 1990s.  Thankfully, this oversight is corrected by John Einarson in his book, "DESPERADOS: The Roots of Country Rock", which traces the history of country rock's rise in Southern California from the early days in the late 1960s up to The Eagles (unquestionably the most commercially-viable country rock band of all time).  Having previously read one of Mr. Einarson's biographies on The Guess Who, I was anxious to see how he approached my favorite type of music...I was not disappointed.  "DESPERADOS: The Roots of Country Rock" is an intricate tale of musicians struggling to be heard amidst the psychedelic and hard-rock sounds flooding the airwaves at the time...and these early country rockers did make themselves heard...The Byrds, The Flying Burrito Brothers, Gram Parsons, Emmylou Harris, Poco, Buffalo Springfield, Clarence White, The Eagles, Michael Nesmith (remember The Monkees?...Nesmith made some great country rock music after that gig was over), The Dillards, Rick Nelson and The Stone Canyon Band, The Dillard and Clark Expedition, Linda Ronstadt, The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band...the list could go on and on.  This book covers the early days of country rock from it's beginnings in the late 1960s to the tragic year of 1973 (when the music world lost two country rock pioneers: guitarist-extraordinaire Clarence White and Gram Parsons) and examines the influence this music has had on second-generation country rock bands such as Pure Prairie League and Firefall.  In addition, the impact of these early country rockers on the "new country" music of the 1980s and the "alternative country" movement of the late-1990s and beyond is explored from a "roots" perspective.  This is a tale masterfully woven by Mr. Einarson, based on more than 60 exclusive interviews with the originators and innovators of country rock.  The amount of information and level of detail contained in these 288 pages is astounding, and there are 31 black and white photographs (some of which I've never seen before).  The only improvement that I would recommend is the inclusion of a comprehensive index in the next edition (this would really help in finding information on specific artists).  Even though I've been following country rock music for years, I learned a lot from this book.  The quotes gleaned from Mr. Einarson's interviews during research for this book are particularly helpful in understanding the origin and development of country rock. "DESPERADOS: The Roots of Country Rock" is required reading for all fans of country rock or anyone interested in late-1960s to early-1970s music. Highly recommended.

Take me back to the Index...
Last Revised:  November 26, 2001
Copyright © 1999, 2001 by Gary S. Hartman.  All rights reserved.