Nitty Gritty Dirt Band

History

The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band was founded in Long Beach, California, in 1966. Founding guitarist Jeff Hanna, originally from Detroit, Michigan, had moved to Long Beach four years earlier. In high school he befriended guitarist Bruce Kunkel, and the two performed as a duo called the New Coast Two. Wanting a larger group, they held impromptu jam sessions at McCabe's Guitar Shop in Santa Monica, recruiting Jimmie Fadden (washtub bass, harmonica, guitar), Ralph Barr (guitar, clarinet), Les Thompson (guitar, mandolin), and Jackson Browne (guitar); all six sang.

Browne left after a few months and was replaced by John McEuen (guitar, mandolin, banjo, washtub bass). The group briefly called themselves the Illegitimate Jug Band because they played jug band music without a jug player. They then chose the name Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, inspired by the long, unusual names of many contemporary bands, such as Strawberry Alarm Clock. John McEuen's older brother William E. McEuen managed the band, booking them as opening acts for artists like Joan Baez and securing a contract with Liberty Records.

Liberty released their self-titled debut album in 1967; the single 'Buy for Me the Rain' reached number 45 on the Billboard Hot 100. A second Liberty album, Ricochet, followed later that year. Mary Campbell of the Associated Press noted the band's use of acoustic instruments and rudimentary folk instruments such as washtub bass, kazoo, and comb and paper, and observed that their clothing and song choices, including a cover of 'Teddy Bears' Picnic', reflected the music and mindset of the 1920s.

Musical styles

The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band's music spans a wide range of styles. Colin Larkin, in The Virgin Encyclopedia of Country Music, wrote that their early albums contained jug band and Vaudeville influences, while by the release of Uncle Charlie and His Dog Teddy they had abandoned the jokey elements and pursued a career as purveyors of superior country rock. AllMusic's Mark Deming noted bluegrass influences in the 'Mr. Bojangles' cover and the tracks from the first Will the Circle Be Unbroken album, and defined the band's late-1970s output as soft rock, with their 1990s and 21st-century material indebted to American folk music.

Stephen Thomas Erlewine also noticed soft rock influences on The Dirt Band. Rickey Ferguson wrote that country influences were more evident on Plain Dirt Fashion due to the use of instruments such as fiddle and mandolin. Holly Gleason noted the twang in Hanna's and Ibbotson's singing voices and thought the rhythm sections were stronger than usual for a country band. During the release of Will the Circle Be Unbroken, the members' long-haired appearance was considered counter to the typical look of country music acts at the time; Bill Monroe reportedly refused an offer to appear on the album, and Roy Acuff was initially apprehensive before joining.

The band stated that an impetus behind their shift to country music in the 1980s was the lack of a successful pop song after 'An American Dream' and 'Make a Little Magic', followed by a realization that members of the Nashville country music community were still fans of their music. They also believed that the first two Will the Circle Be Unbroken projects helped to dim the lines between pop and country, especially since country rock was still new when the first was recorded.

Walter Tunis of the Lexington Herald-Leader considered them an early example of the California-based country rock movement of the 1970s furthered by bands such as the Flying Burrito Brothers and Eagles, a comparison strengthened when Leadon, a former member of both bands, joined. Tunis also thought their success in country in the 1980s was more indebted to marketing and changes in listener taste than to a shift in the band's sound. Leadon stated that he heard influences of the Eagles within the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band's songs.