Erika Tungland
Staff Writer
Photo courtesy Center for the Arts
Fans of classic rock/country hybrid music unite: On Oct. 7, The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band will perform in Smother’s Theatre at 8 p.m. as a part of the President’s Choice Series.
The President’s Choice Series is a selection of concerts chosen by President Andrew K. Benton for groups to share their influential music.
“Each year I hope to provide some additional resources to the Center for the Arts to bring in artists who are both outstanding performers and who are also influential to other artists,” Benton said.
Benton said The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band falls into this category.
“The Dirt Band offers fine instrumentalists, beautiful harmonies and timeless lyrics. Anyone who loves good music performed by incomparable artists who have impacted the music of some of the most prominent performers around, will enjoy this concert.”
Inspired by everything from rock ’n’ roll to contemporary folk music, Jeff Hanna started a band with friend Bruce Kunkel as a duo called New Coast Two, then formed a group called the Illegitimate Jug Band. Once in college, Hanna, Jimmy Ibbotson, Jimmie Fadden, Bob Carpenter, and John McEuen decided to create a new band. They formed The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band in the 1960s in Long Beach, Calif. They would congregate at McCabe’s Guitar Shop and jam under the influence of Elvis, Eddie Cochran and Peter, Paul, and Mary.
Throughout the band’s history, the members have changed often, yet two of the fundamental members still remain: Hanna, a leader of the band, contributes the guitar, mandolin, washboard, and vocals; and Jimmie Fadden supplies the guitar, harmonica, washtub bass, and vocals.
After releasing four albums with little success, in 1971 the band’s hard work began to pay off. They reached their celebrity status with the release of their album “Uncle Charlie and His Dog Teddy.” Their single, a cover of Jerry Jeff Walker’s “Mr. Bojangles,” jumped onto the pop chart’s Top 10.
Their next top-charting album was the three CD collection “Will the Circle Be Unbroken.” This album went platinum and earned two Grammy nominations — they had officially made it.
As the group experienced and grew together, their music began to evolve. The band began by successfully mixing country music with a rock edge, and they were ready to try something new. In the 1980s, they decided to try pure country music. Some of their country hits include “Dance Little Jean,” which went into the top 10 on the country charts, and “Fishin’ in the Dark.”
“Long Hard Road,” off their “Plain Dirt Fashion” album, was the group’s first number one single. Once they earned their first No. 1 single, they remained with a song on the top 10 chart for 17 singles and were able to have two more No. 1 hits. They won their first award at the Country Music Awards, in the album of the year category, for the CD “Will the Circle Be Unbroken II.”
To add to their list of accomplishments, in 1984, along with performing at the Olympic Games, they were also the first American band to perform in the Soviet Union.
In 2002, “Will the Circle Be Unbroken” was remastered for its 30th anniversary of the album, proving the band can stand the test of time. In their 44 years together as a band, they created 30 albums, with 21 albums reaching the Billboard chart and at least 30 songs on the Billboard singles chart. They won three Grammy Awards and one CMA award.
In October 2001, the band held a reunion tour reuniting old members John McEuen and Jim Ibbotson with the new ones, for a full Nitty Gritty Dirt Band concert.
Today, they will be performing in Smother’s Theatre. Tickets are selling for today’s performance for $55 through TicketMaster or by calling ext. 4522. Information is available online at www.pepperdine.edu/arts.
10-07-2004
