Good times with Nitty Gritty

For those that had never seen the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band live in concert before--on Saturday night they learned that there is much more to the Dirt Band than Mr. Bojangles, their top 10 hit from 1970 that launched them in to the pop music arena.  Of course, they performed hits like Mr. Bojangles, Fishin In the Dark, and An American Dream....but the real entertainment actually  came from all the other stuff.  Of course, John McEuen displayed his myriad of talent rolling out instrument after instrument--banjo, mandolin, acoustic guitar, fiddle while strolling all over the stage. Jimmy Fadden on drums and harmonica was purely delightful, and Jeff Hanna on lead vocals hardly sounded like a singer who's been with the band for 46 years. ( nor did he LOOK like it) Yes, these three men were with the Dirt Band when it began back in 1966.(and by the way, Les Thompson and Jackson Browne were also in the original line up)

 How rare it it to find a group of men that can stand each other for that long without egos and money ripping them apart.(and Bob Carpenter on keyboards and vocals has been with the band for more than 30 years!)  It seems that these men actually like and respect each other immensely...and the product of that is an audience-pleasing performance that is FILLED with great harmonies and individual instrumental accents, showcasing the incredible talent of each musician. The only hit they DIDN'T do, was  my favorite Dirt Band tune, "Make A Little Magic" from 1979. I thought they might roll it out for the encore, but instead the ended  the show with a soul-stirring rendition of "Will the Circle Be Unbroken",  taking fans back to their grammy nominated album  of the early 70s.

This is a band that, honestly, did not have a lot of chart hits, but have remained steady through the years, delivering high energy, top-quality music that fans obviously appreciate. The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band keeps coming to Grand Junction--and Grand Junction keeps going to see them in concert.