History
Nitty Gritty Dirt Band was founded in Long Beach, California, in 1966. Prior to the band's foundation, guitarists and singers Jeff Hanna and Bruce Kunkel were high school friends who had played in a local duo called the New Coast Two.[1] As they wanted to form a larger group, the two began playing impromptu jam sessions at a Long Beach music shop called McCabe's Guitar Shop. Through these performances, they recruited four other musicians. These were Jimmie Fadden, who at the time played washtub bass, harmonica, and guitar, along with Ralph Barr (guitar, clarinet), Les Thompson (guitar, mandolin), and Jackson Browne (guitar). All six members of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band also served as vocalists. Browne quit the group after only a few months and was replaced by John McEuen, who contributed on guitar, mandolin, banjo, and washtub bass.[1]
John's brother William, serving as the band's manager, helped them secure a contract with Liberty Records in 1967. Through this label, the band released their self-titled debut album that year. "Buy for Me the Rain" was released as a single from this project, and it reached number 45 on the Billboard Hot 100.[2] The band released another album for Liberty, Ricochet, later in 1967. After this album, Kunkel quit over creative differences in the band's sound, and was replaced by multi-instrumentalist Chris Darrow.[1]
- ^ a b c Mark Deming. "Nitty Gritty Dirt Band biography". AllMusic. Retrieved July 8, 2024.
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2011). Top Pop Singles 1955–2010. Record Research, Inc. p. 653. ISBN 978-0-89820-188-8.