List of Nitty Gritty Dirt Band members

NGDB in 1976

The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band (NGDB) is an American country rock band from Long Beach, California. Formed in October 1965, the group was originally a jug band featuring guitarist and vocalist Jeff Hanna, guitarists Bruce Kunkel, Ralph Barr and Dave Hanna, bassist and guitarist Les Thompson, and drummer Glen Grosclose. The current lineup of the band features Jeff Hanna, Jimmie Fadden on drums, harmonica and vocals (since 1966), Bob Carpenter on keyboards and vocals (since 1979), Jim Photoglo on bass and guitar (since 2005), Jaime Hanna on guitar and vocals, and Ross Holmes on mandolin and fiddle (both since 2018).

History

1965–1982

The NGDB evolved from the Illegitimate Jug Band in late 1965, with the original lineup featuring Jeff Hanna, Bruce Kunkel, Ralph Barr, Les Thompson, Dave Hanna and Glen Grosclose. ^[1] By February 1966, Dave Hanna and Grosclose had left, with their places taken by Jackson Browne and Jimmie Fadden. ^[1] Browne remained only until July, when he left to start a solo career. ^[2] He was replaced the following month by John McEuen, who played banjo, mandolin, guitar and fiddle. ^[3] After the release of The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band and Ricochet , Kunkel left the NGDB in December 1967 and was replaced by Chris Darrow, formerly of Kaleidoscope. ^[4] Darrow contributed to the studio album Rare Junk and the live release Alive! , before the band went on hiatus at the end of 1968. ^[5]

Six months later, the band returned with Jimmy Ibbotson in place of Darrow. ^[5] Three albums followed – Uncle Charlie & His Dog Teddy , All the Good Times and Will the Circle Be Unbroken – before the group was reduced to a quartet when Thompson departed in late 1973. ^[6] By mid-1976, Ibbotson had also left and new members John Cable (guitar, bass, vocals) and Jackie Clark (bass, guitar, keyboards) had joined the group, whose name had been shortened to simply the Dirt Band. ^[7] Around a month after returning home following a string of shows in the Soviet Union, Clark left the Dirt Band and Cable was dismissed by Hanna. ^[8] Hanna, Fadden and McEuen then rebuilt the band with the addition of bassist Richard Hathaway, saxophonist Al Garth and drummer Merel Bregante. ^[9]

The Dirt Band went through a succession of drummers during its tenure – by the summer of 1979, Bregante had been replaced by Mike Buono, ^[10] former Jimmy Buffett drummer Michael Gardner took over from Buono in May 1980, ^[11] and the following year saw Vic Mastrianni take over the position. ^[12] After contributing to The Dirt Band and An American Dream as a guest session contributor, keyboardist Bob Carpenter officially joined the group in 1979. ^[13] Jealousy followed in 1981, after which Garth also left and was replaced briefly by Bryan Savage. ^[14]

1982 onwards

By 1982, Jimmy Ibbotson had returned and the Dirt Band had reverted to its original name of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. ^[5] As a five-piece, the group released four studio albums in four years, before McEuen left in January 1987 to focus on his family. ^[15] He was replaced in March by former Eagles guitarist Bernie Leadon, ^[16] although he only remained until the following July, when he left to focus on his solo career. ^[17] The NGDB remained a four-piece for the following 13 years, before McEuen rejoined for a run of reunion shows starting in July 2001. ^[18] The return of McEuen was later made official for a new album and resulting tours. ^[19] After the tour for 2004's Welcome to Woody Creek , the group returned to a four-piece again when Ibbotson left for a second time. ^[20]

In May 2016, Jim Photoglo joined the NGDB in time for the group's 50th anniversary tour. ^[21] McEuen left for a second time in October 2017, claiming an "ongoing difference of opinions" with other members. ^[22] For tour dates the following year, the remaining four members were joined by Hanna's son Jaime on guitar and vocals, and Ross Holmes on fiddle, mandolin and vocals. ^[23]

Members

Current

Image	Name	Years active	Instruments	Release contributions
	Jeff Hanna	1965–present	vocals guitars washboard percussion mandolin (until 1967) drums (1967–77)	all Nitty Gritty Dirt Band (NGDB) releases
	Jimmie Fadden	1966–present	drums harmonica vocals guitars (until 1977) washtub bass, jug (until 1968)
	Bob Carpenter	1979–present (session 1977–79)	keyboards accordion keyboard bass vocals	all NGDB releases from The Dirt Band (1978) onwards
	Jim Photoglo	2016–present	bass guitars vocals	none as yet – live performances only
	Jaime Hanna	2018–present	guitars vocals
	Ross Holmes		fiddle mandolin vocals

Former

Image	Name	Years active	Instruments	Release contributions
	Les Thompson	1965–1973	bass guitars mandolin percussion banjo vocals	all NGDB releases from The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band (1967) to Symphonion Dream (1975)
	Ralph Barr	1965–1968	guitars clarinet kazoo washtub bass vocals	The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band (1967) Ricochet (1967) Rare Junk (1968) Alive! (1969)
	Bruce Kunkel	1965–1967	guitars washtub bass kazoo vocals	The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band (1967) Ricochet (1967)
	Dave Hanna	1965–1966	guitars vocals	none – live performances only
	Glen Grosclose		drums
	Jackson Browne	1966	guitars vocals
	John McEuen	1966–1987 2001–2017	banjo mandolin guitars vocals fiddle (1974–86) keyboards (until 1968)	all NGDB releases from The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band (1967) to Hold On (1987) Welcome to Woody Creek (2004) Speed of Life (2009) Circlin' Back: Celebrating 50 Years (2016)
	Chris Darrow	1967–1968 (died 2020)	guitars mandolin fiddle bass vocals	Rare Junk (1968) Alive! (1969)
	Jimmy Ibbotson	1969–1976 1982–2004	vocals guitar bass (from 1973) mandolin (from 1982) drums, keyboards (until 1976)	all NGDB releases from Uncle Charlie & His Dog Teddy (1970) to Symphonion Dream (1975), and from Let's Go (1983) to Welcome to Woody Creek (2004) Circlin' Back: Celebrating 50 Years (2016)
	John Cable	1976–1977	guitars bass vocals	Dirt, Silver and Gold (1976) – nine new recordings
	Jackie Clark		bass guitars keyboards
	Richard Hathaway	1977–1982	bass percussion vocals	all NDGB releases from The Dirt Band (1978) to Jealousy (1981)
	Al Garth	1977–1981	saxophones flute fiddle keyboards percussion recorder guitars vocals
	Merel Bregante	1977–1979	drums percussion vocals	The Dirt Band (1978) An American Dream (1979)
	Michael Buono	1979–1980	drums	none – live performances only
	Michael Gardner	1980–1981
	Vic Mastrianni	1981–1982
	Bryan Savage		saxophones flute keyboards percussion
	Bernie Leadon	1987–1988	banjo guitars mandolin mandocello vocals	Rare Junk (1968) – guest appearance on one track Will the Circle Be Unbroken: Volume Two (1989) – two tracks Workin' Band (1988)

Timeline

Lineups

Period	Members	Releases
October 1965 – February 1966	Jeff Hanna – guitar, mandolin, washboard, kazoo, vocals Bruce Kunkel – guitar, washtub bass, kazoo, vocals Ralph Barr – guitar, clarinet, washtub bass, kazoo, vocals Dave Hanna – guitar, vocals Les Thompson – washtub bass, guitar, mandolin, kazoo, vocals Glen Grosclose – drums	none – live performances only
February – July 1966	Jeff Hanna – guitar, mandolin, washboard, kazoo, vocals Bruce Kunkel – guitar, washtub bass, kazoo, vocals Ralph Barr – guitar, clarinet, washtub bass, kazoo, vocals Jackson Browne – guitar, vocals Les Thompson – washtub bass, guitar, mandolin, kazoo, vocals Jimmie Fadden – drums, harmonica, washtub bass, vocals
August 1966 – December 1967	Jeff Hanna – guitar, mandolin, washboard, kazoo, vocals Bruce Kunkel – guitar, washtub bass, kazoo, vocals Ralph Barr – guitar, clarinet, washtub bass, kazoo, vocals Les Thompson – washtub bass, guitar, mandolin, kazoo, vocals John McEuen – banjo, guitar, mandolin, washtub bass Jimmie Fadden – drums, harmonica, guitar, washtub bass, vocals	The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band (1967) Ricochet (1967)
December 1967 – December 1968	Jeff Hanna – guitar, washboard, drums, bass, vocals Ralph Barr – guitar, clarinet, washtub bass, kazoo, vocals Chris Darrow – guitar, mandolin, fiddle, bass, vocals Les Thompson – bass, guitar, mandolin, vocals John McEuen – banjo, guitar, mandolin, keyboards Jimmie Fadden – drums, harmonica, guitar, washtub bass, vocals	Rare Junk (1968) Alive! (1968)
June 1969 – late 1973	Jeff Hanna – guitar, washboard, drums, percussion, vocals Jimmy Ibbotson – guitar, drums, keyboards, vocals Les Thompson – bass, guitar, mandolin, banjo, vocals John McEuen – banjo, guitar, mandolin, accordion Jimmie Fadden – drums, harmonica, guitar, washtub bass, vocals	Uncle Charlie & His Dog Teddy (1970) All the Good Times (1971) Will the Circle Be Unbroken (1972)
Late 1973 – May 1976	Jeff Hanna – guitar, washboard, drums, percussion, vocals Jimmy Ibbotson – bass, guitar, drums, keyboards, vocals John McEuen – banjo, guitar, mandolin, fiddle, accordion Jimmie Fadden – drums, harmonica, guitar, percussion, vocals	Stars & Stripes Forever (1974) Symphonion Dream (1975)
May 1976 – summer 1977 (as The Dirt Band)	Jeff Hanna – guitar, washboard, drums, percussion, vocals John Cable – guitar, bass, vocals Jackie Clark – bass, guitar, keyboards John McEuen – banjo, guitar, mandolin, fiddle, accordion Jimmie Fadden – drums, harmonica, guitar, percussion, vocals	Dirt, Silver and Gold (1976) – new tracks
Late 1977 – summer 1979 (as The Dirt Band)	Jeff Hanna – guitar, washboard, percussion, vocals Jimmie Fadden – guitar, harmonica, percussion, vocals Richard Hathaway – bass, percussion, vocals John McEuen – banjo, guitar, mandolin, fiddle Al Garth – saxophone, fiddle, keyboards, percussion, vocals Merel Bregante – drums, percussion, vocals	The Dirt Band (1978) An American Dream (1979)
Summer 1979 – May 1980 (as The Dirt Band)	Jeff Hanna – guitar, washboard, percussion, vocals Jimmie Fadden – guitar, harmonica, percussion, vocals Richard Hathaway – bass, percussion, vocals John McEuen – banjo, guitar, mandolin, fiddle Bob Carpenter – keyboards, piano, accordion, vocals Al Garth – saxophone, fiddle, keyboards, percussion, vocals Mike Buono – drums(touring member only)	none – live performances only
May 1980 – summer 1981 (as The Dirt Band)	Jeff Hanna – guitar, washboard, percussion, vocals Jimmie Fadden – guitar, harmonica, percussion, vocals Richard Hathaway – bass, percussion, vocals John McEuen – banjo, guitar, mandolin, fiddle Bob Carpenter – keyboards, piano, accordion, vocals Al Garth – saxophone, fiddle, keyboards, percussion, vocals Michael Gardner – drums(touring member only)	Make a Little Magic (1980) Jealousy (1981)
Summer 1981 – 1982 (as The Dirt Band)	Jeff Hanna – guitar, washboard, percussion, vocals Jimmie Fadden – guitar, harmonica, percussion, vocals Richard Hathaway – bass, percussion, vocals John McEuen – banjo, guitar, mandolin, fiddle Bob Carpenter – keyboards, piano, accordion, vocals Bryan Savage – saxophone, flute, keyboards, percussion Vic Mastrianni – drums(touring member only)	none – live performances only
1982 – January 1987	Jeff Hanna – guitar, washboard, percussion, vocals Jimmy Ibbotson – bass, guitar, mandolin, percussion, vocals John McEuen – banjo, guitar, mandolin, fiddle Jimmie Fadden – drums, harmonica, percussion, vocals Bob Carpenter – keyboards, piano, accordion, vocals	Let's Go (1983) Plain Dirt Fashion (1984) Partners, Brothers and Friends (1985) "Stand a Little Rain" (1986) Hold On (1987)
March 1987 – July 1988	Jeff Hanna – guitar, washboard, percussion, vocals Jimmy Ibbotson – bass, guitar, mandolin, percussion, vocals Bernie Leadon – banjo, guitar, mandolin, vocals Jimmie Fadden – drums, harmonica, percussion, vocals Bob Carpenter – keyboards, piano, accordion, vocals	Workin' Band (1988)
July 1988 – July 2001	Jeff Hanna – guitar, washboard, percussion, vocals Jimmy Ibbotson – bass, guitar, mandolin, percussion, vocals Jimmie Fadden – drums, harmonica, percussion, vocals Bob Carpenter – keyboards, piano, accordion, vocals	Will the Circle Be Unbroken, Volume Two (1989) The Rest of the Dream (1990) Live Two Five (1991) Not Fade Away (1992) Acoustic (1994) The Christmas Album (1997) Bang Bang Bang (1999)
July 2001 – late 2004	Jeff Hanna – guitar, washboard, percussion, vocals Jimmy Ibbotson – bass, guitar, mandolin, percussion, vocals John McEuen – banjo, guitar, mandolin, fiddle Jimmie Fadden – drums, harmonica, percussion, vocals Bob Carpenter – keyboards, piano, accordion, vocals	Will the Circle Be Unbroken, Volume III (2002) Welcome to Woody Creek (2004)
Late 2004 – May 2016	Jeff Hanna – guitar, washboard, percussion, vocals John McEuen – banjo, guitar, mandolin, fiddle Jimmie Fadden – drums, harmonica, percussion, vocals Bob Carpenter – keyboards, piano, accordion, vocals	Speed of Life (2009) Circlin' Back: Celebrating 50 Years (2016)
May 2016 – October 2017	Jeff Hanna – guitar, washboard, percussion, vocals Jim Photoglo – bass, acoustic guitar, vocals John McEuen – banjo, guitar, mandolin, fiddle Jimmie Fadden – drums, harmonica, percussion, vocals Bob Carpenter – keyboards, piano, accordion, vocals	none – live performances only
October 2017 – May 2018	Jeff Hanna – guitar, washboard, percussion, vocals Jim Photoglo – bass, acoustic guitar, vocals Jimmie Fadden – drums, harmonica, percussion, vocals Bob Carpenter – keyboards, piano, accordion, vocals
May 2018 – present	Jeff Hanna – guitar, washboard, percussion, vocals Jaime Hanna – guitar, vocals Jim Photoglo – bass, acoustic guitar, vocals Jimmie Fadden – drums, harmonica, percussion, vocals Bob Carpenter – keyboards, piano, accordion, vocals Ross Holmes – fiddle, mandolin, vocals

References

1. "A Tree Grows In Aspen" (PDF). Billboard . Vol. 86, no. 30. Los Angeles. July 27, 1974. p. 59. Retrieved November 25, 2019.
2. Hinton, Brian (June 26, 2012). Country Roads: How Country Came to Nashville. London, England: Bobcat Books. p. 574. ISBN   978-0857128447 . Retrieved November 25, 2019.
3. Deming, Mark. "John McEuen: Biography & History". AllMusic . Retrieved November 25, 2019.
4. "Dirt Band Drops Ork-Rock, Gets Back To Nitty Gritty" (PDF). Cash Box . Vol. 29, no. 21. New York City. December 16, 1967. p. 46. Retrieved November 25, 2019.
5. Eder, Bruce. "The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band: Biography & History". AllMusic . Retrieved November 25, 2019.
6. Mayer, Ira (February 2, 1974). "Country in New York" (PDF). Record World . Vol. 29, no. 1389. New York City. p. 57. Retrieved November 25, 2019.
7. Mayer, Ira; Taylor, Barry (May 29, 1976). "New York, N.Y." (PDF). Record World . Vol. 31, no. 1510. New York City. p. 25. Retrieved November 25, 2019.
8. McEuen, John (April 1, 2018). Life I've Picked: A Banjo Player's Nitty Gritty Journey. Chicago, Illinois: Chicago Review Press. p. 102. ISBN   978-1613738986 . Retrieved November 25, 2019.
9. Herbeck, Ray Jr. (July 8, 1978). "The Dirt Band, Le Roux, Roxy, Los Angeles" (PDF). Billboard . Vol. 90, no. 27. New York City. p. 40. Retrieved November 25, 2019.
10. "'Dream' Makers" (PDF). Record World . Vol. 36, no. 1678. New York City. September 15, 1979. p. 83. Retrieved November 25, 2019.
11. Rayl, Salley (June 2, 1980). "With Ronstadt's Help, the Old Nitty Gritty Band Returns to Pay Dirt with 'American Dream'". People . Retrieved November 25, 2019.
12. Flans, Robyn (January 1983). "Up & Coming: Vic Mastrianni". Modern Drummer . Retrieved November 25, 2019.
13. Oksenhorn, Stewart (July 22, 2013). "Still Gritty after all these years". Aspen Times . Retrieved November 25, 2019.
14. "Bryan Savage Bio". Bryan Savage. Retrieved November 25, 2019.
15. Bee, Katy (January 16, 1987). "Group Changes On Horizon" (PDF). Radio & Records . No. 669. Los Angeles. p. 58. Retrieved November 25, 2019.
16. "Leadon Strikes Pay Dirt" (PDF). Radio & Records . No. 677. Los Angeles. March 13, 1987. p. 55. Retrieved November 25, 2019.
17. Fennell, Debe (July 15, 1988). "Bits & Pieces" (PDF). Radio & Records . No. 746. Los Angeles. p. 49. Retrieved November 25, 2019.
18. "Country Beat: Billy Gilman, Hank Thompson, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band..." MTV . July 9, 2001. Retrieved November 25, 2019.
19. Iwasaki, Scott (July 12, 2002). "Nitty Gritty Dirt Band: After a 15-year layoff, John McEuen rejoins for a new album, tour". Deseret News . Retrieved November 25, 2019.
20. "Jim Ibbotson '69 Discusses Life After the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band". DePauw University. August 10, 2006. Retrieved November 25, 2019.
21. Photoglo, Jim (May 8, 2016). "For the immediate future". Jim Photoglo . Retrieved November 25, 2019.
22. McCarthy, Amy (October 30, 2017). "John McEuen Quits the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band". The Boot. Retrieved November 25, 2019.
23. Moore, Shirelle (June 19, 2018). "Nitty Gritty Dirt Band Brings "American Dream" To Bemidji". Lakeland PBS . Retrieved November 25, 2019.

External links

• Nitty Gritty Dirt Band official website