Celebrating their 50th anniversary, the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band released a new retrospective two-disc set, Anthology, on Sept. 29 via Capitol Nashville/UMe. Beginning with “Buy For Me the Rain,” their first track from their 1967 self-titled Capitol Records debut, and culminating with “The Resurrection” from their most recent studio release, 2009’s Speed of Life, the collection is a 39-track career overview, which includes liner notes from journalist and author Holly Gleason.
Co-founder Jeff Hanna says, in a press release, “We really wanted this collection to historically reflect our band’s timeline, but in addition to that, felt like it was important to include deeper cuts (‘Fish Song,’ ‘Cosmic Cowboy’) and instrumentals (‘Randy Lynn Rag,’ ‘Midnight at Woody Creek’), and fan favorites (‘Ripplin’ Waters,’ ‘Bayou Jubilee’).”
The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
Anthology is available for order here.
The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band mixedelements of country, bluegrass, folk, mountain music, and rock ’n’ roll. Formed in Long Beach, Calif., in 1966, they are perhaps best known for their 1972 album, Will the Circle Be Unbroken. Released in 1972, Volume 1 saw the band pairing with bluegrass and country legends of the ’40s, ’50s and ’60s such as Roy Acuff, “Mother” Maybelle Carter, Doc Watson, Earl Scruggs, Merle Travis, and Pete “Oswald” Kirby. The album has been inducted into the U.S. Library of Congress as well as the Grammy Hall of Fame.
Related: The NGDB released a live album last year
Listen to “Will the Circle Be Unbroken”
Twelve years after the original, the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band revisited their unique experiment for Volume 2. Produced by Randy Scruggs, some of the many collaborators this time included the Byrds’ Roger McGuinn and Chris Hillman, the Band’s Levon Helm, John Prine, John Denver, Johnny Cash, Rosanne Cash and John Hiatt. The third volume, released in 2002, brought Dwight Yoakam, Willie Nelson, Vince Gill, Emmylou Harris, Del McCoury and Taj Mahal into the fold.
Track Listing
DISC 1
Buy For Me The Rain
Some Of Shelly’s Blues
Uncle Charlie Interview
Mr. Bojangles
Randy Lynn Rag
House At Pooh Corner
Opus 36
Fish Song
Jambalaya (On The Bayou)
Grand Ole Opry Song (featuring Jimmy Martin)
You Are My Flower
Tennessee Stud (featuring Doc Watson)
I Saw The Light (featuring Roy Acuff)
Honky Tonkin’
Will The Circle Be Unbroken (featuring Mother Maybelle Carter)
Cosmic Cowboy (Part 1)
Battle Of New Orleans
Bayou Jubilee/Sally Was A Goodun
Ripplin’ Waters
Mother Earth (Provides For Me)
Bowlegs
DISC 2
An American Dream (featuring Linda Ronstadt)
Make A Little Magic (featuring Nicolette Larson)
Shot Full Of Love
Dance Little Jean
Colorado Christmas (featuring Emmylou Harris)
Long Hard Road (The Sharecropper’s Dream)
Fishin’ In The Dark
Workin’ Man (Nowhere to Go)
You Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere (featuring Roger McGuinn and Chris Hillman)
The Valley Road (featuring Bruce Hornsby)
When It’s Gone
Waitin’ On A Dark Eyed Gal
Bless The Broken Road
Catfish John (featuring Alison Krauss)
The Lowlands (featuring Jaime Hanna and Jonathan McEuen)
Tears In The Holston River (featuring Johnny Cash)
Midnight At Woody Creek
The Resurrection (featuring Matraca Berg)
Watch the video for the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band’s first hit, “Buy For Me the Rain”
1 Comment so far
Jump into a conversationMr. Bojangles is one of the all time great songs of the NGDB and pop music in general. But for me, the Interview with Uncle Charlie is unnecessary and really distracting. It fit nicely in the original Uncle Charlie CD.