April 12, 2019 (Joliet, IL) – Rialto Square Theatre and VenuWorks proudly present Grammy Award-winning country music icons Nitty Gritty Dirt Band on Sunday, September 22, 2019 at 7:30 PM. Tickets for this one-night engagement go on sale Friday, April 19th at 10 AM. More info online at www.RialtoSquare.com.
With a refreshed lineup and newfound energy, The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band remains one of the most accomplished bands in American roots music. The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band played their first gig in 1966 in Southern California as a jug band and by 1969 had become a cornerstone of the burgeoning country-rock community. Their career breakthrough came in 1970 with the release of the record Uncle Charlie & His Dog Teddy and the single “Mr. Bojangles,” a folksy Top 10 pop hit that remains a staple of their live show.
Nitty Gritty Dirt Band earned a pop resurgence in 1980 with “An American Dream” and “Make
a Little Magic.” Those singles also found traction on the country chart, setting the stage for a
major run at country radio. The band secured 16 Top 10 country hits between 1983 and 1990, including three No. 1 singles: “Long Hard Road (The Sharecropper’s Dream),” “Modern Day Romance,” and “Fishin’ in the Dark.” Bernie Leadon, a founding member of The Eagles, played in the band from 1986 to 1988 filling a vacancy by longtime member John McEuen.
Following an extended 50th anniversary tour, the ensemble grew to a six-piece in 2018 for the first time since their early jug band days. The group now includes Jeff Hanna (acoustic guitar, electric guitar), Jimmie Fadden (drums, harmonica), Bob Carpenter (keyboards), Jim Photoglo (bass, acoustic guitar), Ross Holmes (fiddle, mandolin), and Jaime Hanna (electric and acoustic guitar). All six members also sing, and when their voices merge, the harmonies add a powerful new component for the legendary band. In addition, with the father-son pairing of Jeff and Jaime Hanna, the band carries on a country music tradition of blood harmony.
With so much material to work with, the band is making it a point to shuffle the set lists more often, meaning that this isn’t the same Dirt Band show from years past. “We’re fortunate that we’ve got a deep songbook. That’s been on our list, to resurrect some of the tunes we haven’t done in a while, in addition to some new stuff,” Hanna says.
Tickets are available in person at the Rialto box office or online at www.RialtoSquare.com. The Rialto Square Theatre is located at 102 N. Chicago Street in Joliet. More info at: www.RialtoSquare.com