The band's best-known song was a 1970 cover of Jerry Jeff Walker's folk song "Mr. Bojangles". Their greatest critical acclaim has been for a 1972 album of country and folk standards, recorded in Nashville in collaboration with more traditional country artists, entitled "Will the Circle Be Unbroken".
"Will the Circle be Unbroken" was a collaboration album recorded in 1972 by the Dirt band with traditional artists such as Mother Maybelle Carter, Earl Scruggs, Doc Watson, Roy Acuff, Merle Watson, Jimmy Martin, Junior Huskey, Norman Blake, and Pete Oswald Kirby (known to Grand Ole Opry fans as Bashful Brother Oswald). Vassar Clements, not widely known then, was tapped for fiddle duties which led to greater notoriety and success for him.
"Will the Circle be Unbroken" featured classic bluegrass and folk standards written by A.P Carter, Doc Watson and others. The title comes from the song of the same name but indicates what the Dirt Band was trying to achieve. The long-haired boys from California were making an effort to reach out to the older veterans of American music and unite them in a divided America. Two other editions were released, one in the 1980s and another after September 11, 2001.
In July 1974 The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band was one of the headline acts at The Ozark Music Festival, at the Missouri State Fairgrounds, in Sedalia, Missouri. Some estimates have put the crowd count at 350,000 people, which would make this one of the largest music events in history.
The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band's peak in popularity – at least on the radio — came during the mid- to late-1980s, when they charted a string of successful songs. Among the lot were three No. 1 singles: "Long Hard Road (The Sharecropper's Dream)" (1984); "Modern Day Romance" (1985); and "Fishin' in the Dark" (1987). Other successful songs were "Dance Little Jean" (1983); "I Love Only You" (1984); "High Horse" (1985); "Home Again in My Heart," "Partners, Brothers and Friends" and "Stand a Little Rain" (1986); "Fire in the Sky," "Baby's Got a Hold on Me" and "Oh What a Love" (1987); "Working Man (Nowhere to Go)" and "I've Been Lookin'" (1988); and "Down That Road Tonight" and "When it's Gone" (1989).
The current members are:
* Bob Carpenter - keyboard, accordion, bass, and vocals (1977-present)
* Jimmie Fadden - drums, harmonica,guitar, washtub bass, jug and vocals (1966-present)
* Jeff Hanna - guitar, mandolin, drums, harmonica, bass, washboard, jug and vocals (1966-present)
* John McEuen - banjo, fiddle, guitar, mandolin, accordion washtub bass and vocals (1966-1986 & 2001-present)
Former members:
* Ralph Barr - guitar, clarinet and vocals (1966-1968)
* Merel Bregante - drums and percussion (1977-1979)
* Jackson Browne - guitar and vocals (1966)
* John Cable - guitar, bass and vocals (1976-1977)
* Jackie Clark - guitar, bass and vocals (1976-1977)
* Chris Darrow - fiddle, guitar, mandolin and vocals (1967-1968)
* Michael Gardner - drums (1980-1981)
* Al Garth - saxophone, fiddle, keyboard, percussion and vocals (1977-1981)
* Richard Hathaway - bass and vocals (1977-1981)
* Jimmy Ibbotson - guitar, bass, mandolin, piano, accordion, drums, flute and vocals (1968-1975 & 1982-2004)
* Bruce Kunkel - guitar, kazoo, vocals (1966-1967)
* Bernie Leadon - guitar, banjo, mandolin and vocals (1987-1989)
* Vic Mastrianni - drums (1980-1981)
* Les Thompson - guitar, bass, mandolin and vocals (1966-1973)
American Dream
The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
What did you say?
My mind was drifted off on Martinique Bay
It's not that I'm not interested you see
Augusta Georgia is just no place to be
I think Jamaican in the moonlight
Sandy beaches drinkin' rum every night
We'll split the difference go to Coconut Grove
Keep on talkin' momma I can't hear
Your voice it tickles down inside of my ear
I feel a tropical vacation this year
Might be the answer to this hillbilly beer
I think Jamaican in the moonlight
Sandy beaches drinkin' rum every night
We got no money momma but we can go
We'll split the difference go to Coconut Grove
Voila! An American Dream
Well we can travel girl without any means
When it's as easy as closin' your eyes
And dream Jamaica is a big neon sign
Just keep talkin' momma I like that sound
It goes so easy with that rain fallin' down
I think a tropical vacation this year
Might be the answer to this hillbilly beer, and
Voila! An American Dream
Yeah we can travel girl without any means
When it's as easy as closin' your eyes
And dream Jamaica is a big neon sign
Just think Jamaican in the moonlight
Sandy beaches drinkin' rum every night
We got no money momma but we can go
Split the difference go to Coconut Grove
The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band’s “An American Dream” tells the story of a man who feels trapped in his hometown of Augusta, Georgia and is dreaming of a tropical vacation. The singer, throughout the song, is distracted by his own daydreaming while his mother is talking to him. He imagines himself in Jamaica, drinking rum, lounging on sandy beaches, and splitting the difference with his mother to go to Coconut Grove. He believes that a tropical vacation might be the answer to his mundane life and hillbilly beer-drinking.
The song is a commentary on American culture and attitudes in the 1970s, when a growing middle class had more leisure time than ever before but could not always afford the vacations they dreamed of. The song suggests that Americans are a people who desire to escape the mundane realities of everyday life, and that they believe that travel, and specifically to exotic and romantic locales like Jamaica, is a worthy pursuit. The lyrics also illustrate a theme of escapism, one that is rooted in the American Dream of achieving prosperity and success no matter what one's background is.
Overall, the song is about the desire to escape one’s current reality, to dream of something better, and to pursue this dream in the face of the constraints of everyday life. It celebrates the notion of the American Dream and the power of imagination to transcend the limitations of circumstances.
Line by Line Meaning
I beg your pardon momma
Excuse me, mother
What did you say?
What was your message?
My mind was drifted off on Martinique Bay
My thoughts were wandering to a place called Martinique Bay
It's not that I'm not interested you see
It's not that I lack interest, you understand
Augusta Georgia is just no place to be
Augusta Georgia is simply an undesirable location
I think Jamaican in the moonlight
I imagine myself in Jamaica under the moonlight
Sandy beaches drinkin' rum every night
Drinking rum every night on sandy beaches
We got no money momma but we can go
We lack funds, but we can still travel
We'll split the difference go to Coconut Grove
We'll compromise and travel to Coconut Grove instead
Keep on talkin' momma I can't hear
Please continue speaking, mother, I can barely hear you
Your voice it tickles down inside of my ear
The sound of your voice sends a pleasant sensation down my ear canal
I feel a tropical vacation this year
I sense that a trip to a tropical destination is in order this year
Might be the answer to this hillbilly beer
It could provide a solution to my love of hillbilly beer
Voila! An American Dream
Behold, an American Dream
Well we can travel girl without any means
We can travel, my dear, without any financial resources
When it's as easy as closin' your eyes
When it's as effortless as shutting your eyes
And dream Jamaica is a big neon sign
And imagining Jamaica is akin to seeing a massive neon sign
Just keep talkin' momma I like that sound
Please continue speaking, mother, I find your voice pleasing
It goes so easy with that rain fallin' down
It fits in nicely with the sound of the rain falling
I think a tropical vacation this year
I believe a tropical getaway this year is in order
Might be the answer to this hillbilly beer, and
It could provide a solution to my love of hillbilly beer, and
Voila! An American Dream
Behold, an American Dream
Yeah we can travel girl without any means
Yes, my dear, we can travel without possessing financial resources
Just think Jamaican in the moonlight
Just imagine yourself in Jamaica under the moonlight
Sandy beaches drinkin' rum every night
Enjoying rum every night on sandy beaches
We got no money momma but we can go
Despite lacking funds, we can still travel
Split the difference go to Coconut Grove
Compromise and travel to Coconut Grove instead
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Songtrust Ave, TRAVELLERS HOLLOW MUSIC
Written by: DAVID BOWIE, SEAN COMBS, MARK CURRY, MARK KEITH CURRY, TOMMIE L GIBSON, LYLE DAVID MAYS, PATRICK B METHENY, ROBERT ROSS, MATTHEW WEINBERG, MARIO WINANS, MARIO MENDELL WINANS
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