The Dillards

During the 1960s the Dillards emerged as pioneers of progressive bluegrass, helping reshape and broaden the genre's reach while also quietly shaping country-rock. Although many listeners first encountered them through recurring acoustic performances on The Andy Griffith Show, the quartet ranked among the earliest traditional ensembles to adopt electric instruments and went on to influence the Byrds, Eagles, and Elton John, later sharing stages with the latter. Commercial breakthroughs remained limited, yet their innovative late-decade Elektra releases, above all Wheatstraw Suite, earned widespread critical praise. The group did reach the pop charts once with the 1971 single "It's About Time," and assorted configurations stayed active through the rest of the 1970s. Renewed interest surfaced in the late 1980s, producing two studio albums highlighted by 1992's Take Me Along for the Ride, even as members largely pursued separate endeavors until founding banjoist Doug Dillard's death in 2012. Honoring their shared history, brother Rodney issued another recording, 2020's Old Road New Again, under the Dillards name.

Banjoist Doug and guitarist Rodney Dillard, raised in Salem, Missouri, performed together from childhood. Throughout the late 1950s they appeared regularly on local radio and played in several regional outfits, among them the Hawthorn Brothers, the Lewis Brothers, and the Dixie Ramblers; as the Dillard Brothers they also cut two singles for the St. Louis-based K-Ark label in 1958. Forming their own unit in 1960, they enlisted disc-jockey friend Mitch Jayne on bass and mandolinist Dean Webb. After naming themselves the Dillards, the quartet relocated to Los Angeles in 1962 and secured an Elektra contract following a discovery at a Greenbriar Boys gig. Shortly afterward they began a recurring role on The Andy Griffith Show, portraying the musically inclined hillbilly Darlings family across multiple episodes in the ensuing years.

Their debut album, Back Porch Bluegrass, appeared in 1963, and they collaborated with Glen Campbell and Tut Taylor on the Folkswingers side project, which yielded two further releases. The 1964 live set Live!!! Almost!!! documented their polarizing shift to amplified electric instruments, an innovation many bluegrass traditionalists deemed unacceptable; they also began touring alongside rock acts, notably the Byrds. Addressing purist objections, the group countered Live!!! Almost!!! with the more conventional 1965 album Pickin' & Fiddlin', co-billed with fiddler Byron Berline. Disappointed by Elektra's promotional approach, they moved to Capitol, yet encountered comparable creative mismatches with producers there and returned to Elektra without issuing new material. Meanwhile Doug and Rodney diverged over artistic direction, Rodney favoring a sharper departure from tradition. Doug contributed to ex-Byrd Gene Clark's landmark collaboration with the Gosdin Brothers, and after the brothers recorded for the Bonnie & Clyde soundtrack in 1967, Doug exited to pursue independent work.

He soon partnered with Gene Clark as Dillard & Clark, producing well-regarded recordings before launching a solo career that continued productively through the 1970s. Rodney recruited banjoist Herb Pedersen in his brother's place, and the Dillards completed what many regard as their finest achievement, Wheatstraw Suite. Issued in 1968, the album fully revealed Rodney's eclectic vision through expanded instrumentation and renditions of the Beatles' "I've Just Seen a Face" and Tim Hardin's "Reason to Believe." Though commercially modest, the unpredictable blend of bluegrass, country, folk, rock, and pop drew acclaim from critics and fellow musicians alike. The similarly exploratory Copperfields followed in 1970, adding drummer Paul York as an official member. Still uncertain how to present the music, Elektra ended the relationship once more. Pedersen departed in 1972 for Byron Berline's Country Gazette, replaced by Billy Ray Latham; by then the Dillards had moved to the smaller Anthem label and scored their sole pop-chart entry with "It's About Time" in 1971. An opening slot on Elton John's 1972 tour helped Roots & Branches become their strongest seller to date, after which they switched to the Poppy label for the 1973 country-rock album Tribute to the American Duck.

Mitch Jayne exited in 1974, partly owing to hearing impairment, and was succeeded by bassist Jeff Gilkinson. Several years passed before the next release, 1977's The Dillards vs. the Incredible L.A. Time Machine on Flying Fish. Latham later left, replaced by Doug Bounsall, while Herb Pedersen rejoined for the subsequent pair of albums, 1978's Mountain Rock (after which Paul York retired) and 1979's Decade Waltz. Also in 1979 the group reunited with Doug Dillard and additional former members and relatives for the Salem, Missouri concert Homecoming and Family Reunion. Following that event most participants departed. Rodney Dillard and Dean Webb assembled a short-lived new configuration featuring Joe Villegas, Eddie Ponder, and Peter Grant before Rodney established the Rodney Dillard Band and settled in Branson, Missouri.

The original lineup reconvened in 1988 for a series of shows, with publicity tied to The Andy Griffith Show's 30th anniversary reviving attention. After Steve Cooley assumed Doug Dillard's role, the group recorded two Vanguard albums, 1990's Let It Fly and 1992's Take Me Along for the Ride. Further reunions occurred throughout the 1990s for live performances while both Doug and Rodney continued separate projects. Doug Dillard passed away in Nashville on May 16, 2012, at age 75. Rodney later revived the Dillards name for the 2020 album Old Road New Again, recorded with his wife Beverly Cotten-Dillard and supported by touring musicians plus guests including Sam Bush, Ricky Skaggs, and Eagles members Don Henley and Bernie Leadon.