Photos: Nitty Gritty Dirt Band brings a sing-along vibe to Ameristar

Chris Ortiz,
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Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. // photo by Chris Ortiz

Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
Star Pavilion at Ameristar
Saturday, June 8

Nitty Gritty Dirt Band brought their blend of American Country and Classic Rock to Kansas City, Missouri, on Saturday night when they played the Star Pavilion at Ameristar Casino.

The band, which was formed in 1966, saw the return of Jeff Hanna, Jimmie Fadden (two of the original members), and Bob Carpenter with Jim Photoglo (both long-time members of the group) along with Hanna’s son Jaime Hanna, and fiddler Ross Holmes (formally of Mumford & Sons, Bela Fleck, and others). The group played a 19-song set list from the band’s nearly 60-year time together, including hits like “Mr. Bojangles,” “Bless the Broken Road” (as made famous by Rascal Flatts), and arguably their most famous song, “Fishin’ in the Dark.”

The nearly sold-out Star Pavilion sang along to every song that was played and listened intently as the band recounted stories from the past and made fun of how old they were becoming. At one point, Jeff Hanna stated, “It used to be ‘Hey man, got any weed? Any Blow?’ to ‘Got any Advil?’”

Bob sang “Bless the Broken Road,” while Jeff stated that back in the day that the band wanted it for a single, but their record label protested. After Rascal Flatts re-recorded the song and it became a chart-topping hit, Hanna stated that he and the other songwriters were grateful that the band had done so and for winning a Grammy that year for the best country song.

Setlist
You Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere (Bob Dylan Cover)
Cosmic Cowboy
Long Hard Road (The Sharecropper’s Dream)
Buy for Me the Rain
Girl From the North Country (Bob Dylan cover)
Dance Little Jean
Grandpa Was A Carpenter (John Prine cover)
Take Me in the Lifeboat (Hank Williams With His Drifting Cowboys cover)
Workin’ Man (Nowhere To Go)
Mr. Bojangles (Jerry Jeff Walker cover)
Ripplin’ Waters
Bless the Broken Road
Fishin’ in the Dark
Voila, an American Dream (Rodney Crowell cover)
Bayou Jubilee
Jambalaya (On the Bayou) (Hank Williams with His Drifting Cowboys cover)
Will the Circle Be Unbroken? (William MacEwan cover)
The Weight (The Band cover).

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