Every Friday around 11 a.m. Central, it’s time for Classic Americana on Radio Heartland. We pull a special track from the archives or from deep in the shelves to spotlight a particular artist or song.

July 11 is the birthday of Jeff Hanna; he turns 77 this year. Hanna was born in Detroit but moved to Long Beach, California, with his family at age 15.

That move turned out to be pivotal; as a high schooler in the 1960s, Hanna became fascinated with the music of Bob Dylan. Hanna met a classmate, Bruce Kunkel, who also loved the music of Dylan. Hanna and Kunkel would meet after school to play guitar and sing folk songs … and it was from Jeff Hanna’s and Bruce Kunkel’s friendship that the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band would eventually take shape.

Officially established in 1966, the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band — alternately known as the Dirt Band — have released more than 25 albums. Still active to this day, their most recent album is 2022’s Dirt Does Dylan, an album of Bob Dylan covers.

Looking at the career of birthday boy Jeff Hanna, his work extends far beyond the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. He’s worked as a composer and as a session musician on hundreds of recordings, and the roster of artists Hanna has collaborated with includes Johnny Cash, Emmylou Harris, The Chieftains, Suzy Bogguss, Earl Scruggs, and Steve Martin.

Our Classic Americana pick highlights the music of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band while also acknowledging Jeff Hanna’s collaborative tendencies. We’re going to hear the title track from the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band’s 1979 album, An American Dream. The song was written by Rodney Crowell, and it features backing vocals by the great Linda Ronstadt.

Classic Americana Playlist

External Links

Nitty Gritty Dirt Band – official site

Jeff Hanna biography – PBS Country Music: A Film By Ken Burns website