The Dillards

Rodney Dillard – music history legend, recording artist, and speaking talent – is overwhelmingly credited as the “father of modern bluegrass.” Most recognized for his contributions to the world music stage with the band he founded with his brother Douglas – The Dillards – Rodney Dillard remains a significant figure in the fabric of the American Music tapestry.

Noted as being the first bluegrass ensemble to introduce electric instruments in the mid-1960s, they are considered to be one of the pioneers of the burgeoning Southern California Folk Rock, Country Rock and Progressive Bluegrass genres, and are credited with directly influencing artists such as The Eagles, The Byrds, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Ricky Skaggs, Vince Gill, Elton John, and scores of other well-known acts of the last fifty years. In 1972, Elton John cited The Dillards as his “musical inspiration,” actually requesting the band’s addition to the bill during John’s first U.S. tour.

Rodney Dillard and The Dillards band cemented their place in American popular culture performing musically as members of the fictional “Darling” family on multiple seasons of The Andy Griffith Show, introducing bluegrass music to the vast majority of Americans and audiences around the world who had never heard it.

Today, Rodney Dillard and his wife, noted claw-hammer banjo artist Beverly Cotten-Dillard, continue to blaze new paths on the world music scene with his unique brand of “DILLARDGRASS,” having recently reunited with fellow Dillards band alum. With over twenty albums as a recording artist, multiple single cuts, two Grammy nominations, and the syndicated longevity of his stint on the Andy Griffith Show, Dillard is currently finishing the long-anticipated new album – a full-length tour de force co-produced by multiple Grammy award-winning legend Bil VornDick (Alison Krauss, Jerry Douglas, Earls of Leicester, Bela Fleck, Lynn Anderson, Doc Watson, T. Bone Burnett, Mark O’Connor…) and a handpicked musical posse of the hottest talents.

Look for The Dillards on their upcoming 2016 world tour in support of their forthcoming full-length album release, tentatively titled The Dillards.

ABOUT THE NEW DILLARDS ALBUM:
Overwhelmingly recognized as the “father of modern bluegrass,” Rodney Dillard is currently putting the finishing touches on the album his worldwide fans have demanded for decades. Tentatively and simply titled The Dillards, the new release will feature the signature sound that Rodney Dillard is known for crafting.

Co-Produced by legendary Grammy-winning engineer, Bil VornDick, and Grammy-winning Artists Manager, Ken Lingad, the album will feature 12 brand-new tracks cut by The Dillards and a handpicked musical posse of the hottest talents. The music is best described as a “genre-defying combination of the signature ‘Dillards Sound’ and fresh explorations in Americana.” Loyal fans of the legendary group will have their appetites thoroughly satisfied by several bluegrass “burners,” while new listeners will fall in love with The Dillards’ diverse sonic palette.

The rest, as they say, is history – actually, Rodney Dillard and The Dilllards have already made history. Now they’re doing it…again.