Douglas Flint Dillard (March 6, 1937 – May 16, 2012) was an American musician noted for his

banjo The banjo is a stringed instrument with a thin membrane stretched over a frame or cavity to form a resonator. The membrane is typically circular, and in modern forms is usually made of plastic, where early membranes were made of animal skin. ...

proficiency and his pioneering participation in late-'60s

country rock Country rock is a music genre that fuses rock and country. It was developed by rock musicians who began to record country-flavored records in the late 1960s and early 1970s. These musicians recorded rock records using country themes, vocal sty ...

Biography

Early life

Dillard, who grew up on a farm near

Salem, Missouri Salem is the county seat of Dent County, Missouri, Dent County, Missouri, United States. The population was 4,608 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, which allows Salem to become a List of cities in Missouri, Class 3 city in Missouri; ...

, began learning guitar and fiddle at age five, and banjo at age 15. He began playing in the family band, with his father Homer Sr. on fiddle, his mother Lorene on guitar, and his older brother Earl on keyboards. His banjo heroes were

Earl Scruggs Earl Eugene Scruggs (January 6, 1924 – March 28, 2012) was an American musician noted for popularizing a three-finger banjo picking style, now called "Scruggs style", which is a defining characteristic of bluegrass music. His three-finge ...

Ralph Stanley Ralph Edmund Stanley (February 25, 1927 – June 23, 2016) was an American bluegrass artist, known for his distinctive singing and banjo playing. He began playing music in 1946, originally with his older brother Carter Stanley as part of The ...

, and

Don Reno Donald Wesley Reno (February 21, 1926Trischka, Tony, "Don Reno", ''Banjo Song Book'', Oak Publications, 1977, – October 16, 1984) was an American bluegrass and country musician, best known as a pioneering banjo and guitar player who pa ...

. After corresponding with Scruggs, Dillard persuaded his parents to drive him to Scruggs' home in Madison, Tennessee, where Scruggs installed "Scruggs Tuners" on Dillard's banjo. By age 19, Dillard was performing regularly on a weekly radio show hosted by Howe Teague on KSMO, a Salem radio station.

Ozark Mountain Boys and the Dixie Ramblers

From 1956 to 1959, Doug was a founding member of the Ozark Mountain Boys with his younger brother Rodney, along with Bill Glenn, Henry and Jim Lewis, and Paul Breidenbach. Mitch Jayne (future member of The Dillards) invited the Ozark Mountain Boys to play on his KSMO Saturday morning radio show, ''Hickory Hollow''. In 1958, Doug and Rodney joined the Dixie Ramblers, based in

St. Louis St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a populatio ...

. Other members included

John Hartford John Cowan Hartford (December 30, 1937 – June 4, 2001) was an American folk, country, and bluegrass composer and musician known for his mastery of the fiddle and banjo, as well as for his witty lyrics, unique vocal style, and extensive kn ...

(who had frequently played fiddle with Dillard's father), Buddy Van Hoosier, and Joel Noel.

The Dillards

Doug and Rodney began performing on their own, and recorded a single "Banjo in the Hollow" for K-Ark Records, followed by three more single releases. With the addition of

Dean Webb Dean Webb (born Michael Eaton in 1940) is an English rock and roll singer, actor, and composer. Background Webb was born in Portsmouth as Michael Eaton. A short time later the family moved to Reading. He was educated at St. Annes Roman Catholic ...

(mandolin) and Mitch Jayne (bass), they formed

The Dillards The Dillards are an American bluegrass music, bluegrass and country rock band from Salem, Missouri. They are notable for being among the first bluegrass groups to have electrified their instruments, and they are considered to be pioneers of cou ...

in 1962. Inspired by their popularity on college campuses, The Dillards moved to Los Angeles. They participated in several after-hours club sessions, and then recording industry executive Jim Dickson signed them to a contract with

Elektra Records Elektra Records (or Elektra Entertainment) is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group, founded in 1950 by Jac Holzman and Paul Rickolt. It played an important role in the development of contemporary folk and rock music between the ...

''The Andy Griffith Show''

Andy Griffith Andy Samuel Griffith (June 1, 1926 – July 3, 2012) was an American actor, comedian, television producer, singer, and writer whose career spanned seven decades in music and television. Known for his Southern drawl, his characters with a folksy ...

's manager Dick Linke arranged an audition for the Dillards to play the part of a musical backwoods family on ''

The Andy Griffith Show ''The Andy Griffith Show '' is an American sitcom television series that was aired on CBS from October 3, 1960, to April 1, 1968, with a total of 249 half-hour episodes spanning eight seasons—159 in black and white and 90 in color. The series ...

''. Along with

Denver Pyle Denver Dell Pyle (May 11, 1920 – December 25, 1997) was an American film and television actor and director. He was well known for a number of television roles from the 1960s through the 1980s, including his portrayal of Briscoe Darling i ...

and Margaret Ann Peterson, they were the Darlings of Mayberry from 1963 to 1966. Doug was given the name of Jebbin Darling. They made six appearances, and are credited with introducing bluegrass music to a wider audience. This led to guest spots on shows hosted by

Judy Garland Judy Garland (born Frances Ethel Gumm; June 10, 1922June 22, 1969) was an American actress and singer. Possessing a strong contralto voice, she was celebrated for her emotional depth and versatility across film, stage, and concert performance. ...

and

Tennessee Ernie Ford Ernest Jennings Ford (February 13, 1919 – October 17, 1991), known professionally as Tennessee Ernie Ford, was an American singer and television host who enjoyed success in the country and western, pop, and gospel musical genres. Noted for ...

, and on other variety shows.

The Folkswingers

Doug and Rodney Dillard created the Folkswingers, a side project teaming their talents with

Glen Campbell Glen Travis Campbell (April 22, 1936 – August 8, 2017) was an American country musician and actor. He was best known for a series of hit songs in the 1960s and 1970s, and for hosting ''The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour'' on CBS television from ...

and

Tut Taylor Robert Arthur "Tut" Taylor Sr. (November 20, 1923 – April 9, 2015) was an American bluegrass musician. Taylor played banjo and mandolin as a child, and began playing dobro at age 14, learning to use the instrument with a distinctive flat-pick ...

. The Folkswingers recorded two albums for the

World Pacific Pacific Jazz Records was a Los Angeles–based record company and label best known for cool jazz or West coast jazz. It was founded in 1952 by producer Richard Bock (1927–1988) and drummer Roy Harte (1924–2003). Harte, in 1954, also co-founde ...

record label.

Dillard and Clark

In 1968, Doug left the Dillards and joined

the Byrds The Byrds () were an American Rock music, rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1964. The band underwent multiple lineup changes throughout its existence, with frontman Roger McGuinn (known as Jim McGuinn until mid-1967) being the so ...

for their first European tour. Then he teamed up with

Gene Clark Harold Eugene Clark (November 17, 1944 – May 24, 1991) was an American singer-songwriter and founding member of the folk rock band the Byrds. He was the Byrds' principal songwriter between 1964 and early 1966, writing most of the band's best ...

to record two albums as Dillard & Clark. Other participating musicians included

Bernie Leadon Bernard Matthew Leadon III ( ; born July 19, 1947) is an American singer, musician, songwriter, and founding member of the Eagles, for which he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1998. Prior to the Eagles, he was a member of thr ...

, Mike Clarke, and

Byron Berline Byron Douglas Berline (July 6, 1944 – July 10, 2021) was an American fiddle player who played many American music styles, including old time, ragtime, bluegrass, Cajun, country, and rock. Life and career Berline was born in Caldwell, Kansas ...

. Blending banjo, fiddle, drums, electric guitars, steel guitar, and keyboards, Dillard and Clark played an important role in the country rock popularity expansion. Others bands following their example soon appeared, such as

the Flying Burrito Brothers The Flying Burrito Brothers are an American country rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1968, best known for their influential 1969 debut album, ''The Gilded Palace of Sin''. Although the group is known for its connection to band f ...

Poco In software engineering, a plain old CLR object, or plain old class object (POCO) is a simple object created in the .NET Common Language Runtime (CLR) that is unencumbered by inheritance or attributes. This is often used in opposition to the comp ...

, and the

Eagles Eagle is the common name for the golden eagle, bald eagle, and other birds of prey in the family of the Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of Genus, genera, some of which are closely related. True eagles comprise the genus ''Aquila ( ...

Solo career

In 1966, Doug and Rodney Dillard provided music for the film ''

Bonnie and Clyde Bonnie Elizabeth Parker (October 1, 1910May 23, 1934) and Clyde Chestnut "Champion" Barrow (March 24, 1909May 23, 1934) were American outlaws who traveled the Central United States with their gang during the Great Depression, committing a ser ...

''.> Dillard played banjo on Glen Campbell's recording of John Hartford's "

Gentle on My Mind "Gentle on My Mind" is a song that was written and originally recorded by John Hartford, and released on his second studio album, '' Earthwords & Music'' (1967). Hartford wrote the song after watching '' Doctor Zhivago'' in 1966, as he was insp ...

." This recording earned four Grammy Awards in 1968. In 1969, Doug recorded the ''Banjo Album'', followed by other solo projects. He also performed extensive session work, including TV ads and guest appearances, film scores, and numerous sessions for other musical artists. In 1982, he launched the Doug Dillard Band. Through the subsequent years, he also maintained his solo career and occasionally reunited with Rodney for projects and performances. The Dillards briefly reunited in 1986 to appear in the TV film ''Return to Mayberry''. They also toured as the Original Dillards.

Awards

In 1989, Dillard's album ''Heartbreak Hotel'' was nominated by

the Recording Academy National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences, Inc. (NARAS), doing business as The Recording Academy, is an American Learned society, learned academy of musicians, producers, recording engineers, and other musical professionals. It is widely kno ...

for the

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...

for Best Bluegrass Recording. In 2009, the Dillards were inducted into the Bluegrass Hall of Fame by the

International Bluegrass Music Association The International Bluegrass Music Association, or IBMA, is a trade association to promote bluegrass music. Formed in 1985, IBMA established its first headquarters in Owensboro, Kentucky. In 1988 they announced plans to create the International ...

(IBMA). Dillard was inducted individually into the Society for the Preservation of Bluegrass Music of America (SPBGMA) Preservation Hall of Greats in 1992.

Death

Dillard suffered a collapsed lung, in several months developed a lung infection, and died in a Nashville hospital. He had stopped touring several years before his death but still participated in occasional recording sessions and a few concert performances.

Discography

Filmography

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Dillard, Doug 1937 births 2012 deaths American bluegrass musicians American country banjoists Country musicians from Illinois People from East St. Louis, Illinois People from Salem, Missouri Country musicians from Missouri The Dillards members The Folkswingers members Elektra Records artists Flying Fish Records artists