Farewell Tour or not, Bob Carpenter says he still plays every show like it’s his last. He’s maintained that approach since first meeting founding guitarist Jeff Hanna and drummer Jimmie Fadden in Aspen, Colorado back in 1971.
The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band would go on to release multiple platinum albums and collaborate with bluegrass and country legends including Doc Watson, Linda Ronstadt, John Denver and comedian Steve Martin, also a banjo player. Their fluid sound has spanned more than 30 albums of country, soft rock, bluegrass and folk.
The secret to longevity, according to Carpenter, is a chemistry that’s musical and personal chemistry, one that’s built around trust in giving their best efforts night in and night out.
“We thought our last show was the time we left the stage and had to rush home when COVID hit,” Carpenter told KHOL. “As far as we knew we were done. But we got a second life here.”
The band’s farewell tour is a celebration of nearly six decades serving as torchbearers for
Americana music entertains audiences with sharp musicianship and timeless hits such as “Mr.
Bojangles,” “Fishin’ In The Dark,” and “An American Dream.”
Over the years, Carpenter finds that life on the road has become easier in most departments. He no longer has to jump out of the van to use a payphone to talk to family, check on flight times or order food.
“The only thing that’s gotten hard is you’ve got to pay more attention to your health,” he said. Carpenter, now in his late seventies, said he pays more attention to staying in shape and allowing himself extra time to warm-up.
Carpenter also said he prefers a more intimate venue like Jackson’s Center for the Arts to a massive outdoor stage.
“The worst is being on a great big outdoor stage with 20,000 people and the nearest person to you is about a quarter mile away and the wind’s blowing across the stage carrying the sound who knows where. That’s tough.”
The shows through June 18 are billed as the grand finale, Carpenter said he views this tour as just another one to treat with the same sense of purpose he has since the seventies.
“You go out and you do the best show you can at that moment, cause you never know when it’s going to be your last show. Our last show could have been 30 years ago,” he said.
Carpenter believes that the future of country music is in good hands long after Nitty Gritty Dirt Band retires. He believes that the roots of Americana will continue to be studied, traditions stay honored and folks playing “the people’s music” is as important now as it ever was.
Nitty Gritty Dirt Band will perform two shows at the Center for the Arts on June 9 and 10, before moving on to their final shows in Montana, Utah and Colorado.
More information about music and final tour dates can be found at https://nittygritty.com/.
Listen above for KHOL’s full conversation with Bob Carpenter from Nitty Gritty Dirt Band.
Support for this arts and cultural coverage comes from the Wyoming Arts Council.
