''Dregs of the Earth'' is the fourth studio album by

Dixie Dregs The Dixie Dregs is an American rock band from Augusta, Georgia. Formed in 1970, the band's performance consists entirely of instrumentals that fuse elements of diverse genres such as rock, classical music, country, jazz and bluegrass into an e ...

, released in 1980. This album was the band's first release on

Arista Records Arista Records () is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of the Japanese conglomerate Sony. The label was previously handled by BMG Entertainmen ...

, their last one before changing its name to The Dregs, and contains a re-recording of one of their earlier songs ("The Great Spectacular"), which appeared on their 1976 demo ''

The Great Spectacular ''The Great Spectacular'' is a self-produced demo album by the Dixie Dregs, recorded in 1975 on campus at University of Miami and released in 1976 only on limited vinyl. By the time the band had risen in popularity in the late 1970s, the record ...

''.

Critical reception

At the time of release the writers of ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' placed review on this album in section "Recommended LP's". As per them the musical style of the band is hard to categorize "but the musicianship is often superb". The album received a

Grammy The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pre ...

nomination for Best Rock Instrumental Performance.

Track listing

All tracks are written by

Steve Morse Steve J. Morse (born July 28, 1954) is an American guitarist, best known as the founder of the Dixie Dregs and as the lead guitarist of Deep Purple from 1994 to 2022. Morse has also enjoyed a successful solo career and was briefly a member of ...

. #"Road Expense" – 3:24 #"Pride o' the Farm" – 3:40 #"Twiggs Approved" – 4:29 #"Hereafter" – 6:21 #"The Great Spectacular" – 3:20 #"Broad Street Strut" – 3:54 #"I'm Freaking Out" – 9:06 #"Old World" – 2:00

Personnel

Dixie Dregs: *

- acoustic and electric guitars, banjo, pedal steel *

Andy West Andy West (born February 6, 1953) is an American bass guitarist and composer who is an original founding member of the Dixie Dregs along with Steve Morse. Since the breakup of the original band in 1983, West has been on albums with Mike Keneally ...

- fretted and fretless bass *Allen Sloan - acoustic and electric violins, viola *

Rod Morgenstein Rod Morgenstein (born April 19, 1953) is an American drummer and music educator. He is best known for his work with the rock bands Winger and Dixie Dregs. He also played with Fiona, Platypus, the Steve Morse Band, and Jelly Jam. He has also ...

- drums and percussion *

T Lavitz Terry "T" Lavitz (April 16, 1956 – October 7, 2010) was an American keyboardist, composer and producer. He is best known for his work with the Dixie Dregs and Jazz Is Dead. Biography Born on April 16, 1956, Lavitz grew up in New Jersey. He s ...

- acoustic and electric piano, organ, synthesizer, clavinet

References

1980 albums Dixie Dregs albums Arista Records albums {{1980s-rock-album-stub