John McEuen, born December 19, 1945 in Oakland, California, is an American folk musician and a founding member of the

Nitty Gritty Dirt Band The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band is an American country rock band formed in 1966. The group has existed in various forms since its founding in Long Beach, California. Between 1976 and 1981, the band performed and recorded as the Dirt Band. Constant ...

Career

Solo work

John McEuen was born in

Oakland, California Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast of the United States, West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third ...

. In 1964, at age 18, he became interested in music after seeing a performance by

the Dillards The Dillards are an American bluegrass and country rock band from Salem, Missouri. The band is best known for introducing bluegrass music into the popular mainstream with their appearance as " The Darlings" on '' The Andy Griffith Show''. B ...

, and learned to play the banjo. Eventually, he took an interest in fiddle and mandolin. In 1986, after twenty years with the Dirt Band, McEuen departed to pursue a solo career. From 1991–1997, he released four albums for

Vanguard Records Vanguard Recording Society is an American record label set up in 1950 by brothers Maynard and Seymour Solomon in New York City. It was a primarily classical label at its peak in the 1950s and 1960s, but also has a catalogue of recordings by a n ...

. He composed music for movies and television and he appeared as a guest on albums with several artists including 5 albums with

Michael Martin Murphey Michael Martin Murphey (born March 14, 1945) is an American singer-songwriter best known for writing and performing Western music, country music and popular music. A multiple Grammy nominee, Murphey has six gold albums, including ''Cowboy Songs' ...

. He then returned to the Dirt Band in 2001. John departed the band once again in late 2017.

Steve Martin

John McEuen has known

Steve Martin Stephen Glenn Martin (born August 14, 1945) is an American actor, comedian, writer, producer, and musician. He has won five Grammy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and was awarded an Honorary Academy Award in 2013. Additionally, he was nominate ...

since high school, when he would give Martin occasional lessons on the banjo. In 1978, he was asked by Martin to provide the backing band for a comic, novelty song called ''

King Tut Tutankhamun (, egy, twt-ꜥnḫ-jmn), Egyptological pronunciation Tutankhamen () (), sometimes referred to as King Tut, was an Egyptian pharaoh who was the last of his royal family to rule during the end of the Eighteenth Dynasty (ruled ...

''. With Martin on vocals, the Dirt Band recorded the song under the alias the ''Toot Uncommons''. John McEuen produced and played on Martin's album '' The Crow: New Songs for the 5-String Banjo'' (

Rounder Rounder(s) or The Rounder(s) may refer to: Film and television * ''The Rounders'' (1914 film), a comedy short * ''The Rounder'' (1930 film), a comedy short * ''The Rounders'' (1965 film), a western comedy * ''Rounders'' (film), a 1998 poker f ...

, 2009). The album was #1 for 7 months and won the

Grammy Award for Best Bluegrass Album The Grammy Award for Best Bluegrass Album is an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality works (songs or albums) in the bluegrass mu ...

. McEuen published an autobiography in 2018 titled ''The Life I've Picked - A Banjo Player's Nitty Gritty Journey''.

Awards and honors

* The American Banjo Museum Hall of Fame Inductee *Independent Music Award for Best Americana Album, "Made in Brooklyn"

References

External links

*
NAMM Oral History Interview with John McEuen
March 6, 2004 {{DEFAULTSORT:McEuen, John 1945 births American country rock singers American country singer-songwriters American rock musicians Country musicians from California Living people Musicians from Oakland, California Nitty Gritty Dirt Band members Singer-songwriters from California