American Top Ten: An American Dream (#3)

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Along with the celebration of Canada’s birthday I’m also celebrating America’s birthday with songs that have “America” in the title. Here’s the next song on the list of favorites. Sorry about the country music.... #3: An American Dream - The Dirt Band The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band came into being in the 60s, scoring a hit with Jerry Jeff Walker’s classics “Mr. Bojangles.” In the early 70s they recorded the landmark album Will the Circle Be Unbroken. By the late 70s, though, they probably got tired of saying that long name of theirs, so they shortened it to “The Dirt Band.” (Well, that, and the fact that “nitty gritty” was sort of 50s/60s “cool” lingo that had gone out of style.....) They called on Linda Ronstadt to provide some backing vocals and then-not-well-known Texas songwriter Rodney Crowell for the tune about a daydream vacation, and they scored themselves another big hit. In the 90s they did a follow-up to Will the Circle Be Unbroken, which won them a Grammy. They’re still out there, getting down to the nitty gritty of great music. An American Dream Written by Rodney Crowell Recorded by The Dirt Band From An American Dream, 1979 I beg your pardon, mama: