Musician, writer, and actor Rodney Dillard joins the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum for a Musician Spotlight, the Museum’s weekly series that highlights touring and recording musicians in Americana, bluegrass, and country music and beyond. This program was recorded live on July 20, 2025; offered in support of the exhibition “Western Edge: The Roots and Reverberations of Los Angeles Country-Rock,” presented by City National Bank; and made possible in part by the Academy of Country Music.

Throughout the program, Dillard—the founder and lead singer of the influential West Coast bluegrass group the Dillards—shares personal stories and performs songs from throughout his acclaimed career, including lively renditions of “Old Home Place,” “Dooley,” and Bob Dylan’s “Walkin’ Down the Line,” as well as an audience sing-along of the gospel traditional “Somebody Touched Me.” Dillard discusses his childhood in the rural Ozarks, the Dillards’ journey to Los Angeles, and the group’s portrayal of the fictional Darling family on “The Andy Griffith Show.” He also discusses his creative approach for his acclaimed albums “Wheatstraw Suite” and “Copperfields” and how music critics initially panned their ornate orchestral sound. The program concludes with a performance of David Bellamy’s “The Andy Griffith Show.”

Dillard, the lone surviving member of the Dillards, carries the group forward with his wife, Beverly, on banjo and harmonies. The Dillards’ latest album, “Old Road New Again,” includes guest appearances from Sam Bush, Don Henley, Bernie Leadon, Herb Pedersen, Country Music Hall of Fame member Ricky Skaggs, and Cheryl and Sharon White.

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