By KEITH LAWRENCE - Owensboro Messenger-Inquirer
RODNEY DILLARD & THE DILLARD BAND, "I Wish Life Was Like Mayberry," Rural Rhythm. 19 tracks.
On March 18, 1963, America got its first look at The Darling Family on the popular "Andy Griffith Show."
The musical hillbillies only made six appearances on the show over four seasons - plus the 1986 reunion movie, "Return to Mayberry..."
...In 1962, The Dillards hit the road for Los Angeles with $300 in their pockets, stopping to work in Oklahoma along the way.
Once in Los Angeles, the band was signed almost immediately by Elektra Records. Then, a DesiLu Studios representative saw an ad in Variety magazine about Elektra signing the Dillards. A few days later, they were called in to audition for the role of The Darlings on "The Andy Griffith Show."
The IBMA says repeated airings of those six episodes over the past 47 years make The Dillards "the most often seen bluegrass artists on television, thanks to reruns."
So, it's hardly surprising that Rodney Dillard has gone back to Mayberry for an album that's sure to be a favorite of the thousands of fans who still watch the reruns on television.
Newer songs include "The Darlin' Boys," an tribute to the characters the band played on the show; "There Goes The Neighborhood," a humorous look at urban sprawl and rural life; "Wicker Rocking Chair," a song about finding happiness in simpler things; "The Mayberry Hat," a ballad about a hat that evokes memories of better times; and "The Andy Griffith Show Song," a ballad that suggests that America would be better if it was more like Mayberry.
Older material includes songs the band sang on "The Andy Griffith Show": "There Is A Time" (which was sung on three different episodes), "Dooley," "Salty Dog Blues," "Banjo In The Hollow" and "Leaning On The Everlasting Arms."
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