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The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, continuing its “All the Good Times: Farewell Tour,” is stopping in Plymouth for a concert in Memorial Hall at 8 p.m. on Thursday, April 16. The band, known for its country-rock, folk-rock, Americana style, is quickly approaching its 60th anniversary, and “winding down” according to longtime band member Bob Carpenter.
The three-time Grammy-winning band currently consists of founding members Jeff Hanna (lead vocals, guitar) and Jimmie Fadden (drums, harmonica, vocals); Carpenter (keys, accordion, vocals); Jim Photoglo (bass, vocals); Jaime Hanna (Jeff’s son, on guitar, vocals); and Ross Holmes (fiddle, mandolin, vocals).
Carpenter, who’s been with the group since the late 70’s, said this final tour gives fans the opportunity to see the guys play live locally – before there are no more tours.
“We’re going to keep playing music, we’re going to keep recording in some arrangement,” he said, adding there is talk of making a documentary. “But what we’re not going to do anymore is we’re not going to get on the bus for 100 days a year, like we’ve been doing every year, and we’re not going to play 70 shows.”
Carpenter said the bus is comfortable enough, “more like a submarine than a gulag,” but the lifestyle of touring can be taxing as the musicians get older.
“We still love playing music, but it’s just – travel is too hard.”
Carpenter said the concert will feature songs from the band’s first single (“Buy Me for the Rain”) up to the most recent EP (“Night after Night”) and will touch on music from every decade that the band has played.
“It’s really like time traveling,” he said. The set will include country, folk, and bluegrass. There will be some songs from the band’s well-received “Will the Circle Be Unbroken” album series, as well as some deep dives.
Back in 1966, founders Hanna and Fadden, who were in high school at the time, became fascinated with Bob Dylan’s music, and started playing. (In 2022, the band released an album titled “Dirt Does Dylan.”) Eventually, the band had a commercial hit with the song “Mr. Bo Jangles.”
Some of the songs may be familiar and spark memories. Songs like “Fishin’ in the Dark,” “An American Dream,” “Long Hard Road,” and “Modern Day Romance,” among others, are examples.
Carpenter said the final run of the tour will bring the group back to Colorado, their adopted state where he first met the other guys in 1972, and where the band has been inducted into the Colorado Music Hall of Fame.
Despite being ready to conclude yearly touring, Carpenter said, “It’s a fun gig.”
Tickets for the show are $58 and $113, or $56 and $111 for Spectacle Live members. There’s also a VIP package for $283, which includes premium seating with a meet-and-greet, along with band swag. Fans can order tickets here.
Monday, April 6
“Fantasy Life,” a New York rom-com starring Amanda Peet and Matthew Shear, is screening at the Plimoth Cinema in Plimoth Patuxet Museums, 137 Warren Ave. Shear plays an anxious law school dropout who ends up babysitting his psychiatrist’s three granddaughters, and falls for the girls’ mother (Peet), an actress in a troubled marriage. The film includes co-stars Alessandro Nivola, Judd Hirsch, Bob Balaban, Andrea Martin, Zosia Mamet, and Holland Taylor. “The AI Doc: Or How I Became an Apocaloptimist” continues screening at the cinema. The documentary examines the emergence of the most powerful technology ever created, and what the stakes are if it all goes wrong. Film times are 4:30 and 7 p.m. and tickets are $12.50, $11 with a club card, $10 for seniors or members, and $8.50 for seniors with a club card.
Tuesday, April 7
Today is the deadline for sculptors to submit outdoor work to the Plymouth Center for the Arts, 11 North St. The works will be shown in a juried exhibit at the center’s new Sculpture Garden. The inaugural sculpture exhibit will run from Thursday, June 11, through Monday, November 30. The prospectus with details and an entry form is available here.
Volunteers are invited to help assemble “You Can” kits from 6 to 8 p.m. in the board room at the Plymouth Public Library, 132 South St. The You Can Initiative is part of a partnership between the Massachusetts Department of Public Health and Health Resources in Action, and aims tor educe overdose deaths by increasing access to lifesaving skills and resources throughout the state. Volunteers who assemble the kits are essential to helping provide critical free resources to people who need them. Each kit contains naloxone, fentanyl test strips, and other vital resources. The goal for this gathering is to assemble 400 kits. Volunteers will also be able to keep one of the completed kits.
Wednesday, April 8
Learn the History of the Beer Can at a presentation by Kevin Logan from 6 to 7 p.m. in the Fehlow Meeting Room at the Plymouth Public Library, 132 South St. Logan is the curator of the Beer Can Museum in East Taunton, Mass. The family-friendly presentation will include a pop-up museum that features novelty cans, TV and movie props, folk art, and more. There will also be a focus on local breweries, trivia, and door prizes. A Q&A will follow the presentation.
Award-winning Melissa Etheridge brings her show “Rise” to Memorial Hall from 8 to 10 p.m. Etheridge won the Grammy for Best Female Rock Performance for her signature song, “Come to My Window.” Tickets are $58 and $145, or $56 and $143 for Spectacle Live members. VIP “merch bundles” are also available for $283 and $316, and include all sorts of Etheridge-related stuff. Tickets are available for purchase here.
Thursday, April 9
Today is the last day to register for new classes at Plymouth Center for the Arts, 11 North St. New classes, including drawing, pottery, pastels, oil painting, acrylic, and watercolor, will start on Monday, April 13.
Enjoy the combination of laughs and sips of wine at Comedy Uncorked, from 7:30 to 9 p.m. at Plymouth Bay Winery, 114 Water St. Hosted by Jerry Thornton, the show will feature Nick “Fitzy” Stevens and headliner Graig Murphy. Tickets are $28.52 for the night of comedy, and can be purchased here.
Friday, April 10
Adam Weiner, the singer/songwriter and frontman for the band Low Cut Connie, will perform at the Spire at 8 p.m. Weiner has released seven studio albums with the Philly-based group since 2010. In 2024 he co-directed an award-winning documentary, “Art Dealers,” showcasing the rock band in concert. Currently, Weiner is touring and performing his solo piano show, “Livin’ in the USA.” Tickets are $39.30 and $43, and available here.
Saturday, April 11
A Tidmarsh Woodcock Walk, led by Mass Audubon Education Coordinator Kim Snyder, sets off at Tidmarsh Wildlife Sanctuary, 60 Beaver Dam Road, from 6:30 to 8 p.m. The goal is to witness the amazing – and somewhat ridiculous – “sky dance” performed by the male woodcock as he claims his territory and beckons a female to mate. Arrive a few minutes early. Tickets are $16 for adult Audubon members, and $20 for adult nonmembers, and can be bought here.
Sunday, April 12
Spectacle Live will present “Piano Men: The Music of Billy Joel and Elton John” at 7 p.m. at Memorial Hall. The show features Joe Boucher, celebrating the greatest hits of Billy Joel and Elton John with a five-piece band and 22 members of the Plymouth Philharmonic Orchestra. The show highlights the iconic 1970s catalog, opening with “Prelude / Angry Young Man,” and features favorites like “Your Song,” “Tiny Dancer,” “My Life,” “Movin’ Out,” and “Scenes from an Italian Restaurant.” Tickets are $47 and $80, or $45 and $78 for Spectacle Live members, and can be purchased here.
Paula Marcoux, author of “Cooking with Fire,” will demystify the process of baking sourdough bread from 10:30 a.m. to noon at Independent Fermentations, 127 Camelot Drive. New bakers can learn the basics, and will receive their own culture to take with them and use to start their own breads. More seasoned bakers can bring any questions they may have and refresh their understanding about the process. Rather than focusing on the science behind a leavening culture, the presentation will “seek to cultivate a more intuitive, trusting, sustainable relationship between bakers and the friendly, obliging, helpful microbial communities that serve us.” Tickets are #33.85, and can be purchased here.
Monday, April 13
Enjoy a free Mass Brass concert presented by the Plymouth Salvation Army from 7 to 9 p.m. in the New Testament Church, 1120 Long Pond Road. The public is welcome to attend.
A Pop-up Law Library event with Emily Morin, head law librarian of the Plymouth Law Library, will take place from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the boardroom at the Plymouth Public Library, 132 South St. Morin will provide in-person help for legal research and answer legal questions. This is an opportunity to receive law library support without having to go to the courthouse. When applicable, Morin will also give referrals to relevant resources.
Wednesday, April 15
Teens and tweens age 12 and older are invited to create an Emotional Support Rubber Duckie from 2 to 3 p.m. at the Plymouth Public Library, 132 South St. There will be accessories to choose from to decorate each rubber duck, making it perfect as an emotional support “animal.” Along with the creative part of this event, learn healthy tips for coping with stress. There will also be snacks and drinks provided. Registration is required, and can be done here.
Enjoy an intimate concert titled “Raise a Glass: A Night of Irish Music” at the Spire at 7 p.m. in celebration of the Plymouth Philharmonic Orchestra. The night will feature Katy Nickerson on fiddle, Kevin Quinn on flute and uilleann pipes, and Stuart Peak on guitar, banjo, and tin whistle. The concert will capture the “warmth and joy of a traditional Irish season.” Proceeds from the concert will support the orchestra’s artistic and community programming. Tickets are $65, and include an invitation to attend a post-concert reception. Tickets are available here.
Thursday, April 16
The Kingston Trio may bring back memories as the group performs at the Spire at 7 p.m. The current members of the group, Mike Marvin, Tim Gorelangton, and Buddy Woodward, all have connections to the trio’s original members. These connections will inform their renditions of the classic songs, including “Where Have All the Flowers Gone,” and “Tom Dooley.” Tickets are $59, and can be purchased here.
The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, on its “All the Good Times: Farewell Tour,” performs at Memorial Hall at 8 p.m. See the lead story in this column for more details.
Saturday, April 18
“Revolution, Independence, and the South Shore” a history symposium presented by The Back Roads of the South Shore, will take place from 9:15 a.m. to 1 p.m., and features notable local speakers. The Back Roads of the South Shore is a consortium of 20 nonprofits in over 25 historic sites along the South Shore of Massachusetts. The speakers are: Dr. Patrick Browne, executive director of the Plymouth Antiquarian Society; Tony Kelso, Duxbury town historian; Paula Bagger, Hingham Historical Society; Stephen O’Neill, executive director, Hanover Historical Society and director of the Dyer Memorial Library; and Dr. Anne C. Mason, curator of Pilgrim Hall Museum. Donna Curtin, chair of Back Roads and executive director of Pilgrim Hall Museum, will give opening remarks. Registration opens at 8:30 a.m. Tickets are $20 and include breakfast refreshments and the five mini-talks. Register here to reserve a seat, contact info@plymouthantiquarian.org, or call the Plymouth Antiquarian Society at 508-746-0012 for tickets.