This
BGO
2014 three-fer rounds up the first three albums by
the Dillards
, all made before they went country-rock: 1963's
Back Porch Bluegrass
, 1964's
Live!!!Almost!!!
, and 1965's
Pickin' and Fiddlin' with Byron Berline
. Although all three are proudly traditionalist, which will come as something of a surprise to those who only know
from their progressiveness, there's a vibrant vitality to the performances that not only points the way toward the experiments that would come a few years later but keeps this deliberately old-fashioned music feeling alive and fresh. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine