SULLIVAN – At 18 years old, Dillon Scott has the world at his fingertips – quite literally. The Sullivan High School senior is already making a name for himself as a banjo player in bluegrass music and touring with one of the most popular groups in the circuit, The Karl Shiflett & Big Country Show. Shiflett called Scott in October 2008 when he was looking for a banjo player. “I was needin’ a banjo picker and we were in Missouri at a festival and I was asking around,” Shiflett said during a phone interview with the Sullivan Journal. “Somebody told me about Dillon and how good he was. Then I was at a bluegrass trade show in Nashville and someone told me he’d be perfect for my band … He auditioned and the rest is pretty much history.”
Scott still finds it hard to believe he’s really playing with The Karl Shiflett & Big Country Show. “I couldn’t believe it,” he said, remembering when Shiflett called him for the audition. “I mean, wow. I was so excited. I was nervous (at the audition), but after the first song he said, ‘The job is yours if you want it.’”
Shiflett, 52, who has been playing bluegrass music most of his life, saw the natural talent and potential Scott had to offer. “As soon as he started playing I knew right away he was the one,” Shiflett said from his home in Texas. “He’s a great picker for any age, but especially for his age he’s well advanced. He plays like a seasoned pro.”
After that, Scott starting playing with Shiflett and his band on the weekends. When school let out for the summer he went on the road with the band, playing at some of the country’s biggest bluegrass festivals. “I’ll never forget that first year (on tour),” Scott said. “It was a really incredible experience. I was having a blast. I was playing with four other professionals who are the best at what they do. I was playing at huge festivals I had only dreamed of playing at.”
Shiflett said it’s not just Scott’s natural ability to play the banjo that makes him great. “It takes talent, but there’s a lot more to it than just the talent,” Shiflett said. “He’s such a hard worker. I was grateful to get him. If something happens to the bus (on tour), he’s the first one out there helping me with it.”
Scott’s passion for music and his ambition also make him a phenomenal musician, Shiflett said. “He’s a sharp young man and he has a passion for what we’re doing,” he said.
That love for bluegrass music is evident when Scott picks up the banjo, no matter if he’s playing in a room by himself or on stage in front of thousands of people. “Music is something that truly connects people in ways that are indescribable,” Scott said. “The feeling is indescribable whenever a crowd goes wild.”
Scott loves pleasing bluegrass fans. “Music is meant to be played for other people,” he said.
It’s also thrilling to play with other great musicians, he said. Another of Scott’s dreams came true when he got to pick with bluegrass legend Earl Scruggs while on tour last summer. “Earl Scruggs is the Jimi Hendrix of bluegrass music,” Scott said.
Scott’s parents, Lonnie and Sheri Scott, couldn’t be more proud of their son. “It really pleases you as a parent to see your kid develop a passion and talent for something they love,” Lonnie Scott said.
His mother shared that sentiment. “I’m so proud of him,” she said. “One of the things you want most for your child is to recognize the God-given talent they have and go with it – many of us never find that. It’s a joy to see him on stage … tears just come to my eyes. I know he’s loving what he’s doing, and it’s wonderful to see him be able to stand before an audience and see them enjoy what he does best.”
History
Scott has been playing guitar since he was six years old, but didn’t take up the banjo until about five years ago. A combination of factors – a little nudge from his grandpa, the movie “Brother Where Art Thou?” and a curiosity about the instrument – led him to it. “My grandpa had played bluegrass and wanted me to drop my rock guitar and play the banjo,” he said.
Even though his grandpa, Leo Scott, has passed away, he’s still inspires Scott. “All he wanted for me was to play bluegrass,” he said. “I wish so bad he could be here. If grandpa could see me now he’d be so happy.”
Dillon’s father, Lonnie, echoed that sentiment. “His grandpa sure would have been proud of him,” he said. “It would have been neat for the old man to see what he’s doing.”
That thought pushes Scott to keep working hard, even on days when things seem tough. “A musician always has doubts about himself, and whenever I do grandpa is the one thing that keeps me going,” he said.
His grandpa’s encouragement wasn’t the only thing that led Scott to the banjo. “I always thought it was a cool instrument,” he said. “I strummed on one in a music store and told my dad I wanted to learn how to play.”
It wasn’t long before he did. He took a few lessons from a man in Stanton who taught him the basics – and told him he had what it took to play it well. A little later on, a man named Boyd Thurmond gave Scott some more banjo lessons, and also was impressed with the teenager’s talent. “I was really lucky that I picked it up really quickly,” Scott said.
His dad vouched for that. “He started advancing really quickly,” Lonnie Scott said. “It was amazing to watch him pick up on it as fast as he did. He just kept getting better and better.”
Scott soon starting playing in a local bluegrass band called Men of the Week. “Our first year out we go over 50 dates,” he said. Scott also started taking his banjo to bluegrass festivals and picking with professionals whenever he could grab them before and after the shows. “You go and watch the guys that are better than you,” he said. “You bug them until they show you how to do something.”
Eventually, he got good enough to get noticed, and that’s when Shiflett called. Scott didn’t want to leave Men of the Week, but he couldn’t pass up the opportunity to play with Shiftlett and his band. And he’s going to stay with them as long as he can. “I’m so happy with this group,” he said.
Scott is humbled – and awestruck – by the opportunities Shiflett has given him. The fact that he’s so humble, yet so good at what he does, is part of his charm. And he’s very polite. Tell him how good he is and he’ll reply with a shy smile, a look of gratitude and a “Thank you.”
Scott believes everyone has a natural talent. “The banjo happens to be mine,” he said. “I think I’m always going to play the banjo. I can’t ever see me setting it down.”
Although playing bluegrass music is his passion and ultimately what he’d like to make a career of, Scott plans to go to college, possibly at the Kentucky School of Bluegrass where he could study music engineering. Scott can continue touring with The Karl Shiflett & Big Country Show while pursuing his studies, but college is still several months away and before that happens he’s got another summer to enjoy on tour with the band.
(Jaime Baranyai can be reached at 860-NEWS or by e-mail at
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Best of luck to him with his career in music! That's amazing that he has accomplished so much as a musician already, at such a young age. He sounds like a hard worker who appreciates the opportunities he has had.
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