San Diego's Best Bluegrass Band
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Musicians seem to come and go, hence the band name, but one thing we strive to maintain in Gone Tomorrow is great musicianship. Gone Tomorrow has many, many years of combined musical experience. Here's the current lineup for the band:

Richard Burkett (mandolin, guitar, vocals) founded Gone Tomorrow and has played bluegrass for over 45 years in bands in the Midwest and San Diego. Richard sings both lead and high harmony, and writes most of Gone Tomorrow's original songs. A guitar player since he was 15, Richard's early bluegrass career started in the early 1980s, playing mandolin with TJ's Review bluegrass band in Indiana fronted by Wild and Blue singer Jan Harvey, and more recently as mandolin player in the Hwy 52, Rose Canyon, and Second Delivery bluegrass bands in San Diego. Watch a YouTube video of Richard's old band, Hwy 52 with Chris Stuart here. A visual artist in his other life, he is an acclaimed potter and emeritus professor in the School of Art+Design at San Diego State University. Take a look at his pottery and sculpture here: richardburkett.com.

Tom Dillon (fiddle) is one of the newest members of Gone Tomorrow. Tom started playing fiddle in the Chicago area in the 1970s and has played in country bands since moving to San Diego a few years back, including Barbwire Country where he played fiddle and pedal steel. He's an excellent fiddler with a lot of drive that really gets the band going.

Dwight Worden (guitar, bass, vocals) is a long-time San Diego area resident, recovering lawyer, and a great musician.  He's often seen playing music with a variety of bands around town including Gone Tomorrow and Prairie Sky. A talented musician, Dwight plays fiddle, guitar, mandolin and bass and signs lead and harmony. Dwight is the past president of the San Diego Bluegrass Society and a former board member of IBMA - the International Bluegrass Music Association.  He also writes a monthly column called The Bluegrass Corner for San Diego's music newspaper, the Troubadour. You might even have seen Dwight in his role a few years ago as the mayor of Del Mar, CA. We're really glad to have him in the band.

Danny Aldrich (mandolin, guitar, vocals) has lived in San Diego for the past 18 years, after growing up in southern Arizona. He comes from an electric guitar background but caught the bluegrass bug after hearing a live performance of Bryan Sutton playing White House Blues. He quickly developed a love for the mandolin in high school and cut his teeth in the local Tucson bluegrass scene throughout college. Danny has a diverse and eclectic musical background and draws on many influences in his playing. He is an excellent mandolinist who adds steady rhythm and tasteful fills to the band’s sound, while incorporating spontaneity and playfulness into his improvisation.

Randy Hampton (banjo) has lived in San Diego for over 30 years. He is currently a Professor of Biological Sciences at UCSD. He grew up in the suburbs of New York City. Born just before cars evolved fins (1954), Randy has played music his whole life, starting as a drummer from 4th grade through 11th grade, when he coerced his unsuspecting parents to get him a 5-string banjo. Although New York is fairly far north, there was a remarkable bluegrass scene that served as a wellspring of ideas and influences that have informed his playing to this day. Although a wonderful and ongoing career as a scientist and educator had limited the banjo part of his life for quite a while, the good news (or perhaps just news depending on one’s stance on the banjo) is that he has rededicated himself to his music, and is honored and happy to be part of both Gone Tomorrow and the San Diego bluegrass scene. He currently plays a Nechville Athena banjo, and loves meeting other players. Finally, Randy is an avid and grateful participant in the recovery community with over 42 years “clean and sober”. Every day is met with gratitude for the life the recovery path has provided him. Also, the band will always have a designated driver.  

We're excited to have Randy and Danny join Gone Tomorrow!

Other Former and Occasional
Gone Tomorrowites:

Dale Desmuke (guitar, lead and harmony vocals) left this world in Fall 2025 and we miss him a lot. Dale was a veteran musician and singer who learned his chops as a teenager in the honkytonks of Texas. The rich musical heritage of Texas gave Dale a taste for all styles of music and influenced his approach to Bluegrass. Dale was a big part of Gone Tomorrow since the early years and we love having him in the band. He was a great rhythm player with a big voice that we loved to hear singing any of the many hundreds of songs he knew. He brought his love of Texas swing and his encyclopedic song list to the band. Dale could rarely be stumped when requested to sing a song from the country, Texas swing, or bluegrass repertoires. Dale played with Richard in the Shy Persons, Richard's first band in San Diego in the early 1990s. For many years Dale played every Wednesday night at Nate's Garden Grill in San Diego, often with Richard and others.

Steve Dame (banjo and vocals) sadly passed from this life in Fall 2023. One of the best banjo players in Southern California, Steve had played banjo and fiddle with a wide variety of bluegrass bands all around San Diego County and with Richard was an original founding member of Gone Tomorrow. Steve had appeared at major regional events, including First Night Escondido and at the Adams Avenue Street Fair with bluegrass legend Kenny Wertz. In his free time, Steve was a talented professional landscaper operating Dame Landscape. His driving banjo and strong vocals were at the heart of the Gone Tomorrow sound for many years. Steve is greatly missed!

Don Hickox (fiddle, vocals) has been a part of the bluegrass scene in San Diego for several decades. His soulful fiddling shows the influences of a diversity of musicians and styles, from bluegrass master fiddler Kenny Baker to Irish fiddle tunes. We're not quite sure where Don got his incredible talent for bluegrass fiddle, as he's a former surfer who was born in Trinidad. Don has been a member of almost all of the major bluegrass bands in San Diego over the years, including Richard's old band Rose Canyon Bluegrass Band in the 1990s. He plays occasional gigs in other bluegrass bands in the area, too. You might catch him playing with the local Irish band, The Shamrockers, at a pub here in town, too. .

Given Harrison (upright bass, rhythm guitar, vocals) started playing bluegrass in 1974 as a founding member of Late For Supper - an energetic group of young guys stirring things up in Palm Desert. As time has passed, he moved to San Diego County where he has been seen playing with The Unstrung Heroes, Box Canyon, Graybeard, Superstrings, Highway 76,The Tail Draggers, and many more. His current band, Stay Tuned, features a stellar lineup. We're really happy to have Given playing bass with Gone Tomorrow when he's available. Given is a retired educator who also enjoys restoring and racing small sailboats and playing with old cars.

Lenny Bole (banjo) has filled in on banjo recently and we're hoping he'll become a regular. Lenny is a veteran banjoist who long-time San Diegans might remember from Montezuma's Revenge - an eclectic bluegrass band in the 1970s. He also played in the Prairie Sky band with Dwight. He's currently playing banjo and dobro in Stay Tuned with Given Harrison.

Once in a while Dwight or Given can't play a gig you may see one of our other favorite bass players likeTad Van Allen, or when we can talk her into a visit down south, Lisa Burns (it's been a while, Lisa...).

• Lisa Burns (upright bass) has been playing the upright bass since 1994, and has appeared in many Northern California bands such as The O’Pinions, Loose Gravel, and most notably her current Bay Area band, Sidesaddle & Co. She also teaches bass. Sadly, Lisa has returned to her home in the Silicon Valley area. We still love it when we can get her to come down to play gigs with Gone Tomorrow!

• John Mailander used to fill in occasionally on fiddle and mandolin when he was in town, but that's really long gone as his international musical career has taken off and he's no longer living in San Diego. John's doing some great work with other musicians all over the country, so we don't get to see him much anymore! Check his website for where he's playing now, and for information on his CDs.

•Russ Evans (guitar, mandolin, vocals). Russ filled in from time to time when Dwight or Richard couldn't make a gig. He's back in Utah, so we haven't seen Russ for quite a few years. He and Steve Dame also played in Russ's band Blue Mountain Mule.

• Beth Mosko (fiddle) returned to Fort Collins, Colorado and we miss having her around. Beth is classically trained and has played with symphony and chamber orchestras, and string quartets.She picked up the bluegrass style quickly and with deep understanding. Gone Tomorrow loved having her great playing in the mix! She plays old-time fiddle tunes and does music therapy.

• Dan Sankey (mandolin and fiddle) is a bluegrass veteran of many San Diego bands. Dan played with Gone Tomorrow an early version of the band when he was available. He and Beth did several beautiful twin fiddle numbers that would break your heart. Dan's mandolin playing is really stellar, plays banjo, and sings and writes a few numbers, too.

• John Highkin (mandolin) returned to bluegrass after a career in circus and theater. He co-founded and led Fern Street Circus from 1990 to 2003 (and recently restarted the circus!), created theater pieces at the Big Kitchen and studied at Bertolt Brecht’s Berliner Ensemble in East Berlin. His bluesy mandolin playing and lead vocals on Hank Snow numbers added to the richness of the earliest version of Gone Tomorrow. He has been known to attempt mandolin levitation with the help of over 200 audience members! Unfortunately on his last attempt he instead levitated himself to Salina, Kansas for several years! Oh Auntie Em... Thanks to the Wizard of Oz (did he really click his ruby slippers together three times?), he's now back in San Diego running the Fern Street Circus and playing vintage western swing and country music.