[1] Formed in 1962, the original line-up of the Golden State Boys consisted of Vern Gosdin on guitar and lead vocals, his brother Rex Gosdin on double bass, Hal Poindexter on guitar, and Don Parmley on banjo.

[3] Hillman, who had previously been a member of the high-profile San Diego bluegrass group the Scottsville Squirrel Barkers, was invited to join the Golden State Boys by Parmley, after the pair met at a bluegrass evening at The Ice House folk club in Pasadena.

[3][4] Upon his recruitment, the group briefly changed their name to the Blue Diamond Boys before finally settling on The Hillmen, in honor of their mandolin playing wunderkind.

[3] The Hillmen played regularly throughout southern California between 1962 and 1964 and also made a number of television appearances, bringing them to the attention of record producer Jim Dickson.

By mid-1964, the group had broken up and Chris Hillman was subsequently recruited by Jim Dickson as The Byrds' bass player in October of that year.