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60's Folk Music Lives OnWhile in the past the various great folk music groups of the 1960's may have been in competition, today the crossover of membership of the artists and the opportunity to do joint concerts has led to a great deal of friendship among the groups. Several of these groups still thrive today, keeping the music alive!
Members of The Kingston Trio have joined The Limeliters (e.g. Bill Zorn), and members of The Limeliters have joined The Kingston Trio (e.g. Rick Dougherty and Don Marovich). Former Limeliters have gone on to perform not only solo acts (like Glenn Yarbrough), in recent years former Limeliters have joined and performed jointly with other groups, including The Kingston Trio, The Brothers Four, and most recently the Folk Legacy Trio. Some of my other favorite folk groups from this era include New Englanders The Shaw Brothers, Schooner Faire, Northeast Winds, and especially the national sensation, The Highwayman (the original folk group, not the more recent country ban. There are solo performers too, focusing on social awareness, like Sally Rogers, Pat Humphries ("Swimming to the Other Side") and Cheryl Wheeler. For more light-weight music, there are still new releases of old recordings from the likes of the New Christie Minstrels and their spin-off group Back Porch Majority. Unfortunately, finding these true folk groups is increasingly hard, as the music industry has largely abandoned the label "folk" except for traditional songs from outside the United States. They use terms like "Country," or "Indie Rock," or most absurdly, I have even seen some labeled as "Easy Listening" --- none of these labels are remotely accurate! Sadly, the young people who weren't there no longer know about many of the great folk greats we describe as "The Folk Era" of the 50's and 60's. |
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Folk Legacy TrioIn 2017 the Kingston Trio initiated a new configuration with Josh Reynolds (son of original KT member NIck Reynolds), Mike Marvin, and Tim Gorelangton. So in the Fall of 2018 George Grove (formerly with The Kingston Trio for 41 years), and Rick Dougherty (formerly with both The Kingston Trio and The Limeliters for many years) joined Jerry Siggins (a former member of the Dapper Dans and The Diamonds) to form a new folk music trio, "Folk Legends" - soon renamed "the Folk Legacy Trio." The group performs the "Great American Folksong Book," singing music that spans the entire Folk Era from the Weavers, Merle Travis and Tennessee Ernie Ford in the early 50s through the commercial success of such groups as The Kingston Trio, Peter, Paul & Mary, The Chad Mitchell Trio and The Brothers Four as well as solo performers Tom Paxton, Judy Collins, Joan Baez, Gordon Lightfoot, John Denver and many others.
The sound of The Folk Legacy Trio brings back fond memories of the harmonies played so well traditionally by The Limeliters and the Kingston Trio, performing many of the same songs we all love. Some of The Limeliters favorites they have performed and recorded include "There's a Meetin Her Tonight," "Power and Glory," "City of New Orleans," "This Land is Your Land," "Forty Year Old Waltz," and "Circle." |
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Just Plain Folk and other Tribute Bands
Meanwhile, today many forrmer members of these legendary groups are highlighting both old and new music with solo careers or temporary collections of musicians. For example, former New Christy Minstrel, Rob Wright put together a group "Just Plain Folk" (pictured on left) simply because a stage manager wanted to offer more folk music in his venue. Another group performing live today is "MacDougal Street West," a Peter, Paul & Mary Tribute Band. Yet another example is a tribute band, "The Folk Collection," which describes themselves as "a tribute to the songs made famous by The Kingston Trio, The Limeliters, Peter Paul & Mary, John Denver and other great artists of the folk era.”There are plenty of other present-day performers specializing in resurrecting the music of these legends - - likely dozens of modern folk bands out there in various parts of the the country, even as of 2020's! We can be happy that original groups - even with new configurations - like The Limeliters are still performing live, as are The Kingston Trio, and the Folk Legacy Trio all of which provide an exciting continuation to the greatest folk songs and singers of all time. |
In 2003, Christopher Guest perhaps the best of his trademark mockumentaries - a docu-comedy about three folk groups from the '60s who reunite for a memorial concert in New York City following the death of a legendary folk manager.
When the movie came out, lead singer of The Limeliters saw it twice. He told a reporter, "'It's pretty good satire. And I like the fact that they play their own instruments and the soundtrack is very believable. It sounds the way acoustic music should sound. The Folksmen are clearly a composite of the Limeliters and a couple of other acts. They draw on a general Sixties folk repertoire. And they do it pretty well." Other members of the group chime in - 'We all love 'A Mighty Wind!'."
The music is excellent - if sometimes deliberately silly - and folk musicians can laugh right along with the audience as this "kindly" parody skewers folk music while simultaneously celebrating it. You can watch this time and again, and never tire of it. The fictional groups will remind you of "trios" like The Limeliters or the Kingston Trio; the "couple" group of "Mitch and Mickey" is reminiscent of "Ian & Sylvia;" while the biggest group, performing the title song, is straight "New Christy Minstrels."
And... there is a direct connection between the movie and The Limeliters (aside from Christopher Guest's parody of Glenn Yarbrough's vibrato). If you look carefully, you'll spot a young banjo player among the members of "The New Main Street Singers." His name is Patrick Sauber. He doesn't have any speaking lines in the movie, however he is in all of the musical numbers which feature the New Main Street Singers "Neuf-tette." In real life, Alex Hassilev hired Patrick (who was only 22 at the time) to be The Limeliters banjo/mandolin sideman back in 2004, when Mack Bailey and Andy Corwin first joined the band. Patrick worked with The Llimeliters for about a year and his virtuoso playing made them sound great! Today, he is in demand and very well known, nationally, in the Bluegrass music community.
The music is, of course, comedic, but their funny lyrics combined with lyrical melodies are ones that you can listen to on their own, not all that different from the comedic songs that The Liimeliters so often perform.
When the movie came out, lead singer of The Limeliters saw it twice. He told a reporter, "'It's pretty good satire. And I like the fact that they play their own instruments and the soundtrack is very believable. It sounds the way acoustic music should sound. The Folksmen are clearly a composite of the Limeliters and a couple of other acts. They draw on a general Sixties folk repertoire. And they do it pretty well." Other members of the group chime in - 'We all love 'A Mighty Wind!'."
The music is excellent - if sometimes deliberately silly - and folk musicians can laugh right along with the audience as this "kindly" parody skewers folk music while simultaneously celebrating it. You can watch this time and again, and never tire of it. The fictional groups will remind you of "trios" like The Limeliters or the Kingston Trio; the "couple" group of "Mitch and Mickey" is reminiscent of "Ian & Sylvia;" while the biggest group, performing the title song, is straight "New Christy Minstrels."
And... there is a direct connection between the movie and The Limeliters (aside from Christopher Guest's parody of Glenn Yarbrough's vibrato). If you look carefully, you'll spot a young banjo player among the members of "The New Main Street Singers." His name is Patrick Sauber. He doesn't have any speaking lines in the movie, however he is in all of the musical numbers which feature the New Main Street Singers "Neuf-tette." In real life, Alex Hassilev hired Patrick (who was only 22 at the time) to be The Limeliters banjo/mandolin sideman back in 2004, when Mack Bailey and Andy Corwin first joined the band. Patrick worked with The Llimeliters for about a year and his virtuoso playing made them sound great! Today, he is in demand and very well known, nationally, in the Bluegrass music community.
The music is, of course, comedic, but their funny lyrics combined with lyrical melodies are ones that you can listen to on their own, not all that different from the comedic songs that The Liimeliters so often perform.
The Limeliters provide in this song their own parody of folk music, with a rousing rendition of a "Generic Up-Temp Folksong." in this song, they pretend to have stolen the song from The Kingston Trio, which in itself is an in-joke from one of the audience "made-up" verses from "Hey Li Lee Li Lee" from their Tonight: In Person album, where an audience member sings: "The Limeliters put on a show / KingstonTrio Out you Go" (to which Lou Gottlieb responds, "dreadful partisanship there!"
The song, written by Larry Rand, was first performed by The Limeliters during the group's Hassilev-Daugherty-Zorn incarnation, proving so popular it was included on 2002's This Land Is Your Land PBS special and has been played many times since.
You will find the song on the albums Until we Get it Right (1999), Live in Paradise (2004), Pass the Music On (2013), The Kingston Trio 45th Anniversary Tribute CD, Video and DVD, This Land Is Your Land - The Folk Years 2002 PBS Special -(DVD and CD available), and many video and audio versions online on many YouTube and Facebook pages. Andrew Bartness has an illustrated slide-show version on his Youtube channel.
Larry Rand performs a version of the song with his singing partner Nicole Mendyk on their 2009 album Deep Dish Folk. Their version uses slightly different lyrics, perhaps a bit more political.
"Generic Uptempo Folksong" manages to simultaneously satirize the genre, deliver an excellent example of it, and (falsely) credit its most successful exponents ("the one we stole from the Kingston Trio").
A parody of the parody was actually performed in August 2010 at the Kingston Trio Fantasy Camp, by three former or current Limeliters, who had never played together before: Gaylan Taylor (with The Limeliters at that time), with Bill Zorn and Rick Daugherty (when they were with The Kingston Trio). Sometimes derided as the "Limeston Trio," you can watch this version on YouTube.
The ending verse says it all: "Say hooray for the folk survivors! May they sing forever strong! And for the land of the brave and free. Generic Uptempo Folksong!"
Read the Lyrics to Generic Up-Tempo Folksong.
The song, written by Larry Rand, was first performed by The Limeliters during the group's Hassilev-Daugherty-Zorn incarnation, proving so popular it was included on 2002's This Land Is Your Land PBS special and has been played many times since.
You will find the song on the albums Until we Get it Right (1999), Live in Paradise (2004), Pass the Music On (2013), The Kingston Trio 45th Anniversary Tribute CD, Video and DVD, This Land Is Your Land - The Folk Years 2002 PBS Special -(DVD and CD available), and many video and audio versions online on many YouTube and Facebook pages. Andrew Bartness has an illustrated slide-show version on his Youtube channel.
Larry Rand performs a version of the song with his singing partner Nicole Mendyk on their 2009 album Deep Dish Folk. Their version uses slightly different lyrics, perhaps a bit more political.
"Generic Uptempo Folksong" manages to simultaneously satirize the genre, deliver an excellent example of it, and (falsely) credit its most successful exponents ("the one we stole from the Kingston Trio").
A parody of the parody was actually performed in August 2010 at the Kingston Trio Fantasy Camp, by three former or current Limeliters, who had never played together before: Gaylan Taylor (with The Limeliters at that time), with Bill Zorn and Rick Daugherty (when they were with The Kingston Trio). Sometimes derided as the "Limeston Trio," you can watch this version on YouTube.
The ending verse says it all: "Say hooray for the folk survivors! May they sing forever strong! And for the land of the brave and free. Generic Uptempo Folksong!"
Read the Lyrics to Generic Up-Tempo Folksong.