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ROCKOLLECTIONS: THE KINGSTON TRIO PT.4 FINAL

Our final chapter on the Kingston Trio.
In 1961, Dave Guard left the group, and among those considered as a replacement for him was Roger McGuinn of the Byrds,
They agreed on John Stewart, a terrific songwriter who wrote Daydream Believer, a smash for the Monkees.
I have some more fun songs to hear, including a hit in 1963 when the word “Damn” was still frowned upon.
A mere gnat to the way I curse, lol!
The group members disbanded in 1967 to pursue individual carreers.
(Yeah, that always works!!)
Bob Shane in particular seemed to make some blunders in that regard- I’ll tell you about it.
I’ll play a song that after all these years can still bring a smile, about that Man Who Never Returned.
And a darkly humorous rumination on nuclear war that may not seem so comical today, but was always a concert favorite. Even back then it mentions “strife in Iran”. Ah, those happy-go-lucky Iranians!
Taking it all out is the strange story of a song we all know written by Dino Valente of Quicksilver Messenger Service.
I have heard versions of it by the Jefferson Airplane and Spanky & Our Gang, to name a few, before the Youngbloods had their hit with it in 1967.
But did you know the Kingston Trio sang it in 1964?
As always, I hope you enjoyed the high academic presentation and lowbrow-humor I call Rockollections, lol!

Mike

Tags: Bob Shane, Byrds, Dave Guard, Daydream Believer, Dino Valente, Engineer Ken Stanley, Jefferson Airplane, John Stewart, Monkees, Nick Reynolds, Quicksiver Messenger Service, Roger McGuinn, Spanky and Our Gang, Youngbloods

ROCKOLLECTIONS: THE KINGSTON TRIO PT.3

Well, THIS never happened before or since- an artist DYING while I am featuring him!
Sorry to see you go, NIck.
This episode has more hits by the Kingston Trio.
But most interesting was a song that we all associate with Frank Sinatra.
And finding out in was written for THEM, and recorded by them 4 years before in 1961!

Kingston Trio co-founder Reynolds dies
SAN DIEGO, California (AP) — Nick Reynolds, a founding member of the Kingston Trio who jump-started the revival folk scene of the late 1950s and paved the way for artists such as Bob Dylan and Joan Baez, has died. He was 75.
Reynolds had been hospitalized with acute respiratory disease and other illnesses, and died Wednesday in San Diego after his family took him off life support, said son Joshua Reynolds.
“Dad was so happy he turned people onto music in a way that people could really approach it, in a simple and honest way,” Josh Reynolds told The Associated Press. “He was a very gracious and loving performer. He was a devoted family man.”
The Kingston Trio’s version of the 19th-century folk song “Tom Dooley” landed the group a No. 1 spot on the charts in 1958, and launched the band’s career.
Born on July 27, 1933, in San Diego, Nicholas Reynolds demonstrated an early love of music and did sing-alongs with his two sisters and their Navy captain-father, who taught him to play guitar.
He graduated from Coronado High School in 1951 and attended the University of Arizona and San Diego State University before attending Menlo College, a business school near Palo Alto. He graduated from Menlo in 1956.
It was during the mid-1950s that Nicholas Reynolds met Bob Shane, who introduced him to Stanford student Dave Guard. Guard and Shane knew each other from playing music in Guard’s native Hawaii. The three formed the Kingston Trio.
In 1958, “Tom Dooley” earned Reynolds, Guard and Shane a trophy for best country and western performance at the first Grammys. The group, defined by tight harmonies and a clean-cut style, went on to win a Grammy the next year for best folk performance for its album “The Kingston Trio At Large.”
Later member John Stewart joined the group in 1961, replacing Guard. Stewart died in January, also in San Diego.
After leaving the Kingston Trio in 1967, Reynolds moved to Oregon, where he stayed until the 1980s and took a break from music to raise his family, his son said.
Reynolds moved back to California in the mid-1980s and rejoined Stewart for one album. In 1991, Reynolds rejoined Shane in a reconstituted version of the Trio. He remained with the group until retiring in 2003, his son said.
Reynolds is survived by his wife Leslie, sons Joshua and John Pike Reynolds, daughters Annie Reynolds Moore and Jennifer Reynolds, and his two sisters.

Mike

Tags: “Tom Dooley”, Bob Shane, Dave Guard, Engineer Ken Stanley, frank sinatra, John Stewart, Nick Reynolds

ROCKOLLECTIONS: TRIBUTE/MEMORIAL 2008 PT.8

Here’s Part Eight of the 2008 Tribute/Memorial series interrupted by my not going to the station for a while.
And a friend of the station died last year, Paul Newman- his wife Joanne Woodward an even bigger friend who would do a lot of stuff for us at Christmas.
Remember the group The Crazy World Of Arthur Brown?
Well I had a memory of them doing a song on an album, the most unlikely song you could imagine them doing, you would not believe it.
Turned out my memory was correct, and the LP was called Strangeland.
In this episode you will hear it- and it relates to our Memorial.
Now I said last time that this was broadcast back in July, and in fact it was the nearest show to the 40 Year Anniversary of the Moon Landing in 1969.
I was in the midst of my Space series here, so it wasn’t heard then but will be now.
This time I thought I’d take a look at the moon using Sexy Singers.
Hearing the show now, I realize that I never identified them, as we were running late.
So, they are Tanya Tucker and Tom Jones.
That’s about all you need to know- more than you need to know- to enjoy this one.

This series is not morbid nor maudlin, it is rather a celebration of the lives of those we lost in the previous year- in this case 2008.
Sort of an Irish Wake!
At least SOME of these people should have touched you in some way, shape or form, and made your life a bit happier and more pleasant.
I will be dealing with the notable or should be noted.
For the musical folks who passed on, they are deserving of one more play, at the very least.
And we will deal with other cultural figures as well, with some hopefully appropriate music for them.
You are welcome, encouraged even, to anticipate or second-guess my own musical choices!

In this eighth episode, those selected are:
Paul Newman
Nick Reynolds (Kingston Trio)
Jody Reynods (and relates to Arthur Brown, but not Nick, lol)
Neil Hefti (Songwriter)
Levi Stubbs (The Four Tops)

They can’t give any more than they have already given us.

Mike

Tags: Joanne Woodward, Jody Reynolds, Levi Stubbs, Moon Landing 1969, Neil Hefti, Nick Reynolds, Paul Newman, Sexy Singers, Strangeland, Tanya Tucker, The Crazy World Of Arthur Brown, Tom Jones