I just spent a lovely half-hour watching YouTube videos of the Kingston Trio. There were a lot of albums that my sisters and I listened to over and over and OVER again growing up (Tom Paxton, Hoyt Axton, Pete Seeger) but I am completely confident in saying we didn’t listen to any artist as much as we did the Kingston Trio. I can sing all the parts to all the songs. Okay, most of the songs. This made me very popular at Christmas dinner last year when Lala’s dad played one record after the other as he and I and my mother-in-law sang every song, sitting at the table, drinking wine. Lala proved her mettle by looking interested the whole time.
And Nick, of course, was always my favorite. We all love a clown, especially a short one. He’s good in the video below. I spent a long time looking for a video of the Merry Minuet, but will settle with the MTA.
Look how CUTE they are.
And if you’ve never heard this song, please go on over and listen to the Merry Minuet. By Sheldon Harnick, sung by the Kingston Trio, recorded live at the "Hungry i" (now a strip bar in North Beach — always a jolt when I walk by). This was always my favorite, and still completely up-to-date. Sadly. Oh, and Scotch and Soda. Or maybe Mariah…. What was your favorite?
Scotch and Soda.
Sigh.
Nick was my favorite, too. My girlfriend and I used to play guitar and sing at the local library in the children’s room, and the KT songs were some of my favorite to sing…so hearty and cheerful (well, most of them anyhow). The librarian only asked that we not sing Tom Dooley, so we changed the “show” to include Puff the Magic Dragon. Hey, this was 1969, and we were so radical!
Seems our childhoods had similar soundtracks. Pete Seeger sang me a lullaby once, when I threw up in the front row of one of his concerts. I was two.
oh my-that was the beginning of my relationship with my husband(now 28 years and going..). I had to pass the litmus test of KT and Ian and Sylvia. What great music to sing-
forgot-one of my favorites “I’m Going Home.” Great video on YouTube of it.
oh.my.
I LOVED the KT…
and we sang the MTA
WAAAAY too many times
for the grownups…
sigh.
Thanks for the memories, darlin’
My bro & I sang MTA a LOT when we were growing up. We had no idea that the “MTA” was, or what was actually going on in the lyrics, but we loved the song anyway.
That, and Tom Dooley (“Hang down your head, Tom Dooley, hang down your head and cry…”) were probably our favorites.
So many people dying this year. /sigh/
Even though I was born and raised in Canada I can sing “this land is your land” from start to finish thanks to the Kingston Trio.
Thank you Rachel for providing such a lovely moment. It reminded me how once upon a time my mother was a “hip chick” hangin out in North Beach in the 50’s. I grew up on that music, and I would like to add the Weavers to the list of most remembered.
Love KT and Pete Seeger…I have a framed picture (just ripped from a magazine of Pete’s banjo-words “This machine surrounds hate and forces it to surrender”.
Also – I honestly have never encountered another human that ever heard of Hoyt Axton. I found “Fearless” on vinyl at a used record shop about 15 years ago and never looked back.
I grew up on the Kingston Trio too — we still sing Charlie on the MTA and Tom Dooley. Scotch ‘n’ Soda is a little bit dated, but then, so am I! Thanks for the memories!