The Kingston Trio was formed in 1957 in the Palo Alto, California area by original lineup of Dave Guard (1934–1991), Bob Shane (1934–2020), and Nick Reynolds (1933–2008), who were just out of college. Greatly influenced by The Weavers, the calypso sounds of Harry Belafonte, and other semi-popular folk artists such as the Gateway Singers and the Tarriers, they were discovered playing at a college club called the Cracked Pot by Frank Werber, a local publicist then working at the Hungry i. He became their manager, and secured them a one-shot deal with Capitol Records.
Their first hit was a catchy rendition of an old-time folk song, "Tom Dooley", which went gold in 1958. It was so popular that it entered popular culture as a catchphrase: Ella Fitzgerald, for example, parodies it during her recorded version of "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer". It won them the first Grammy award for Best Country & Western Performance in 1959. The next year, they won the first Grammy Award for Best Ethnic or Traditional Folk Recording category for the album The Kingston Trio at Large.
At one point in the early 1960s The Kingston Trio had four albums at the same time among the Top 10 selling albums, a record unmatched for nearly 40 years. In spite of this, they had a relatively small number of hit singles.
The group's music was simple and accessible, with much use of tight vocal harmony, signature riffs (often played on the banjo), and repetitive choruses. Capitol producer Voyle Gilmore[1] enhanced their vocal sound to great effect with reverb and the relatively new process of doubletracking, in which the performers sang along with their own pre-recorded part to produce a stronger sound than with a single voice, in part due to a natural time gap of a fraction of a second between the original recording and the overdubbed part. At first pairs of tape recorders were used, then later multitrack recording machines, to produce the effect.
Guard left the band in 1961 as part of a disagreement over its musical direction. He formed the group Whiskey Hill Singers, and was replaced by John Stewart, who led the group through several more years of popularity until the arrival of The Beatles and British invasion rock bands pushed them from the charts.
In 1967 the Trio disbanded after a final performance at the Hungry i, June 17, 1967.
Shane, the lone member to resist the break-up of the Trio, started a new group, aptly named, "The New Kingston Trio," in 1969. Eventually, Shane was successful in reaching a contractual agreement with his former partners, Guard, Reynolds, and Werber, to secure and license once again, the original name, "The Kingston Trio" (unencumbered by the adjective new), in 1976.(Blake et al. 1986.) Shane still owns the property today, 2006.
For a number of years in the 1980s Reynolds, one of the original three members, rejoined Shane.
In 2004 Shane retired from the group due to health problems. He was replaced by Bill Zorn, who had been with Shane in an iteration of the group called The New Kingston Trio; Zorn also has been a member of The Limeliters.
In 2005 Bobby Haworth (a one-time member of The Brothers Four) left the group to be replaced by Rick Dougherty, who also had been a member of The Limeliters.
As of 2006, The Kingston Trio consisted of George Grove, Bill Zorn and Rick Dougherty.
in October 2017, Grove, Zorn, and Dougherty were replaced as the Trio by new licensees Reynolds and Marvin and their friend, Tim Gorelangton. In 2018, Josh Reynolds left the group and was replaced by Bob Haworth, who became a member of the band for the third time. At the end of 2018, Haworth left the group and was replaced by Don Marovich.
Adieu to My Island
The Kingston Trio Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Chorus:
I must bid adieu to my island. Leave the nights by the sea. My heart is heavy inside me. Bow down just like a palm tree.
The nights may be warm in Hawaii and the sun may shine on Rome
But the steel bands are playing in Trinidad and my heart tells me that's home.
I've traveled around on the sailing ships from Barbados to Bombay,
But the laughter in the market in Trinidad tells me that's where I should stay.
La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la (repeat)
The sun's comin' out of the ocean now, and in an hour I'll be gone.
Watch from the mountain when the ships sail in for the one I'll be on.
(Chorus)
La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, a, la, la (repeat)
The Kingston Trio's song, Adieu to My Island, is a poignant melody about the pain of leaving a treasured home behind. The chorus serves as a kind of refrain that emphasizes this feeling of loss: "I must bid adieu to my island. Leave the nights by the sea. My heart is heavy inside me. Bow down just like a palm tree." The metaphor of the palm tree is significant here, as it represents both physical and emotional surrender - giving in to the forces that compel us to move on, even when it feels unbearable.
The song is rooted in the singer's experiences of traveling throughout the world - from Hawaii to Rome to Bombay. Yet, no matter where he goes, he feels drawn back to Trinidad, where he hears "the laughter in the market" and experiences a sense of belonging he can't find elsewhere. This theme of searching for a sense of home is amplified by the chorus, which emphasizes the pain of leaving behind a familiar, comforting environment.
Throughout the song, we see a kind of tension between movement and rootedness - between the desire to explore new environments and the ache of leaving beloved places behind. This is a common human experience that is expressed beautifully through the lyrics and melody of Adieu to My Island.
Line by Line Meaning
I must bid adieu to my island. Leave the nights by the sea. My heart is heavy inside me. Bow down just like a palm tree.
I have to say goodbye to my beloved island, leave my pleasant nights by the seashore, my heart is heavy with sadness, and my spirits are low, just like a palm tree.
The nights may be warm in Hawaii and the sun may shine on Rome But the steel bands are playing in Trinidad and my heart tells me that's home.
Even though Hawaii nights are warm, and Rome glows under the sun, Congo drums playing in Trinidad resonate with a sense of belonging in my heart.
I've traveled around on the sailing ships from Barbados to Bombay, But the laughter in the market in Trinidad tells me that's where I should stay.
I have traveled to different places on sailboats, from Barbados to Bombay, but the sound of laughter in the market in Trinidad is a sign that it is where I should take up residence.
La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la: The Sun's comin' out of the ocean now, and in an hour I'll be gone. Watch from the mountain when the ships sail in for the one I'll be on.
As the sun rises from the ocean, I will leave shortly. Keep an eye from the mountain, and watch as ships approach, and take note of the one, which will carry me away.
La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, a, la, la:
Vocalization of the melody
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
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