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.
Coast Of California
The Kingston Trio Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
El Diego hid it there when the clear ran aground
On the coast of California, deep within a cave that's never seen
Treasure, stolen from the Incas,
We could capture for the Queen
There's a mountain in the ocean on the coast of California
And deep within its side the tides of night alone reveal
While the Spaniard, blind with pleasure
Plays ashore in Ensenada
Ah Ah ah ahh
Ah Ah ah ahh
We will sail before the dawn along the coast of California
El Diego is delayed
The wine and woman hold their sway
And our map is clearly drawn to the dark and stormy shore
On the coast of California
Lies a mighty prize of war
Tell not a soul that you have seen me
Breathe not a word of what I say
Tell not a soul that you have seen me
Breathe not a word of what I say
The song "Coast of California" by The Kingston Trio talks about a hidden treasure on the coast of California that was allegedly hidden by El Diego, who stole it from the Incas. The song opens with the singer inviting the listeners to join him on a treasure hunt on the coast of California, where El Diego hid the treasure in a cave that has never been seen. The singer believes they could capture the stolen treasure and offer it to the Queen. The second verse talks about the mountain in the ocean on the coast of California, where El Diego's hidden cave is located. The tides of night reveal the cave to those who seek it, and the singer plans to meet his fellow pirates there to plunder the riches of Grenada. While the Spaniards are playing ashore in Ensenada blinded by pleasure, the pirates will be busy looking for the treasure in the hidden cave.
The last verse describes the journey to reach the coast of California. The singer plans to sail before dawn, taking advantage of the fact that El Diego is delayed, distracted by wine and women. The map is clearly drawn to the dark and stormy shore where the mighty prize of war awaits them. The chorus is a cautionary message to the listeners, urging them not to reveal the singer's identity and his plan to anyone.
The lyrics of the song make use of imagery to create a sense of mystery and adventure. The treasure hunt on the coast of California is portrayed as a dangerous and challenging quest that only a few brave souls understand. Through the song, the singer invites the listeners to join him on the journey and experience the thrill of the hunt.
Line by Line Meaning
There is treasure hidden there on the coast of California
There is a hidden treasure on the coast of California that we seek.
El Diego hid it there when the clear ran aground
El Diego hid the treasure when his ship, The Clear, crashed on the coast.
On the coast of California, deep within a cave that's never seen
The treasure is somewhere in a cave on the California coast that hasn't been explored before.
Treasure, stolen from the Incas,
The treasure was stolen from the Incas.
We could capture for the Queen
We plan to capture the treasure to present it to the Queen.
There's a mountain in the ocean on the coast of California
There is a mountain formation in the ocean near the California coast that we are searching for.
And deep within its side the tides of night alone reveal
Only at night, when the tide is in, can we see the entrance to the hidden cave.
El Diego's hidden cave where we'll plunder the riches of Grenada
We plan to raid El Diego's hidden cave and take the riches he's collected from Grenada.
While the Spaniard, blind with pleasure
El Diego is likely gambling and drinking in Ensenada, oblivious to our plan to steal his treasure.
Plays ashore in Ensenada
El Diego is relaxing on the shore of Ensenada while we sneak into his hidden cave.
We will sail before the dawn along the coast of California
We plan to set sail before sunrise and follow the coast of California to find El Diego's hidden cave.
El Diego is delayed
Our intelligence indicates that El Diego has been delayed and won't be able to stop us.
The wine and woman hold their sway
El Diego is likely distracted by drinking and women, which gives us an advantage to steal his treasure.
And our map is clearly drawn to the dark and stormy shore
We have a clear and detailed map that leads us directly to the location of the hidden cave.
Lies a mighty prize of war
The treasure in El Diego's hidden cave would be a valuable prize to bring back from war.
Tell not a soul that you have seen me
We must keep our plan and identities secret, and tell no one that we are involved in the mission.
Breathe not a word of what I say
We must keep silent about our plans and our conversation.
Lyrics © CONCORD MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC
Written by: DAVE GUARD, JANE BOWERS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
johnmarlowe
Dave Guard was incredible on this song
Tai Chi Man
Great harmony by these guys! RIP and a grateful Thank You for all your years of joyful and entertaining music!
Jack Scholze
Always something very special about Dave Guard's superb banjo playing.
Kirk Barkley
You bet there was & they weren't as great without him
W Flynn
Thanks for posting. These guys were the best of their genre. Just like Sinatra in pop/blues/standards, George Jones in country music and Louis Armstrong in jazz, there is the Kingston Trio, then all the others. The Guard trio was the best, but the Stewart trio was similarly accomplished. Dave Guard is a forgotten genius. His politics (or lack thereof) hurt him with the critics, but popular music has a lot to thank Dave Guard for.
Mark Newton
Wish Dave Guard had stuck to music alone.
dewey cheatem and howe
Best banjo solo ever.Famingo tinged progressive instrumentation,Dave Guard took banjo places no one else did.
Stein Franken
Wonderful song from "Goin' Places' Album. Followed by Bob's Shane's rendition of "It was a Very Good Year". If I recall correctly, Frank Sinatra heard it and decided to his own cover of the song.
At it's peak, the Trio was a great band.
mike smith
It's a beautiful haunting melody with a wonderfully flamenco-ish chord progression, and around the time it came out there was a Limeliters' version of "Si Me Quieres" which was a bit stilted (they translated it while they sang). There was a slightly earlier and more passionate version by the Weavers, and an even earlier one by Pete Seeger. I think the Jane Bowers and Dave Guard lyric here has a lot of mood and justifies the adaptation, like when Guthrie got "Pastures Of Plenty" from "Pretty Polly".
But there always will be folks who disagree.
HeartoftheDragonColo
So awesome you (and others) have added so many great songs by the virtual founders of the folk era (although Pete Seeger & The Weavers also have a claim). They have been sadly under-represented on YouTube until now!