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.
HARD AIN
The Kingston Trio Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And that's where my true love lays around
And he takes other women right down on his knee
And he tells them a little tale he won't tell me
It's a-hard and it's hard, ain't it hard
To love one that never did love you?
It's a-hard and it's hard, ain't it hard, great God
First time I seen my true love
He was walkin' by my door
The next time I saw his false hearted smile
He was layin' dead and cold on floor
Well, who's goin' to kiss your ruby lips?
And who's goin' to hold you to his breast?
And who will talk your future over
While I'm out ramblin' in the West?
Don't go to drinkin' or to gamblin'
Don't go there, your sorrows to drown
That hard-liquor place is a low-down disgrace
It's the meanest old place in this town
The Kingston Trio's song "Hard Ain" is a sorrowful ballad about unrequited love and betrayal. The singer narrates the story of her love for a man who is unfaithful to her, describing him as a womanizer who tells other women sweet nothings but never tells her any such thing. The singer is tortured by the fact that she loves a man who blatantly refuses to reciprocate her love, stating that it is difficult to love someone who never loved her in the first place. The refrain of "hard and it's hard, ain't it hard/To love one that never did love you?" emphasizes the pain and sorrow of loving someone unattainable.
The song takes a dramatic turn with the revelation of the man's death. Though it is not clear whether the singer is directly responsible, the implication is that she may have somehow been involved in his death. She seems to be lamenting the loss of a man who did not deserve her love, asking who will kiss his lips or hold him to their breast. The song ends with a warning to others not to seek solace in drink or gambling, which seems to suggest that the singer has learned a harsh lesson about the dangers of love and unrequited passion.
Line by Line Meaning
There is a house in this old town
In this old town, there is a house.
And that's where my true love lays around
My true love is located in that house.
And he takes other women right down on his knee
My true love is unfaithful and seduces other women.
And he tells them a little tale he won't tell me
He shares secrets with these other women that he does not share with me.
It's a-hard and it's hard, ain't it hard
It is incredibly difficult and painful.
To love one that never did love you?
To love someone who has never reciprocated your love.
It's a-hard and it's hard, ain't it hard, great God
It is so difficult, almost unbearable.
To love one that never will be true?
To love someone who will never be faithful.
First time I seen my true love
The first time I saw my true love.
He was walkin' by my door
He was walking past my door.
The next time I saw his false hearted smile
The next time I saw him he was fake smiling.
He was layin' dead and cold on floor
He was dead and laying on the floor, no longer alive.
Well, who's goin' to kiss your ruby lips?
Who will kiss your lips like I used to?
And who's goin' to hold you to his breast?
Who will hold you like I used to?
And who will talk your future over
Who will discuss your future plans?
While I'm out ramblin' in the West?
While I am out wandering in the west.
Don't go to drinkin' or to gamblin'
Do not turn to drinking or gambling.
Don't go there, your sorrows to drown
Do not go there to try and escape your problems.
That hard-liquor place is a low-down disgrace
The place that serves hard alcohol is shameful and disreputable.
It's the meanest old place in this town
It is the most unpleasant place in this town.
Lyrics © OBO APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind