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.
Hangman
The Kingston Trio Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Hangman, hangman, hangman, slack your rope a while. Think I see my brother, ridin' many a mile.
Well, brother, did you bring me silver? Brother, did you bring me gold
Or did you come to see me hangin' from the gallows poles?
No, I didn't bring you any silver. No, I didn't bring any gold. I just come to see you hangin' from the gallows pole.
Well, father did you bring me any silver? Father, did you bring me any gold
Or did you come to see me hangin' from the gallows poles?
No, I didn't bring you any silver. No, I didn't bring any gold. I just come to see you hangin' from the gallows pole.
Hangman, hangman, hangman, slack your rope a while. Think I see my sweetheart, ridin' many a mile.
Well, sweetheart did you bring any silver? Sweetheart, did you bring a little gold
Or did you come to see me hangin' from the gallows pole?
Yes, I brought a little silver. Yes, I brought a little gold. I didn't come to see you hangin' from the gallows pole.
The Kingston Trio's song "Hangman" is a hauntingly beautiful tune that is believed to have been derived from an old English folk ballad about a prisoner on death row. The song is a conversation between the prisoner and various members of his family and loved ones who have come to see him hang. The prisoner is resigned to his fate and asks them if they have brought him any silver or gold, to which they all reply that they have not; they have merely come to witness his execution.
There is a sense of resignation and melancholy that permeates through the lyrics of the song. The prisoner seems to be at peace with his imminent death, while the people who have come to see him are all resigned to their fate, as well. It's a powerful commentary on the finality of death, and the acceptance that one must have when facing it, with no hope of reprieve.
Overall, the song is a sobering reminder of our mortality, and the fact that one day, we will all face the hangman, in one form or another.
Line by Line Meaning
Hangman, hangman, hangman, slack your rope a while. Think I see my brother, ridin' many a mile.
The singer sees their brother arriving from a great distance and asks the hangman to spare some time by loosening the rope.
Well, brother, did you bring me silver? Brother, did you bring me gold
Or did you come to see me hangin' from the gallows poles?
The singer asks if their brother brought them any wealth or if he came to witness their execution on the gallows poles.
No, I didn't bring you any silver. No, I didn't bring any gold. I just come to see you hangin' from the gallows pole.
The brother responds that he did not bring any wealth and his only intention is to see the singer being hanged on the gallows pole.
Hangman, hangman, hangman, slack your rope a while. Think I see my father, ridin' many a mile.
The scene repeats with the artist's father arriving from afar and the artist asking the hangman to delay the execution.
Well, father did you bring me any silver? Father, did you bring me any gold
Or did you come to see me hangin' from the gallows poles?
The artist inquires if their father brought them any wealth or if he came to watch them being hanged on the gallows poles.
No, I didn't bring you any silver. No, I didn't bring any gold. I just come to see you hangin' from the gallows pole.
The father states that he didn't bring any wealth and he only came to see his child's execution on the gallows pole.
Hangman, hangman, hangman, slack your rope a while. Think I see my sweetheart, ridin' many a mile.
The scene changes as the singer spots their lover coming from a distance and again asks the hangman to wait.
Well, sweetheart did you bring any silver? Sweetheart, did you bring a little gold
Or did you come to see me hangin' from the gallows pole?
The artist questions if their sweetheart brought any wealth or came to witness their execution on the gallows pole.
Yes, I brought a little silver. Yes, I brought a little gold. I didn't come to see you hangin' from the gallows pole.
The sweetheart answers that they did bring some wealth but did not come merely to see the artist being hanged.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
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@PRR5406
So hard to believe Nick and Dave are gone, and John Stewart, as well. Great voices, perfect instrumentation. Peace, dear friends.
@ppmlover33
❤
@johnbevan4684
They're all gone now ...
@scotnick59
One of the original trio's touchstone recordings for sure: pure gold!
@scotnick59
And it reminds of my favorite show: "The Big Valley": vocal by Jarrod, Heath and Nick = LOL
@charliekucharski2079
Love this haunting version by Nick, Bob, and Dave. Never thought about it before but it sounds like Bob Shane might be playing the 4 string banjo on this one and it sounds like Dave is doing some of the lead guitar picking. Dave is singing that low "joker part" as he described it. Nice harmony.
@geoffreybonwick8999
Same. First time i have noticed it. Bob plunked on the banjo. And it sounds like a 12 string doing a bit of noodling, which would be Dave.
@danielcunhavieira
Love this version.... always reminds me Armed Forces in 19th century ... GOLDEN MEMORIES...
@christiandavis2916
How did this end up sounding so good? Kudos to the original engineers and whoever did the modern remix.
@davidhansen8754
the Kingston Trio started so much with their harmonizing guitar playing and banjo. thank them