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.
The Golden Spike
The Kingston Trio Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Gang man, make the bed. A cross tie at your head. For we can't lay the track 'til the benders off your back.
Gang man, make the bed. Carry man, get the feel. Heave that ply of steel. We can't get to town 'til I bring my hammer down.
Carry man, get the feel.
Spiker, place your nail. Right beside the rail. I can drive all you've got 'cause I keep my hammer hot. Spiker, place your nail.
Big train, stay off my back. Captain let it be. You know you can't hurry me. You won't give me my time 'cause you know I'm in my prime. Captain, let it be.
Listen to my hammer whine. We got ninety mile of track to line. We can do what we like when we drive the golden spike.
Listen to my hammer whine.
The lyrics to The Kingston Trio's song Golden Spike tell the story of the construction of the first transcontinental railroad in the United States. The song is based on the real-life events that took place during this massive undertaking, which connected the East Coast to the West Coast for the first time in history. The song is divided into several parts, each highlighting a different aspect of the construction process.
The first stanza is a call to action for the gang man, who is responsible for making the bed where the tracks will be laid. The gang man is instructed to clear the area of benders, which are flexible bars used to shape the tracks. The second stanza is directed at the carry man, who is responsible for carrying and placing the steel tracks. The lyrics emphasize the importance of getting the job done quickly so that the workers can reach their destination.
The third stanza highlights the work of the spiker, who is responsible for driving the spikes that hold the track in place. The lyrics show the camaraderie between the workers, as the spiker is called to place his nail right beside the rail. The fourth stanza is a warning to the big train, which represents the established transportation system that the transcontinental railroad was designed to compete with. The workers assert their dominance over the train, stating that they won't be hurried and that the train should stay off their back. The final stanza is an expression of pride and accomplishment, as the workers listen to the whine of their hammers and realize that they have driven the golden spike, completing a monumental feat of engineering.
Line by Line Meaning
Gang man, make the bed. A cross tie at your head. For we can't lay the track 'til the benders off your back.
Foreman tells the workers to prepare the area for laying the tracks, placing a cross tie at the head of the bed. However, they cannot start laying the track until the benders are out of the way, so they need to finish their work first.
Carry man, get the feel. Heave that ply of steel. We can't get to town 'til I bring my hammer down.
The carry man is asked to get the feel of the track and carry the rail, while the workers heave the steel ply in place. They cannot go to town until the person driving the spikes brings down their hammer.
Spiker, place your nail. Right beside the rail. I can drive all you've got 'cause I keep my hammer hot. Spiker, place your nail.
The person placing the spikes is told to hammer the nail right next to the rail, and the driver of the hammer notes that they can drive as many spikes as needed because they keep their hammer hot and ready. They are then told to proceed with placing the spike.
Big train, stay off my back. You got a thousand mile of track. I can hear your whistle blow but there ain't no where to go.
The workers ask the big train to stay out of their way as they have a thousand miles of track to lay. Even though they can hear the train's whistle blow, there's nowhere for it to go as the track isn't complete yet.
Captain let it be. You know you can't hurry me. You won't give me my time 'cause you know I'm in my prime. Captain, let it be.
The captain is asked to let the workers do their job as they cannot be rushed. He is not giving them enough time, but the workers feel that they are in their prime and can finish the job efficiently, hence, they ask the captain to let it be.
Listen to my hammer whine. We got ninety mile of track to line. We can do what we like when we drive the golden spike.
The driver of the hammer asks others to listen to the sound it is making. They have to line ninety miles of the track, but once they finish, they will be able to do as they please, knowing they did a great job driving the golden spike in place.
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bryan hamilton
I hope you aren't my x father-in-law. having said that, this is the best Kingston Trio collection I've come acrost.
murry cohen
A railroad song. Listen to Gordon Lightfoot's "Canadian Railroad Trilogy".