When Joe started this thread some years ago, he wanted to know if anyone had any stories about the Limeliters to share. This story is a bit different, and I'm hoping that perhaps some Mudcatters might be able to provide an answer to something that's puzzled me for thirty years.

Here's the story:

In early (February?) 1981, I saw an ad in the New York Daily News announcing that the Limeliters were going to play a gig at the Copa in New York City. I was thrilled - after all these years I would finally get the chance to see them in person. (They were a big musical influence on me, to put it mildly.) They would be there for a few weeks.

I looked at the announcement. They were to share the bill with the Kingston Trio, which was okay as far as I was concerned, but then I noticed that the ad said "The Limeliters," but underneath the name it then said "Glenn Yarbrough." I knew that Red Grammer had joined the group a few months before, having seen the Limeliters perform on a short-lived PBS interview show ("Over Easy" hosted by Mary Martin and Jim Hartz.) in late 1980. So I called the Copa. I was told that Yarbrough would not be singing with the Limeliters; he would do his own set. Alright, I guess; Red Grammer had a good tenor voice and I would still get to see Glenn Yarbrough, albeit as a solo performer.

Then, right before their gig, I came down with the flu for the first time in my life. Damn. I was quite ill and on my back for around two weeks. I wasn't going anywhere. As soon as I was ambulatory, I called the Copa to see about tickets - after all, there was still time to see the group - or so I thought. The man who answered the phone told me that the remainder of the gig had been cancelled. When I asked why, he said that ticket sales were not good and the engagement had ended early. I asked if there was any chance of their returning at some point, he said no and hinted that the Limeliters would probably never play NYC again (and I don't believe they ever did).

Well, I was heartbroken. There went my only chance to see the Limeliters in live performance.

Now, let's jump forward thirty years:

I recently went looking for Limeliters videos on YouTube and, MUCH to my surprise, there were several professionally shot videos from that very Copa gig! And, even more surprising, Glenn Yarbrough was singing with them, and not Red Grammer. Hassilev, Gottlieb and Yarbrough were in fine form and the venue certainly did not look like they were wanting for paying customers.

But there, on the page for one of the videos, I noticed a posted comment: Someone had also wanted to see the 1981 Copa gig and arrived there only to find the place closed and no Limeliters. He was quite upset as well, and wanted to know if anyone knew what had happened. I don't believe anyone responded to his post, but now I knew that I was not the only one baffled and disappointed by the unexplained "early termination" of their engagement.

So, I put this to the Mudcat community: Does anyone know what happened way back in 1981? I have to confess that even after thirty years, I'm still a bit sad about missing my only chance to see what turned out to be the last time (I believe) the original three Limeliters played NYC. Guess I'm lookin' for some closure...

Lou Gottlieb died in 1996, Alex Hassilev has retired and there seems to be some question as to where (and how) Glenn Yarbrough is today (see another thread on this topic). I've heard the new incarnation of the Limeliters, and while they are all quite competant musicians and vocalists, to me the group is now nothing more than a cover band "in the Limeliters' style."

So, can anyone shed a little light on this mystery?

Jay