I saw the Kingston Trio perform only once - I think it must have been in the late 1980s or early 1990s. It was Bob Shane, George Somebody, and some other old guy....and that's what they seemed like - some old guys who used to be somebody and now were bitter and crude. They had a lot of bathroom humor - I guess old guys get fixated on that. They sang the songs pretty well, but without any heart. I think perhaps that Dave Guard and John Stewart were the heart of the Kingston Trio. It always seemed to me that Bob Shane was the business manager of the Trio, not its heart. Many folksingers age gracefully, but these guys did not.

I have all of the "original" Kingston Trio albums on CD, and I still love them. This one live performance turned me off, since it seemed they were just has-beens going through the motions. Maybe the new members of the group can bring back some of the Kingston Trio's old spirit.

-Joe-