The New Lost City Ramblers in Concert

Subject: The New Lost City Ramblers in Concert
From: GUEST,Don Meixner
Date: 12 Aug 07 - 12:08 AM

I have just returned from an out door performance of The New Lost City Ramblers. I have to say it was a great time. The rarity of concerts from these gentleman made it a non miss possibility.

The Skaneateles Festival is usually a classical music event. This year someone made the perfect decision to accept the idea that there is classical American Folk music. And getting the NLCR was the perfect choice.

The crowd was mostly people who were expecting a string quartet or a Baroque Ensemble.   What they got was John Cohen, Tracy Schwarz, and Mike Seeger. Instead of Fredrich Chopin they got Doc Boggs and on the spot folk lore. This was a case of virtuosity redefined. This was another case of stagemanship winning over an audience that might have otherwise been underwhelmed.

And I got to see a few legends one more time.

Don

Subject: RE: The New Lost City Ramblers in Concert
From: Francy
Date: 12 Aug 07 - 12:29 AM

What an absolutely wonderful treat......Three great gentlemen of folk music..........I envy you Don.......Frank of Toledo

Subject: RE: The New Lost City Ramblers in Concert
From: open mike
Date: 12 Aug 07 - 12:36 AM

a pity that Tom Paley was not included in the line-up.,
otherwise, this might have been a more complete group.

but i bet it was good to see and hear them again.

I hope some in the audience were intitiated into
being folkies!!

Subject: RE: The New Lost City Ramblers in Concert
From: Francy
Date: 12 Aug 07 - 01:39 AM

Hi Laurel........Frank of Toledo

Subject: RE: The New Lost City Ramblers in Concert
From: Jerry Rasmussen
Date: 12 Aug 07 - 07:17 AM

I had the pleasure of hearing them in the early 60's in New York City. At that time, chosing to go to hear a concert meant a week on peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. I couldn't afford music and good food. When I found out that the NLCR were doing a concert, I bought me a big jar of Skippy's peanut butter and some grape jelly, and was set to go. It was Skippy's when I went to hear Doc Watson and Fred Price, and the same for Jesse Fuller and a few others. I used to kid around that I had so many peanut butter and jelly sandwiches in those years that people called me Skippy.

Jerry

Subject: RE: The New Lost City Ramblers in Concert
From: frogprince
Date: 12 Aug 07 - 12:00 PM

Just tried to google a song that got quite a bit of country radio play about 200 years ago. All I really remember is "peanut butter sandwiches, peanut butter sandwiches, all (night?) long". Found one other peanut butter sandwich song, but not that one. : )
The NLCR's...Another group that I never dreamt was still extant; what I have is tape copied over thirty years ago from someone's big black CD. I'll probably find out they played the Ark recently and I didn't catch it...

Subject: RE: The New Lost City Ramblers in Concert
From: GUEST,DonMeixner
Date: 12 Aug 07 - 12:22 PM

This concert was over looking Skaneateles Lake at the Eastern end of the Fingerlakes in Central New York State. The site was the back porch of an old family farm house and we sat on the lawn for $20.00. With a phone call and six more dollars we could have sat on the porch. This is a very well off area. The gross real estate we were sitting on is probably a $6,000.000.00 parcel of hillside. BUT the setting was great the music was wonderful UNTIL!!!!!!!

At the start of the second set a near by Country Club began a program of fireworks. All way present for the next 20 minutes but just under the total irritation level the fireworks continued as did the band. They took it in stride with Mike Seeger humming "Bonaparte's Retreat" in between a few songs.

As I said, "A great Night."

DOn

Subject: RE: The New Lost City Ramblers in Concert
From: Flatpick
Date: 12 Aug 07 - 12:56 PM

Oh, envy. Bet you had a great night.

Subject: RE: The New Lost City Ramblers in Concert
From: GUEST,Art Thieme
Date: 12 Aug 07 - 02:06 PM

I first saw 'em in 1959 at the Gate Of Horn in Chicago--opening the show for Bob Gibson who, then, did trad music only with just a banjo--no guitar yet. And Mountain Music, to me, meant the WLS Barn Dance radio show. The NLCR personally all by themselves CREATED an interest in Old Time Music. Now it's everywhere!! Paley was with them then, but only for those early couple of years. Tracy Mike and John have personified the Ramblers ever since.----Good memories.

The boys were the ones around whom the early years of the University Of Chicago Folk Festival were centered.--- It was an all traditional fest.--- They ran the workshops because they were the only ones, besides some few academic folklorists, who knew what to ask the great still alive masters of the music the collectors had found around the U.S.A.

What a privilege it was to be there for all of that...

Art Thieme

Subject: RE: The New Lost City Ramblers in Concert
From: GUEST,DonMeixner
Date: 12 Aug 07 - 05:24 PM

Hi Art,

John Cohen talked about the privilege of playing these old songs. He said it wasn't enough that he remembered the songs. He also remembered the events where he learned them and the people he learned them from. And as he did these songs places and people came back to him as fresh as the day he first played them. He felt it was a way to keep people alive
as long as the songs were sung. As each person learns the song the connection remains.

I never thought of these songs in that way. I can see how and why John feels the way he does. I can't do Sam Hall with out remembering my friend Don Austin and the grand baritone I first heard him sing the song with.

Don

Subject: RE: The New Lost City Ramblers in Concert
From: Padre
Date: 12 Aug 07 - 09:36 PM

1962 - I saw NLCR @ Antioch College - and I've never been the same!!

Don, what a treat to hear & see them live...I had 6 of their old Folkways albums, but somewhere in the moves they have disappeared.

Padre

Subject: RE: The New Lost City Ramblers in Concert
From: GUEST,Art Thieme
Date: 13 Aug 07 - 12:31 AM

An old friend made me a set of CDs from those old Folkways LPs. Even the clicks and pops are there for me to enjoy---like listening to the passing of time---each click added, slowly, as the years passed. Tom Paley's rendering of Kirk McGhee's "Railroad Blues" simply blew me away when he did it at that First U. Of Chicago Folk Fest---Feb. 3,4 and 5, 1961. John Cohen is right! The memories keep all of it alive like it was happening here and now. ----- And I did that song on my first LP---but never as well as Tom did it.

Art