To Thread - Forum Home

The Mudcat Café TM
https://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=122147
18 messages

long-lived bands

08 Jul 09 - 01:05 PM (#2674865)
Subject: long-lived bands
From: Jack Campin

I just got a tweet for a 23rd-anniversary gig by the Turkish "Grup Yorum". Which reminded me of the Battlefield Band, who have current members who weren't even born when the band first formed. Buena Vista Social Club have older players than either, I'm not sure if the band itself is older.

What are the oldest-established bands in folk/trad music, from anywhere?


08 Jul 09 - 01:44 PM (#2674902)
Subject: RE: long-lived bands
From: Mary Katherine

I guess it depends on what's meant by "band" - the Kingston Trio, who are still touring, have been around since the late 1950s, but there is no one now with the group who was in it when it was founded, although the name continues.
Ditto the Limeliters - no original members are left, but the group name continues and they still tour.
And, of course, ditto the Vienna Boys Choir, whose membership has changed constantly over the past 70-80 years!
Peter, Paul & Mary have always performed with the original three members, although since Mary's serious illness Peter and Noel sometimes perform as a duo. I think they started in 1961-62, so 48 years.


08 Jul 09 - 02:01 PM (#2674915)
Subject: RE: long-lived bands
From: Jack Campin

I had the Kingston Trio kind of group in mind - hadn't realized they were still in existence. (The Vienna Boys' Choir is no sort of trad group by anybody's standards).


08 Jul 09 - 02:09 PM (#2674923)
Subject: RE: long-lived bands
From: Matthew Edwards

Does the Kilfenora Ceili Band count? 100th birthday in 2009!

Matthew


08 Jul 09 - 03:02 PM (#2674978)
Subject: RE: long-lived bands
From: Jack Campin

Kilfenora are going to be hard to beat.

It occurred to me that there are older Highland pipe bands, but they're mostly part of army regiments or police forces. I think there may be one originally-all-amateur pipe band about 100 years old but I can't remember what it is.


08 Jul 09 - 04:36 PM (#2675059)
Subject: RE: long-lived bands
From: Nicholas Waller

Does The Copper Family count? Hard to know when they start, I suppose.


08 Jul 09 - 04:50 PM (#2675077)
Subject: RE: long-lived bands
From: Rifleman (inactive)

The Copper Family
their official website


08 Jul 09 - 04:51 PM (#2675080)
Subject: RE: long-lived bands
From: fretless

New Lost City Ramblers, who began in teh late 1950s, count as a long-standing representative of the Old Time revival groups. There was only one membership change in their 3-person group, and that was relatively early on. There is a documentary about them due out this summer: Always Been a Rambler.


08 Jul 09 - 04:53 PM (#2675086)
Subject: RE: long-lived bands
From: Leadfingers

Cuckoo Oak from Shropshire have only been going for about Thirty years , and only Twenty or so with the current line up .


09 Jul 09 - 05:27 AM (#2675503)
Subject: RE: long-lived bands
From: Splott Man

The Blind Boys of Alabama have at least 70 years under their belts.

in the allied arts, the Besses o't Barn Brass Band have their origins in the 18th Century.


09 Jul 09 - 03:26 PM (#2675939)
Subject: RE: long-lived bands
From: GUEST,PeterC

53 years for The Rakes.


09 Jul 09 - 03:39 PM (#2675950)
Subject: RE: long-lived bands
From: Rifleman (inactive)

Ummmm...Fairport Convention - 42 years


09 Jul 09 - 03:43 PM (#2675952)
Subject: RE: long-lived bands
From: Rifleman (inactive)

and........ The Oak Ridge Boys

The group was founded in 1945 as the Oak Ridge Quartet, so that gives them 64 years


09 Jul 09 - 04:32 PM (#2675994)
Subject: RE: long-lived bands
From: Wolfhound person

High Level Ranters

40+ years - 2 original members still going.

Paws


09 Jul 09 - 04:36 PM (#2675996)
Subject: RE: long-lived bands
From: Rifleman (inactive)

Fairport has one original member, Simon Nicol, The Oak Ride Boys, no surviving original members.


10 Jul 09 - 10:54 AM (#2676614)
Subject: RE: long-lived bands
From: GUEST

Triggers broom effect http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jSmSTpRUeLs


10 Jul 09 - 11:07 AM (#2676625)
Subject: RE: long-lived bands
From: GUEST,TJ in San Diego

The Mills Brothers were a major African-American jazz and pop vocal quartet of the 20th century producing more than 2,000 recordings that sold more than 50 million copies and garnered at least three dozen gold records. The Mills Brothers were inducted into The Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 1998. Now in its third generation, they began professionally in 1928 and actually performed locally before that. That would give them 81 years combined performing. The last I heard, the grandson of one of the original brothers was still performing with a former member of The Platters as a new iteration of the Mills Brothers. Such widely differing performers as the late Dean Martin and the BeeGees cite them as a major influence.

I know they're not folk singers, but boy are they good!


10 Jul 09 - 11:11 AM (#2676629)
Subject: RE: long-lived bands
From: GUEST,punkfolkrocker

The Wurzels..



[if our local heroes have already been mentioned in this thread,
sorry..
"search this page Ctrl/F" no longer works since i was hoodwinked
into updating to effin IE.8 !!!!]