The world lost a true music legend with the passing of
Kingston Trio founder Nick Reynolds on October 1. Coming so soon after the
passing of fellow Kingston Trio member John Stewart on January 19, it was an
especially difficult blow for fans of the trio. Like a select group of San
Diego musicians, the Kingston Trio sold records into the millions. Unlike the
other artists, this trio had a huge impact on popular culture, reverberations
of which can still be felt today. Every performer at an open mic night or
strumming a folk tune owes them a debt of gratitude. Ironically, despite
immense popularity that saw them charting well into the mid-sixties, their
music is rarely heard on TV or radio today, though the impact remains.
Reynolds'
accomplishments would fill several books. Born on July 27, 1933, in Coronado,
it was while at school in Palo Alto that the Trio first came together as part
of a group of musical friends that played around campus called Dave Guard and
the Calypsonians, which included Reynolds and Guard teamed with Barbara Bogue
and Joe Gannon. While this combo never released anything officially at the
time, they did record acetates of at least eight tracks. Replacing Bogue and
Gannon with Shane toward the end of the school year, the Trio's original
line-up was set. Barely a month after they had re-named themselves after a
Jamaican town, they were on their way. Asked to fill in for comedienne Phyllis
Diller that Memorial Day weekend at San Francisco's below ground nightclub, the
Purple Onion, the group's mix of ballads and folk songs was a huge hit. Asked
to return for a one week engagement, the band's stay at the club would last
seven months.
Quickly
drawing major label attention, the Kingston Trio signed with Capitol Records,
releasing their self-titled debut in early 1958. Their first single, "Scarlet
Ribbons," was given a major promotional push with their national TV debut
coming that May. The three made an appearance as World War II pilots on CBS
drama Playhouse 90. Naturally, the episode "Rumors of Evening" offered an
opportunity for the trio to plug their song. It was the first of dozens of TV
appearances, though most were of a musical nature. Among the many rare clips
making the rounds today are appearances the Kingston Trio made on such
legendary shows as "The Jack Benny Program," "The Andy Williams Show," "The
Perry Como Show," "The Pat Boone Show," "The Dinah Shore Show," "What's My
Line?," and "The Milton Berle Show."
Despite the
hoopla surrounding their debut, it was the trio's second single, "Tom Dooley,"
plucked from obscurity by a Utah DJ who remembered the tune from a live
performance, that captured the public's attention. Reynolds, Guard, and Shane
quickly hit the media spotlight and became regulars on variety programs and
magazine covers. The tune would hit number one on the pop charts and number 9
on what was then termed the "black" charts. It would also go on to sell more
than 3,000,000 copies and earn the group their sole gold disc for a single,
though they would earn seven gold album awards by 1964. In 1959 the song was
also made into a movie, "The Legend of Tom Dooley," starring Michael Landon.
Oddly while the song was nominated for that year's Grammy Awards in the
category of Best Performance by a Vocal Group, it scored a trophy instead for
Best Country & Western Performance.
The
following year the Academy got it right and the group won a second award for
their album The Kingston Trio at Large in the category of Best Folk
Performance. The plug was pulled on the group's first era on June 16, 1967,
with a final show at San Francisco's Hungry i nightclub before a star studded
audience. Interestingly, at a time when most acts' careers revolved around singles,
the Kingston Trio were very much an album act. During their heyday of 1958-63,
the band scored over 20 chart singles including five top tens and a number one
hit. Meanwhile, during 1958-1969, almost two dozen albums were released; 23 of
these charted, including 14 top tens and five number ones. In the 40 years
since then, the amount of worldwide re-issues and collector's editions is
staggering. A Reynolds/ Kingston Trio discography would easily fill its own
volume. By 1969 a new version of the group was making the rounds, although now
sans Reynolds. He would rejoin the group in 1988, finally retiring in 1999.
Reynolds
has had a worldwide influence on millions of people, but perhaps none as
profound as his nephew, Joey Harris. "He always referred to himself as ‘Uncool
Nick,'" Harris joked. "Beginning in 1968, when I was around 11 years old, I
spent three summers at my uncle's ranch in Port Orford, Oregon, near the Elk
River," he recalled. "It was a beautiful setting, with no TVs or anything like
that, just his wife and son Josh." One of Harris' fondest memories is of
Reynolds keeping the turntable going with great sounds throughout his stays.
"Nick had an extensive collection, having been a Capitol Records artist, just
about anything cool was sent to him. This is where I first heard music like
B.B. King and Tim Hardin." Sitting around the dinner table, playing and
singing, this is where Harris got his first profound music related advice. "I
was just old enough to listen," he laughed. Having played a few duff notes,
Reynolds told him, "Joey, there's nothing more boring than perfection." Its
advice Harris still takes to heart. "Oh yeah, it's something I've thought about
often and have passed on to others," he said.
Having
moved back to Coronado in the early nineties, Reynolds was often seen around
town, especially at any gigs in the area featuring Harris and occasional
musical partner Paul Kamanski. Though the past decade was relatively quiet for
Reynolds, there was still quite a bit of activity in the background.
In 2005,
Collector's Choice music began a major re-issue series that has seen much
previously unreleased vintage material make it's way to the public. "He
originally left the Kingston Trio because he didn't want the pressure anymore,"
Harris said. Indeed, while touring and recording are still grueling today by
comparison, it's a cake walk compared to what the musical pioneers of the
eighties and back had to endure. "But in his later years, he really did
appreciate his legacy; it became more important to him as the years went by,"
Harris remarked. Among his later accomplishments, he took part in a PBS
documentary covering the history of the trio, while Timeless Media released a
DVD documentary about the group.
Two major
points of pride for Reynolds were the annual Kingston Trio Fantasy Camp, which
ran for eight years in Arizona, and the issue of an official Kingston Trio
guitar (Martin-0021) in 2007. "He really looked forward to the camp," Harris
said. "It gave fans a chance to play with the group on stage, and he loved
that." That year also saw the start of a series of DVDs chronicling the Trio's
TV work in the late fifties/early sixties, notable for the inclusion of the
complete run of commercials the group did for 7-UP.
Also in
2007, with John Stewart in attendance, he received the San Diego Music Awards
highest honor: the Lifetime Achievement Award. "It really meant something to
him," Harris confirmed. "He was genuinely happy to receive the award, but he
was especially pleased that the event helped put guitars in schools. He felt
that the quality of music is getting lost, so he was always eager to encourage
education in music."
Though the
Kingston Trio is often overlooked in today's music world, their impact in the
pre-Beatles sixties is incalculable, and their influence remains. "I think the
Kingston Trio was really important to the music industry itself," Harris said.
"Their records gave Capitol Records a lot of prestige when they were a
fledgling label. The money they made from those discs is what allowed them to
sign lesser known jazz artists and so on." Indeed, it's been said that the
Kingston Trio's hits on Capitol led to the direct success of the Beach Boys,
the very next big act on the label. The Wilson brothers clearly benefitted from
the labels increased resources, but "it's also probably no coincidence that in
many of their early publicity shots, they are wearing the same striped shirts
that the Kingston Trio used as their signature look."
I had the
honor of speaking with Reynolds numerous times in preparation for his SDMA
Award and found him to be witty and charming. But what struck me most was how
humble he was. Here was a man who affected popular culture worldwide and has
done more than most of us could ever dream of, but he was the nicest, most down
to earth person you could ever hope to meet. Nick Reynolds may be gone, but as
long as someone can be heard strumming an acoustic guitar, his memory will live
on.