Omaha Rainbow : Issue 2
On Saturday, 9 February, there was a folk revival concert in New York City, and the New Kingston Trio and Dave Guard (billed separately) were slated to appear. They filmed the concert and it was shown on TV the following Wednesday night. It was on one channel from 11.30 to 1.00 and on another from 12 .30 to 2.00 (way past my bedtime, but I fortified myself with liquor and got out the matchsticks all in a good cause). As it happened the New Kingston Trio were on first so I was able to watch them and then turn over to the other channel at 12.30 and watch them again - very nice! They started off with MTA, then Tom Dooley and then Hard, Ain't It Hard (the latter containing a banjo solo so bad that I nearly crawled under the sofa!). Then they interviewed Bob Shane and Dave Guard (taped earlier in the day) and then it was back to the stage and they sang either Old Time Religion or Sing, Sing, Sing - or a combination of the two. The latter was very good and I think they were beginning to warm up then - previously, I didn't think too much of their performance, I'm afraid. I don't know if it was intentional or not but the banjo player was taller than Bob Shane and had sleck dark hair and the other one was shorter with blond hair, not much neck and a pudding-basin haircut - he also kept clowning around. From a distance it looked like the old group! Dave Guard kept trying to out-talk Bob Shane (just like the old days!) They then showed the sleeve of Back in Town and the interviewer asked who was missing. Both answered Nick Reynolds and no mention was made of our John - who was in the picture, after all.
I can't get over seeing Bob Shane - he looked so old. Whereas John looked about 20 on the TV when I saw him, poor old Bob looked about 50 - really. He had long, straggly grey hair and wore silver, wire-rimmed glasses and his face was so thin. When they interviewed him he sounded really old, too - hope he isn't ill!
The New Kingston Trio wore dark grey pants and white shirts with stripes which looked as though they consisted of small flowers and leaves - looked very smart. At the end of the concert they had a grand finale with everyone on stage. Dave Guard was there and happened to be right by a mike - they sang This Land is Your Land and you could hear him above everyone else - you know how he sounds on the album - and there were about 40 on the stage by then! Dave looked very square - fairly long straight dark brown hair, also wire-rimmed glasses, a horrible bright blue shirt, and pants that looked about three sizes too big for him! (You may gather that I was never too keen on Dave Guard!)
Anyway, it was a good concert - others appearing were the Hillside Singers, the Brandywine Singers, Eric Weissburg with Deliverance and the Tarriers, Joan Baez on film, the Highwaymen and Carolyn Hester. Odetta and Mike Settle were also billed but I didn't get to see them, or a Dave Guard solo bit. Perhaps they will repeat the concert some time and I will see all of it.