The Kingston Trio are just about forgotten today. They were the early 60's version of the "Commercial Face of Folk" before Peter, Paul and Mary filled that role. At least until Dylan came along and kinda rendered the whole commercial folk scene irrelevant. Still, they sold a lot of records, appealing mostly to college age kids who had fallen in love with rock'n'roll in the late 50's but thought the current commercial hits too juvenile. The Kingston Trio where the gentler, friendlier side of Folk Music. They didn't protest march. They weren't anti-war(there wasn't really a war to be "anti" of, except in the universal sense). They were about classic traditional tunes, pleasant melodies, well-crafted harmonies and energetic live performances filled with good humor.
Formed by Dave Guard, Bob Shane and Nick Reynolds, the Trio sold millions of records, scarcely noticing the replacement of musical leader Guard with John Stewart (writer and singer of "Gold" and the original "Daydream Believer"). They had a long career, with some form of the Trio continuing to this Day.
The tune chosen here was not one of their hits but a track from their successful 1963 album "New Frontier" which, of course, firmly fixes this tune, "Some Fool Made A Soldier Out Of Me." A good example of the Trio's blend of folk earnestness and good humor and our closing song of the day for 2012!
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