’60s folk stars retain appeal at SPAC
by James J. Hohman, The Knickerbocker News, August 12, 1975
Question: Why is a concert at Saratoga Performing Arts Center like a double-header at Fenway Park in Boston? Well, if you are a Red Sox fan, the answer should be easy: the show is a winner—and make that a double.
Monday night’s double bill of Glenn Yarbrough and the Limeliters, plus the main attraction, Mary Travers, was a continuing tribute to the promoters of SPAC.
The crowd was relatively sparse for SPAC, but Monday’s rain dampened no one’s enthusiasm—including, unfortunately, the mosquitoes. Yarbrough and the Limeliters “Reunion ’75” got things rolling within minutes after curtain time. “It’s Great to be Here,” they told everyone present, then proceeded to prove why.
The Limeliters, backed up by a six-man band, traversed the field of folk music a half-dozen times, touching base with portions of country, rock, jazz, and spirituals.
Yarbrough has a unique, magical quiver in his voice that has become his distinguished trademark.
He sang merely one ballad—our loss—the entire evening, “I Loved You, Really Loved You.” How strange it is to hear in person such beautiful tones from this bearded, short, plump man—a combination of Burl Ives and Perry Como.
The group tinkered with electronics and comedy in its music. “Have Some Madeira, My Dear,” the tale of a vile old man and his antics of seducing an innocent 17-year-old maiden, courted more than a few howls of approval as narrated and illustrated by one of the Limeliters.
I apologize, for his name escapes me, but perhaps “Madeira” has been rendered comedy classic status with this particular adaptation of the story.
The Limeliters, back for another reunion—since the group broke up in the ’60s—rarely slowed their pounding pace. Though, if they did, it was only to lure the audience into another round of folk medleys, all treasures of any collector’s stock.
This first “game” at SPAC was a shutout. The spoilers—poor lighting and sound and bad arrangements—never had a chance.
The second half was a little closer match, but a victory for SPAC, nevertheless.
Mary Travers, formerly of Peter, Paul and…, is a tall, lanky blonde who tries hard to put on a great show.
She probably will never make it, but watching her give and strain on stage is worth at least the price of a ticket.
Following tradition, she opened with “The Song is Love,” one of her early solo hits and the theme song of her syndicated weekly radio program: “Mary Travers and Friend.”
The performance seemed to be a succession of “too muches” or “not enoughs.”
Her voice in the ’60s developed with the melodic, soft sounds of acoustic guitars and tenor-like voices. Often Monday night we heard her notes barely decipherable above the wail of electric gadgets and thumping drums.
“Leaving on a Jet Plane,” the song made popular by Peter, Paul and Mary more than a decade ago and the one no one realized John Denver wrote until he achieved fame in the 1970s, perhaps more than anything, demonstrates her change in style.
More instrumentals and a louder and harsher back-up accent rather diminish the lost quality of smoothness in her singing.
Mary Travers takes a few bars to straighten out the rough parts of a song, but audiences are willing to wait—and rarely are disappointed.
Despite the difficulties, there is still enough of the “old” Mary shining through for a solid evening of entertainment.
Recent Comments