I'm not privy to the deal between Josh and the Shanes, so I have no idea how that deal benefits either side financially. I have heard from Josh that they have a corporate investment group to answer to and I believe that with all the legal expenses that piled up, it's likely that everybody's in the hole on the deal. I don't know if deBobwan is still collecting a percentage on the Trio's gigs as he was with the GBR lineup, but I've heard that he may have sold that right as part of the deal. I do know that Bob was paid a sum of money for a 10-year lease on the KT name, but he may be getting a cut from the gigs too - I don't know.
So when I was part of the group, Bob was very generous with us. Each of us front-line guys made 10% of gross, which was a nice chunk of change. Most of our shows were grossing $10,000 to $15,000 (except for one show that Meri booked on a percentage which grossed us over $20,000) so I was pretty happy with my income. Bob paid all travel expenses (except for our food), agent fees and a flat fee per show for Paul Gabrielson (bass player). I have no idea how he fared financially after all those expenses, but I know I felt well-compensated. Not sure about Brownie's perception of that, but maybe he was in higher income bracket, making our $1500 paycheck appearing to him as crumbs. (That would surprise me since I know Brownie had fantasized about becoming a member of the Trio.)
For me there was little enjoyment in the travelling aspect of the gig after 9/11. We were moving around the country via commercial airlines and things just got ugly. First class as we knew it disappeared. TSA was changing the rules daily and there was no way to know what they were going to steal from your carry-on from day to day. The entertaining part never lost its charm and we always put on a good show for audiences large or small.
John Hollis and I have put together a show called "Tales & Tunes from the Folk Music Era" and we've had some unexpected success with that. With two out-of-town theater presentations and one local Grange Hall show we've actually tapped into a niche that we hope to develop further. The audiences (pretty much 60+ demographic) love the show and sing along with nearly every song. We drive to the gigs, so travel expenses are minimal. In each case we've paid a local bass player $200, stayed with friends (no lodging expense) and ended up paying ourselves around $600 per gig. Compared to the $50 - $100 that the local venues pay, we're pretty happy with the success with our show.
By the way, I just checked the KT website and was surprised to see their schedule. I think that speaks to the ongoing legacy of The Kingston Trio, and hopefully Josh and company will keep rolling along. (Reminds me of a Brownie Mac song - "Rollin' River").
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