First of all, I played 6-string guitar when I worked with The Trio in the '80's. Bob Shane's allegiance to Martin wasn't as strong at that time, so for most of that 3-year period I played my Yamaha Custom (same model John Denver owned - tons of abalone.) When I rejoined the Trio in 1999, Bob very generously presently me with a Martin HD-28 that had the same Kingston Trio inlay that appeared on the Martin 40th anniversary commemorative instruments. He also had my name inlaid. It's a beautiful guitar and I played that for about 6 months, during which time I subtly lobbied to be allowed to play tenor guitar to try to recapture the original instrumental sound of the group. Bob was already heading in that direction, having pared the group down to the three of us on the front line plus a bass player. We eventually experimented with the tenor on a couple gigs and Bob seemed to like the sound. He subsequently found a nice 018-T on E-bay, which I later bought from him. I played this tenor for the remainder of my tenure with the group (my “tenor tenure”), gradually working to improve my "Nick" chops. This took me awhile, because Nick's approach to the tenor was quite different from the way I was used to playing the guitar. In fact, I ultimately discovered that I was reverting back to my plectrum banjo techniques and transposing those strums onto the tenor guitar. Plectrum banjo was actually my first instrument (after a disastrous encounter with piano lessons), so this approach really came naturally to me. And Steve, you were very astute to notice this similarity, as Bob Shane played plectrum banjo on “Worried Man.” Nick used a very fast and relentless rhythmic strum on the up-tempo stuff, which is 80% of the repertoire. With my nimble plectrum banjo wrist I eventually got into that mode of playing on the tenor. We recorded "By Special Request" about a month after I started playing tenor. We were determined to capture this new instrumental approach on this album, but unfortunately, I was too green at it to really do justice to the technique. It really took me another 8 months or so to finally lock into Nick's style. After that, though, I think everybody in the group felt that the rhythm was much tighter. And the addition of the high guitar part really filled out the sonic spectrum nicely. I think my playing style may be a little better represented on “Still Goin’ Places”, although I haven’t listened to the album in a long time. Nick played ukulele before he picked up the tenor and, I've never asked him, but I have a sense that it was a choice he made based on 4 strings versus 6. He easily converted over to the tenor because of his knowledge of ukulele. Capoing up to the 5th fret, in fact, put him in ukulele tuning, except that the 4th string was down an octave. I think he may have even used bare fingers to strum ukulele style initially, but at some point he started using a felt pick, which I also copied. Learning to use a felty was something altogether new to me. At first they kept flying out of my hand, since they’re quite a bit thicker than a regular plastic pick. It took me awhile to learn how to keep my grip. I also discovered that if I worked the tip of a new felty with pliers to limber it up, there seemed to be a lot less resistance when I strummed. A felt pick is essential to the Nick Reynolds sound, if you’re attempting to duplicate him. As far as your question, Dan, about my 6-string abilities being underutilized, I guess I could answer that by saying that I played a role in The Kingston Trio. As we gravitated back toward the original sound, I found myself studying vintage KT recordings in depth. I often fantasized about getting into the Capitol vaults and being able to solo Nick’s tracks from the original master tapes. Not that I became Nick, but I wasn’t totally Bob Haworth on stage either. If you’ve never acted in a play it may be hard to comprehend this, but I really did psych myself up before each show to become “the tenor guy in The Kingston Trio.” Honestly, I don’t feel I found my real voice until I left the group. I was always singing the high parts, which is not necessarily my best vocal range, but it was what the role required. I’ve now developed a very rich baritone with lots of tone and sustain. I don’t play tenor guitar much anymore, just because it’s not as full as an accompanying instrument as a 6 or 12-string guitar. But I keep it handy, and I even used it on a recording last week. I’m seriously considering restringing it with tenor strings and using true tenor tuning. I’m curious to hear this instrument tuned properly, as it has a kind of tubby sound in guitar tuning. I think it will really ring as a tenor guitar. Yeah, something more to spend time on! “Did Nick ever play a 6-string?” Not to my knowledge. Certainly not on stage or on record. “Did Roger Gamble play a tenor, I’ve only seen videos of him playing a 6-string ?” As far as I know Roger never played a tenor. But Roger once confessed to me that he used his guitar merely as a prop. He never considered himself a great guitar player. The boy sure could sing, though, and he was a natural comedian. Just let me say, that this is the kind of stuff I really enjoy sharing with folks. Especially guys like you who have studied the sound of the Trio, as I’ve done. The group really was unique in so many ways. There was no other group like them, even though many have tried. That so-called “X-Factor” was a real thing with these guys. The magic of their individual abilities and personalities combined to create a totally unique sound. Even after Dave left, the essence of the group remained, although I do believe that without Dave Guard the group would never have happened. It’s just that he wasn’t content to stick to the formula, much to his sad demise. Thanks for writing, guys! Bring on more questions like this!
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