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The Chicago Tapes, First Set

With harmony, wit, and good songs, Lou Gottlieb, Alex Hassilev, and Glenn Yarbrough found a receptive audience as the Limeliters in the early '60s. The Chicago Tapes: First Set captures the group at the top of their form during a '70s reunion tour. Yarbrough, who worked as a solo artist after the group broke up in the mid-'60s, performs the first five numbers, including classics like "The Honey Wind Blows" and "Love's Been Good to Me." His romantic sensibility remains intact and his lovely tenor is still clear and penetrating. The tone of the set takes a humorous shift when he is joined by his comrades, mostly because Gottlieb takes over as master of ceremonies. His in-between patter, including jokes, stories, and - so it would seem - whatever pops into his head, is slightly left of center and always entertaining. The group retains its early-'60s spark, singing bright harmony on "John Henry" and "Joy Across the Land." Hassilev sings a nice lead on "the Boxer," while Gottlieb covers the bizarre seduction song "Have Some Madiera M'Dear." The reunited Limeliters appear to truly enjoy performing together, which makes this music fun, not perfunctory. The audience is also enjoying themselves, and with all these good vibes, it's easy for the listener to imagine being there. The Chicago Tapes: First Set ends with a well-conceived medley of classic folk songs, including "Hard Traveling" and "Wayfaring Stranger," leaving the listener ready to seek out The Chicago Tapes: Second Set.

The Chicago Tapes, Second Set

Folk groups have at least one distinct advantage over rock & roll bands when it comes to reunions: They may have to change the key a song was sung in, but it still resembles the original. The Limeliters easily recapture the glory of yesteryear on The Chicago Tapes: Second Set, a live date recorded - of all places - in the basement of a bank in 1976 (think Bicentennial). Lou Gottlieb, Alex Hassilev, and Glenn Yarbrough offer their unique blend of wit and charisma as though they'd never parted ways in the mid-'60s. The set kicks off with the lively "There's a Meeting Here Tonight" and a full-band version of "Everybody Wants to Go to Heaven." Yarbrough goes solo on "Easy Now," showing off his beautiful tenor and romantic sensibility. "The Irish Medley" succeeds by taking ten minutes to cover four classic songs, avoiding the short shrift treatment that usually accompanies such mixtures. There's a funny little section titled "Fielding Questions," interesting because of the interplay between the band who seems to enjoy one another's company. "Heaven Help Me for the Way I Am" has a fuller arrangement, perhaps a little noisy for "folk music," but this is redeemed by the satirical country song, "Handcuffs of My Heart" and Hassilev's superb version of "City of New Orleans." The contents of this
album follows The Chicago Tapes: First Set, and if listeners like one, they will like the other. Fans of the Limeliters who long for the good old days of the Folk Revival will not want to miss it.

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