One of the best-selling LPs ever recorded by
the Kingston Trio,
College Concert is also the album by the trio that holds up best in the decades since -- recorded on December 6 and 7, 1961, at UCLA, it contains several of their best-known songs, including "M.T.A.," in versions that are more spirited than their studio originals. There's also an unintentionally telling part of the trio's rap leading into "Chilly Winds," when someone says, "for those of you who think we steal songs..." -- in fact, while on the tour ahead of the recording of this album, the trio heard
Peter, Paul & Mary do a version of a
Pete Seeger song called "Where Have All the Flowers Gone," which was parlayed by
the Kingston Trio into a huge hit single. The presence of a live version of "Where Have All the Flowers Gone" on the album, which was released just as the studio version on the single was peaking, didn't hurt sales, but the overall quality of the performance, from the exquisitely arranged "500 Miles" to the rousing version of "Young Roddy M'Corley," was the album's most alluring overall feature. The only flaw that prevents this from getting an even higher rating is the thin-to-non-existent bass in the recording, which detracts from some of the impact of the music. It was reissued in 2000 and paired off with Close-Up. ~ Bruce Eder