Tokyo Tapes

Brothers Four | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 11, 1997)
• Original Release Date: March 4, 1997
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: Folk Era Records
• ASIN: B00000183B
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #173,423 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

Disc: 1

1. San Francisco Bay Blues

2. Railroad Medley: City of New Orleans/Blue Water Line/Wabash Cannonbal

3. The Green Leaves of Summer

4. Bluegrass Medley: Will the Circle Be Unbroken/Darlin' Corey/Foggy Mou

5. Toku E Iktai

6. Early Morning Rain

7. Scarlet Ribbons

8. 500 Miles

9. Whiskey in the Jar

10. Seven Daffodils

See all 12 tracks on this disc

Disc: 2

1. American Medley: I Hear America Singing/This Little Light of Mine/Sai

2. Gypsy Rover

3. Calypso Medley: Yellow Bird/John B. Sails/Jamaica Farewell

4. Ano Subarashii Ai O Moichido

5. Heart of the Heartland

6. Where Have All the Flowers Gone?

7. The Big Blue Ball

8. Try to Remember

9. Shenandoah

10. Old-Time Banjo Medley

See all 12 tracks on this disc

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

This double-CD from Washington State's legendary Brothers Four captures the group doing what they do best: performing on stage. Recorded live in Tokyo over the course of two days in 1996, the celebrated folk group, whose heyday was in the late 1950s and early '60s, spiritedly perform classics, a few somber ballads, and no fewer than five medleys (the best being the Man of La Mancha synopsis and the patriotic "American Medley"). Though it's a live recording, the Japanese audience at this hootenanny remains respectful and the sound quality is superb. Whether it's bluegrass ("Whiskey in the Jar"), Gordon Lightfoot's "Early Morning Rain" or the moving "Seven Daffodils," the Brothers Four prove that they belong in the forefront of the wholesome folk movement, where harmonies and a positive message are valued over controversial politics and self-righteousness. --Jason Verlinde

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brothers Four shine in Japan, December 18, 1999

By 

F. Barton "Forrest W. Barton" (Newport, WA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Tokyo Tapes (Audio CD)

This 2cd set is probably the best work ever put out by the Brothers Four. They started out BIG in Japan, and are now still very big in Japan. The sound quality is superb, making you feel entirely surrounded by the distinctive sound of their voices. The beautiful ballads, like "Seven Dafodils" and "500 Miles" are hypnotic, and the medleys are tremendous. Their talent really comes to a fruition on this recording as their singing and playing of instruments has never been better. Inside is probably the best fan letter any group or artist could want.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Brothers Four do a music tour of Sixties folk music, August 21, 2003

By 

Lawrance M. Bernabo (The Zenith City, Duluth, Minnesota) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Tokyo Tapes (Audio CD)

"The Tokyo Tapes" is a 1996 concert recording of the Brothers Four, the folk group that first emerged at the end of the 1950s. Although they were often dismissed as an imitation Kingston Trio, the Brothers Four were actually singing professionally before the more famous folk group. Actually, they were fraternity brothers at Phi Gamma Delta at the University of Washington and a practical joker at another fraternity had a girl call them up to convince the boys they had an audition at a Seattle club, the Colony Club. The owner ended up letting them sing and they ended up with a gig that lasted about a year while they honed their vocal style and got paid off in free beer (great story, huh?).

Now only two of the original quartet remain, Bob Flick and John Paine, joined by Terry Lauber and Mark Pearson (who does most of the arranging), which explains why you will not find a whole lot of overlap between these songs and what the Brothers Four recorded on their live recordings from the early 1960s. You will find their two biggest "hits," with "The Green Leaves of Summer" and "Greenfields," but also a lot of other folk hits from that period, such as "Where Have All the Flowers Gone," "500 Miles," "Scarlet Ribbons," and "Michael Row the Boat Ashore." My favorite parts are the medleys, especially the first one, "The Railroad Medley," which brings together "City of New Orleans," "Wabash Cannonball," "This Train," and "Rock Island Line." There is also a "Bluegrass Medley" (which includes "Foggy Mountain Breakdown," "Will the Circle Be Unbroken" and "Darlin' Corey"), a "Man of La Mancha Medley," "American Medley," "Calypso Medley," and even an "Old-Time Banjo Medley."

The result is that this 2-disc album has a lot more songs than the 24 tracks you will find here. The chief attraction of "The Tokyo Tapes" is that these songs come from all of the great folk artists of the period, from Woody Guthrie, Gordon Lightfoot, and Bob Dylan to the Weavers, the Kingston Trio, and Peter, Paul & Mary. Since hearing a song by one of these artists tends to put you in the mood to hear some songs by some of the others, this works out pretty well. This is a wonderful folk music concert album. I wish I had stumbled across it earlier.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brothers Four Tokyo Tapes, February 19, 2011

By 

vblar - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Tokyo Tapes (Audio CD)

Although only one original singer was in this group, they maintained the harmonies and style of the original group. I never tire of listening to them.