recorded 1970 at the Jade Club
Hal Smith: lead vocal & rhythm guitar
Henry Beebe: banjo & harmony vocal
Zoomer Roberts: bass & harmony vocal
Perry Harrison: dobro
There was nothing bluegrass-y about the way Hal Smith did anything. He originally emerged in the late 1950s in the wake of Johnny Cash, Don Gibson and Bob Luman, belting out songs in a rangey baritone voice while beating an incessant boom-chicka-chicka-chicka rhythm on his acoustic guitar. When he teamed up with banjoist Henry Beebe in 1962 to form the Shade Tree Boys, Hal saw no reason to change anything: there would be no "G" runs, no "high lonesome," no "howdy friends and neighbors" and no concern for the way Bill Monroe did things in 1947. He correctly figured that his way of doing things was compatible with the commercial folk and bluegrass sounds of the day, and his vocals grew more unorthodox as his repertoire spread all over the map. He and Henry developed a filthy comedy routine that relied heavily on alcohol consumption and resulted in packed houses, but the first set was usually played straight. It is from those sets that this and subsequent recordings of the band are derived.
