The Limeliters Albums Ranked

The Limeliters are an American folk music group, formed in July 1959 by Lou Gottlieb (bass violin/bass), Alex Hassilev (banjo/baritone), and Glenn Yarbrough (guitar/tenor). The group was active from 1959 until 1965, and then after a hiatus of sixteen years, Yarbrough, Hassilev, and Gottlieb reunited and began performing again as The Limeliters in reunion tours. On a regular basis, a continuation The Limeliters group is still active and performing. Gottlieb died in 1996 (age 72), Yarbrough died in 2016 (age 86), and Hassilev (born 1932), the last founding member, who had remained active in the group, retired in 2006, leaving the group to carry on without any of the original members. Here are all of The Limeliters’ albums ranked.

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7. More of Everything, 1964

“Every song on this album is the epitome of classic folk music. It may just be nostalgia but every song is familiar. Some comedic and some poignant. Something for any fan of folk music.”

6. Joy Across The Land, 1993

“There’s something about Glenn Yarborough’s voice that makes any day brighter. Add two more voices, skillful arrangements, topnotch musicianship and you have an album for the ages…a high point in my collection of vintage folk.”

5. Time to Gather Seeds, 1968

“Five years after Glenn Yarbrough left the Limeliters, and three years after the group disbanded, the original members reunited for this one album. This incarnation had a sound somewhat along the lines of the Association – contemporary songs with full orchestral backing. As with many early-60s artists who tried to get hip in the hippie era, the results are uneven… the singing and arrangements are relatively square, but the material is kind of interesting. (It’s only fair to note that Lou Gottlieb, at least, had morphed into a genuine hippie by that point, running a commune.)”

4. The Limeliters, 1960

“On their debut, the Limeliters establish the basic approach that they would pretty much follow through their career, with large helpings of international songs (“Battle at Gandessa”, “Zhankoye”, “Malagueña Salarosa”, “The Burro”, “Gari Gari”), comedy (“Charlie, the Midnight Marauder”, “The Bear Chase”, and again “Gari Gari”), and smaller helpings of gentle leftism (“The Hammer Song”) and straight folk tunes both well-known (“When I First Came to This Land”, “John Henry, the Steel Driving Man”) and obscure (“Times Are Getting Hard”, “Lonesome Traveler”). They hadn’t quite nailed it yet, however… it seems to me that they were being a bit too careful to ensure that the material was assimilable by an audience whose musical tastes had been shaped by the likes of Guy Lombardo and Mitch Miller, resulting in an album that too often slips into Wonder-bread territory – a tendency particularly in evidence on the stilted version of “The Hammer Song” that opens the album.”

3. Through Children’s Eyes, 1962

“The Limeliters, one of America’s top vocal trio’s of the 20th century, recorded this magnificent CD in combination with a school choir in Berkeley, California, USA in 1961. It is an exciting, funny, intensely musical and most definitely a timeless CD which will give loads of fun listening to over and over again. It is an album for all ages from 3 years and up, a magnificent gift for a family with kids and for older folks who will enjoy the musical interaction between a school choir and the brilliant, witty Limeliters with spontaneous reactions from the choristers and kids in the audience here and there!”

2. Until We Get It Right, 1999

“Until We Get It Right” is not the usual Limeliters that I was so accustomed to and loved, so initially I felt disappointment, but by the time I got half way through this album I was hooked. Rick Dougherty has a wonderful range and adds a lot of energy to the group. This is particularly notable in the beautiful remdition of “Circles” and “A Place In the Choir”.

1. Alive! In Concert, 1997

“The Limeliters were always one of my favorite folk groups and I remember seeing this show live on TV some years back. Great quality recording with some really good music.”