Glenn Yarbrough facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Glenn Yarbrough
Yarbrough in 1965
Background information
Birth name	Glenn Robertson Yarbrough
Born	(1930-01-12)January 12, 1930 Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S.
Died	August 11, 2016(2016-08-11) (aged 86) Nashville, Tennessee, U.S.
Genres	Folk
Occupation(s)	Singer
Instruments	Vocals, Guitar
Years active	1951–2010
Labels	RCA Victor
Associated acts	The Limeliters

Glenn Robertson Yarbrough (born January 12, 1930 – died August 11, 2016) was an American folk singer and guitarist. He was the main singer (tenor) for the Limeliters from 1959 to 1963. He also had a very successful solo music career. Glenn Yarbrough was always looking for new adventures. He wasn't always happy with the music business. This led him to focus on sailing and even starting a school for children.

Glenn's Early Life

Glenn Yarbrough was born in Milwaukee on January 12, 1930. His family later moved to New York. His parents were social workers. During the Great Depression, jobs were hard to find. His father traveled a lot for work. Glenn lived with his mother in New York City. He helped support her by singing as a paid boy soprano in a church choir.

He earned a scholarship to St. Paul's School. He graduated in 1948. After traveling around the US, Canada, and Mexico for a year, he went to St. John's College in Annapolis, Maryland. His roommate there was Jac Holzman. Jac later started Elektra Records. Glenn suggested the shorter name "Elektra Records."

Glenn became interested in folk music after hearing Woody Guthrie play. He learned to play the guitar. Jac Holzman later recorded Glenn's first solo album in 1957. This album was called Here We Go Baby. It was special because it mixed pop and folk music. It wasn't a huge hit, but it was important for folk music history. Glenn was asked if Pete Seeger could play on some songs. This connected Glenn to the politics of the McCarthyism era. During this time, some musicians were put on "blacklists."

Glenn served in the U.S. Army during the Korean War. He first worked with codes. Later, he joined the entertainment group. After the army, he moved to South Dakota. He helped his father run a square dance barn. He also started appearing on local TV shows. In the mid-1950s, he performed at a folk club in Chicago called the Gate of Horn. There, he met important artists like Odetta and Shel Silverstein.

Singing with The Limeliters

The Limeliters (1963)

By the late 1950s, Glenn Yarbrough lived in Aspen, Colorado. He bought a small nightclub called The Limelite. In 1959, Glenn was performing with Alex Hassilev in Hollywood. They met Lou Gottlieb, a jazz pianist. Lou suggested they sing together. They found their voices sounded great as a team. They started performing folk music. One writer said they could make "three voices sound like six." They named their group Limeliters after Glenn's club. A journalist said Glenn had "one of the purest, most exquisite voices."

In 1960, The Limeliters recorded their first album. It was on the Elektra label. In 1961, their second album, Tonight: In Person, became very popular. It reached No. 5 on the Billboard charts. It stayed there for 74 weeks! From 1961 to 1963, The Limeliters were very busy. They appeared on TV and sang in commercials. They toured a lot, sometimes performing 310 days a year. In 1963, they set a record for attendance at the hungry i club. Lines to get in went all the way around the block.

Glenn's clear tenor voice and guitar playing helped The Limeliters succeed. They sang many traditional and new songs. They released many albums for RCA Victor. The Limeliters were known for their amazing harmonies and funny stage talk. Glenn's "silvery tenor" voice was key to their sound.

On December 12, 1962, a plane the Limeliters were on crashed in Utah. Everyone survived, but Glenn had a head injury. This experience made him think about what was most important in his life. He left The Limeliters that year. He said he had lost interest in folk music. He was tired of the simple "three chord songs."

Glenn's Solo Career

Glenn Yarbrough made other albums before joining The Limeliters. His 1957 record Come and Sit by My Side was said to make folk music "up to date." It showed his "novel, youthful approach to the old songs." In 1958, he made an album with Marilyn Child. A reviewer said their voices were "perfectly suited to each other."

After leaving The Limeliters, Glenn wanted to sail around the world. But RCA Records convinced him to record solo albums first. His first solo album after the group was Time to Move On (1964). A reviewer said it set the tone for his future music. It had light acoustic sounds and Glenn's unique singing style. It was a mix of pop and folk music.

His song "Baby the Rain Must Fall" was a big hit in 1965. It reached No. 12 on the singles chart. The album of the same name hit No. 35 on the albums chart. Glenn worked often with songwriter Rod McKuen. By 1968, he had recorded about 45 of Rod's songs. They became close friends.

Glenn's solo concerts were usually very popular. A reviewer in 1967 described his voice as "one of those rare, unmistakable things." It had a "lyrical quality." Another reviewer in 1969 said Glenn "puts on a worthwhile show." In 1970, a reviewer said Glenn had an "electric warmth" on stage. He could even get the audience to join in, which is a tricky thing to do!

By 1972, Glenn was not happy with the music business. He said he never sang just to meet other people's expectations. He had "mixed feelings about stardom." He admitted that sometimes he had to perform to earn money.

Glenn Yarbrough sang for the Rankin/Bass animated movies. He sang in "The Hobbit" (1977) and "The Return of the King" (1980). He sang the song "Frodo of the Nine Fingers."

In 1980, Glenn introduced a "new sound." It had more mellow songs. He said major record companies didn't like his new album, Changing Force. They said it had no hits. Glenn explained it had "rock ballads." He wanted to "move ahead" with his music.

In August 1982, Glenn performed at the same event as The Limeliters. It wasn't a full reunion. Glenn said it felt strange to watch them from backstage. He joked that it showed "you cannot be replaced in this world."

Glenn once said he "hated Christmas music." But then he read a book called The Forgotten Carols. It made him cry and gave him "chills." This inspired him to tour and sing these Christmas songs. He also made a CD of the show. Glenn said his childhood Christmases were often lonely. The book's composer, Michael McLean, told Glenn his voice was a gift. Glenn said McLean helped him "rediscover Christmas." The show had Glenn narrating and singing. He played a 2000-year-old man who shared the story of Christmas.

Glenn also spoke out against the Vietnam War. He felt it hurt the country. He said that after singing a protest song at the U.S. Air Force Academy, the audience applauded.

Glenn's Love for Sailing

Glenn Yarbrough loved sailing. He wanted to make a movie about it. He felt sailing let him escape from being "bombarded...by the media and the big corporations." One journalist said Glenn's love of sailing showed that he saw through the "phoniness" of the entertainment world.

Glenn took many trips on his 45-foot boat, the Armorel. He loved New Zealand. He thought it had a "perfect form of government." After his first marriage ended in 1964, he married Annie Graves. They lived on a 57-foot boat that Glenn had built.

In 1973, The Limeliters had a reunion concert in Chicago. It was sold out. The group stayed together until 1981. After that, Glenn spent most of the next twenty years on his boat. He only returned to record music and give concerts when he needed money for his sailing adventures. A review of a 1976 reunion concert said The Limeliters' sound was still great. Their harmonies were "untouched by age or fashion."

In 1993, Glenn gave a talk and sang songs at a sailing event. The Los Angeles Times called him an "accomplished seaman." He said sailing was harder and "more frightening" than singing. But he still enjoyed connecting with an audience.

A School for Children

In the late 1960s, Glenn Yarbrough started raising money for a school for orphans. He said this was the only reason he kept performing. He described the school as having a "very radical approach to learning." He wanted to learn about how minds keep information.

Glenn sold many of his expensive things, like cars and a house. He eventually opened a school for disadvantaged youth in Los Angeles. But it ran out of money and had to close in the early 1970s. Even though it didn't last, the school showed Glenn's wish to do something meaningful to help families.

Glenn's Personal Life

In 2010, Glenn had surgery on his throat to try and save his singing voice. The surgery was not successful. He had heart problems during recovery and needed help breathing. He survived, but he started to suffer from dementia. He never sang in public again. His daughter, Holly Yarbrough Burnett, cared for him full-time in Nashville. He passed away there in 2016 from a lung disease (COPD). Even with dementia, his daughter said he remained a "warm, happy man."

Glenn Yarbrough was married four times. His first three marriages ended. At the time of his death, he was separated from his fourth wife. He is survived by his daughter Holly, two children from his first marriage, and two stepdaughters. He also had a grandson and a great-grandson.

Award Nominations

Glenn Yarbrough was nominated for GRAMMY Awards several times. This was for his solo work and with The Limeliters.

• 8th Annual Grammy Awards (1966)
  • Nominated for:
    • Best Vocal Performance Male: Baby the Rain Must Fall (Album)
    • Best Contemporary (R&R) Single: Baby the Rain Must Fall (Single)
• 6th Annual Grammy Awards (1964)
  • Nominated for:
    • Best Gospel or Other Religious Recording (Musical): Makin' A Joyful Noise
• 5th Annual Grammy Awards (1963)
  • Nominated for:
    • Best Performance By A Vocal Group: Through Children's Eyes
    • Best Recording for Children: Through Children's Eyes
• 4th Annual Grammy Awards (1962)
  • Nominated for:
    • Best Performance By a Vocal Group: The Slightly Fabulous Limeliters (Album)
    • Best Folk Recording: The Slightly Fabulous Limeliters

Albums

Glenn Yarbrough released many albums throughout his career. Here are some of them:

Albums with The Limeliters

• 1960 The Limeliters
• 1960 Tonight: In Person
• 1961 The Slightly Fabulous Limeliters
• 1962 Sing Out!
• 1962 Through Children's Eyes
• 1962 Folk Matinee
• 1962 Our Men in San Francisco
• 1963 Makin' a Joyful Noise
• 1963 Fourteen 14K Folk Songs
• 1964 The Best of The Limeliters
• 1964 The London Concert
• 1968 Time to Gather Seeds
• 1974 The Limeliters Reunion Volume One
• 1974 The Limeliters Reunion Volume Two
• 1976 Glenn Yarbrough and The Limeliters Chicago tape I (released early 2000s (decade))
• 1976 Glenn Yarbrough and The Limeliters Chicago tape II (released in the early 2000s (decade))
• 1977 Pure Gold
• 1993 Joy Across the Land Glenn Yarbrough and The Limeliters
• 2001 Recently Found- Glenn Yarbrough and The Limeliters Chicago Tapes I and II

See also

In Spanish: Glenn Yarbrough para niños

• The Slightly Fabulous Limeliters
• Our Men in San Francisco