Peter, Paul and Mary

Peter, Paul and Mary

(From left) Mary Travers, Noel Paul Stookey, and Peter Yarrow onstage at New York's Westbury Music Fair on August 5, 2006.
Background information
Origin New York City, United States
Genres Folk
Folk-rock
Folk-pop
Years active 1961–1970,
1978–2009
Labels Warner Bros. Records
Website http://www.peterpaulandmary.com
Members
Peter Yarrow
Noel Paul Stookey
Mary Travers † (deceased)

Peter, Paul and Mary were an American folk-singing trio who ultimately became one of the biggest acts of the 1960s. The trio was composed of Peter Yarrow, Paul Stookey, and Mary Travers.

Contents

Influences

Mary Travers mentions she was influenced by Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger, and the Weavers.[1] In the documentary Peter, Paul & Mary: Carry It On — A Musical Legacy members of The Weavers discuss how Peter, Paul and Mary took over the torch of the social commentary of folk music in the 1960s. The group paid tribute to some of their folk mentors and contemporaries in their "Lifeline Concert" in 2004.

History

Early Years (1961–69)

Manager Albert Grossman created Peter, Paul and Mary in 1961, after auditioning several singers in the New York folk scene. After rehearsing them out of town in Miami, Grossman booked them into The Bitter End, a coffee house and popular folk music venue in New York City's Greenwich Village. They recorded their first album, Peter, Paul and Mary, the following year. It included "500 Miles", "Lemon Tree", and the Pete Seeger hit tunes "If I Had a Hammer" (subtitled "(The Hammer Song)") and "Where Have All the Flowers Gone?". The album was listed in the Billboard Magazine Top Ten for 10 months, including seven weeks in the #1 position. It remained a main catalog-seller for decades to come, eventually selling over two million copies, earning Double Platinum certification from the RIAA in the United States alone.

The group made its television debut in either 1961 or 1962 on the PM East/PM West talk show hosted by Mike Wallace and Joyce Davidson. By 1963, Peter, Paul and Mary had recorded three albums. All three were in the Top Ten the week of President Kennedy's assassination.

In 1963 the group also released "Puff the Magic Dragon", with music by Yarrow and words based on a poem that had been written by a fellow student at Cornell, Leonard Lipton. Despite urban myths that insist the song is filled with drug references, it is actually about the lost innocence of childhood[2]. On January 14, 1964 they performed on the Jack Benny television program, with the Bob Dylan song "Blowin' In the Wind".

That year the group performed "If I Had a Hammer" at the 1963 March on Washington, best remembered for Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech. One of their biggest hit singles was the Bob Dylan song "Blowin' in the Wind". They also sang other Bob Dylan songs, such as: "The Times They Are a-Changin'"; "Don't Think Twice, It's All Right"; and "When the Ship Comes In", perhaps their most memorable piece. Their manager, Albert Grossman, was also Dylan's manager. Their success with Dylan's "Don't Think Twice, It's All Right" aided Dylan's "The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan" album into the Top 30. (It had been released four months earlier.) [3]

"Leaving On A Jet Plane" became their only #1 hit (as well as their final Top 40 Pop hit) in December 1969, and was written by the group's friend John Denver. It was the group's only million-selling Gold single. The track first appeared on their million-selling Platinum certified Album 1700 in 1967 (which also contained their #9 hit "I Dig Rock and Roll Music"). "Day Is Done", a #21 hit in June 1969, was the last Hot 100 hit that the trio recorded.

Breakup (1970–78)

The trio broke up in 1970 to pursue solo careers, but found little of the success which they had experienced as a group—although Stookey's "The Wedding Song (There is Love)" (written for Yarrow's marriage to Marybeth McCarthy, the niece of senator Eugene McCarthy) was a hit and has become a wedding standard since its 1971 release.

Reunions (1978–2009)

In 1978, they reunited for a concert to protest nuclear energy, and continued to record albums together and tour, playing around 45 shows a year, until the 2009 death of Mary Travers.[4]

The group was inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 1999.

The trio were prolific political activists for their involvement in the peace movement and other causes. They were awarded the Peace Abbey Courage of Conscience on September 1, 1990.[5]

In 2004, Travers was diagnosed with leukemia, leading to the cancellation of the remaining tour dates for that year. She received a bone marrow transplant. She and the rest of the trio resumed their concert tour on December 9, 2005 with a holiday performance at Carnegie Hall.

Peter, Paul and Mary received the Sammy Cahn Lifetime Achievement Award from Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2006.

The trio sang in Mitchell, South Dakota, for the George and Eleanor McGovern Library and Center for Leadership dedication concert on October 5, 2006.

The trio canceled several dates of their summer 2007 tour, as Mary took longer than expected to recover from back surgery and later had to undergo a second surgery, further postponing the tour.[4]

Travers was unable to perform on the trio's tour in summer 2009 due to her leukemia, but Peter and Paul performed the scheduled dates as a duo, calling the show "Peter & Paul Celebrate Mary and 5 Decades of Friendship."

The Peter, Paul and Mary trio came to an end on September 16, 2009, when Mary Travers died at age 72 of complications from chemotherapy, following treatment for leukemia.[6] It was the same year (2009) they were inducted into the Hit Parade Hall of Fame.

Legacy

In 2010, Peter Yarrow and Paul Stookey, the surviving members of Peter, Paul and Mary, requested that the National Organization for Marriage stop using their recording of "This Land is Your Land" at their rallies, stating in a letter that the organization's philosophy was "directly contrary to the advocacy position" held by the group.[7]

In popular culture

In Britney Spears's 2009 single "3", Peter, Paul and Mary are referenced.

Peter Yarrow mentions in the documentary Peter, Paul & Mary: Carry It On — A Musical Legacy that they always tried to put at least one song on each album for children. The group is shown on the documentary singing a concert for children.

In Seinfeld episode 9 "The Phone Message" George sings the Peter, Paul and Mary hit "Lemon Tree" to warn Jerry that the woman he is dating is coming into the room.

In Will & Grace, Jack often refers to Peter, Paul and Mary.

In the major motion picture Armageddon, Ben Affleck starts singing "Leaving on a Jet Plane", before departing into outer space.

In Meet the Parents, Greg and Jack are listening to "Puff, the Magic Dragon" while driving to the store, and Greg is embarrassed trying to explain the supposed meaning of the lyrics.

In Stephen King's Desperation, in the very beginning of the movie, the local cop says to the couple (Peter and Mary) "You’re Peter…you’re Mary…so, where’s Paul? I mean how can you sing Puff the Magic Dragon – without Paul?"

In "Saved by the Bell" Zach Morris' mom attends a Peter, Paul, and Mary concert and brings Zach back a poster.

Discography

Singles

Year Title Chart Positions[8][9] Album
US Hot 100 US AC
1962 "Lemon Tree"
B-side: "Early In The Morning"		 35 - Peter, Paul and Mary
1962 "If I Had a Hammer (The Hammer Song)"
B-side: "Gone The Rainbow" (from Moving)		 10 -
1963 "Puff (The Magic Dragon)"
B-side: "Pretty Mary"		 2 1 Moving
1963 "Big Boat"
B-side: "Tiny Sparrow"		 93 -
1963 "Settle Down (Goin' Down That Highway)"
B-side: "500 Miles" (from Peter, Paul and Mary)		 56 -
1963 "Blowin' in the Wind"
B-side: "Flora" (from Moving)		 2 1 In the Wind
1963 "Don't Think Twice, It's All Right"
B-side: "Autumn To May" (from Peter, Paul and Mary)		 9 2
1963 "Stewball"
B-side: "The Cruel War" (from Peter, Paul and Mary)		 35 -
1963 "A Soalin'"
B-side: "Hush-A-Bye" (from In The Wind)		 - - Moving
1964 "Tell it on the Mountain"
B-side: "Old Coat" (from Moving)		 33 7 In the Wind
1964 "Oh Rock My Soul (Part 1)"
B-side: "Oh Rock My Soul (Part 2)		 - - Non-album single
1965 "For Lovin' Me"
B-side: "Monday Morning"		 30 - A Song Will Rise
1965 "When The Ship Comes In"
B-side: "The Times They Are A-Changin'" (non-album track)		 91 -
1965 "Early Mornin' Rain"
B-side: "The Rising Of The Moon"		 91 - See What Tomorrow Brings
1966 "Cruel War"
B-side: "Mon Vrai Destin"		 52 4 The Peter, Paul and Mary Album
1966 "Hurry Sundown"
B-side: "Sometime Lovin'"		 - -
1966 "The Other Side Of This Life"
B-side: "Sometime Lovin'"		 - -
1966 "For Baby (For Bobbie)"
B-side: "Hurry Sundown"		 - -
1967 "I Dig Rock and Roll Music"
B-side: "The Great Mandella (The Wheel Of Life)"		 9 - Album 1700
1967 "Too Much of Nothing"
B-side: "The House Song" (from Album 1700)		 35 - Late Again
1968 "Love City (Postcard from Duluth)"
B-side: "Yesterday's Tomorrow"		 - -
1969 "Day is Done"
B-side: "Make Believe Town"		 21 - Peter, Paul and Mommy
1969 "Leaving on a Jet Plane"
B-side: "The House Song"		 1 1 Album 1700
1969 "The Marvelous Toy"
B-side: "Christmas Dinner"		 - - Peter, Paul and Mommy

Albums

Compilations

Live albums

See also

Videography

References

  1. ↑ William Ruhlmann (April 12, 1996). "Beginnings". PETER, PAUL AND MARY A SONG TO SING ALL OVER THIS LAND. Goldmine. http://www.peterpaulandmary.com/history/f-ruhlmann1.htm. Retrieved 2009-12-13. 
  2. ↑ Interview with Peter Yarrow
  3. ↑ The Times Obituary of Mary Travers September 18, 2009
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 tour schedule
  5. ↑ The Peace Abbey Courage of Conscience Recipients List
  6. ↑ Mary Travers Of Peter, Paul and Mary Dies New York Times September 16, 2009
  7. ↑ Perrin, Kathleen (27 August 2010). "Peter, Paul & Mary's cease-and-desist to NOM: Stop playing "This Land Is Your Land"". Prop 8 Trial Tracker. Courage Campaign. http://prop8trialtracker.com/2010/08/27/peter-paul-and-marys-cease-and-desist-to-nom-stop-playing-this-land-is-your-land/#comment-59583. Retrieved 27 August 2010. 
  8. ↑ Whitburn, Joel. The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits. 8th ed. Minneapolis: Watson-Guptill Publications, Incorporated, 2004. p488
  9. ↑ http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:fifpxqq5ldhe~T51

External links