Almanac Music: Vale – Peter Yarrow of Peter, Paul and Mary fame.
Like many of my generation I grew up with the music of Peter, Paul and Mary.
Through their early music I was introduced to traditional folk music – songs of struggle, peace, love, and war; then their later recordings mainly composed by contemporaries, such as Bob Dylan, reflected the 60s mood, and became a mainstay of their future catalogue.
Undoubtably, their influence in the music world cannot be underestimated.
To read of Peter Yarrow’s death on Tuesday, passing away at 86yo, was also an acknowledgement and reminder to me of the ever diminishing number of musical icons from the 60s passing on in recent years. The icons left carrying the torch are ageing and will soon be looking to pass it on to a new generation of singers. For so long all of them have been an integral part of my life.
The first record mum and I chose when the family joined The Australian Record Club in the early 60s was Peter, Paul and Mary’s very first self titled album. That LP still sits in my record collection after 60+ years.
‘Puff, the Magic Dragon’ was one of the first 45s I purchased with my own money. That record I played relentlessly on the Radiogram, and is still much loved today. Written by Yarrow, it is a timeless classic and one that brings back so many fond memories of a different time.
Miss Iskov, my Form 4 music teacher in 1966 would often bring along albums to our music lessons and play them. One such record was the Peter, Paul and Mary: In Concert album and before long she had the whole form singing along with the songs. I don’t know how she did it with all us rowdy boys who preferred mucking around rather than singing!
‘Leaving On A Jet Plane’ written for them by their friend John Denver was their only single to top the charts and one that tugged at my heart strings as I flew out to London in the early 70s leaving loved ones behind.
Mary Travers passed away in 2009 and Paul (Noel) Stookey remains the sole surviving member of the group.
There is a huge array of music clips featuring Peter, Paul and Mary on YouTube, but their version of Bob’s ‘When The Ship Comes In’ is a firm favourite of mine.
Please enjoy the fantastic music of Peter, Paul and Mary.
More from Col Ritchie can be read Here
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About Colin Ritchie
Retired teacher who enjoys following the Bombers, listening to music especially Bob Dylan, reading, and swimming.
Lovely tribute, Col. A different era, certainly, and yet many of the questions and issues remain much the same today. Their voices blended so naturally, not unlike the seamless harmonies (albeit in a different style) of Crosby, Stills and Nash at about the same time (late 60s/early 70s). Thanks for the playlist.
Thanks Ian.
They knew how to convey the meaning and the feel of a song to their audiences. They were also in the right place at the right time to help kick start Bob Dylan’s career. That era needed voices to speak out about the ills of the world and they were ideal – great songs, great singers, great musicians, they looked the part, and the people listened.
Thanks for this, Col. And thanks for the playlist.
I never really knew a lot about Peter Paul & Mary
Thanks Col.
I’ve been playing them a bit lately.
My mum bought an EP. My favourite song was Stewball
Ah, Miss Iskov (pronounced “Isko”). I can see her upright figure at the front of the music room now. Brooked no nonsense.
That Peter, Paul & Mary “In Concert” double album is one of the best live recordings i know of.
PP&M were prominent in forming my folk music sensibility, too, I guess because they were by far the most prominent folk act on commercial radio in the early to mid-60s. I think it was ‘Too Much of Nothing’, as well as Manfred Mann’s ‘Mighty Quinn’, that sparked my curiosity about Bob Dylan’s obscurities. They are sometimes unjustly scorned by Dylan aficionados, but they brought a lot of people to his music when they were popularizing it.