The Very Best Of Peter, Paul And Mary [w

Peter, Paul & Mary: Noel "Paul" Stookey, Peter Yarrow (vocals, acoustic guitar); Mary Travers (vocals). Recording information: 1962 - 2003. With their beautiful harmony vocals and gentle melodies, Peter, Paul & Mary were the most popular folk act of the 1960s. While Bob Dylan was unquestionably the genre's most influential and revered performer by the mid-1960s, it was Peter Yarrow, Noel PaulStookey, and Mary Travers who helped himto reach a larger audience with their accessible '63 renditions of his "Blowin' in the Wind" and "Don't Think Twice, It's All Right. " In addition to Dylan, the group also championed the work of GordonLightfoot and John Denver, most notably with the wanderlust tales "For Lovin' Me" and "Leaving on a Jet Plane" (a runaway hit in '69), respectively. All of the aforementioned tunes are presented onTHE VERY BEST OF PETER, PAUL & MARY, a 25-track set carefully compiled by the trio itself. This 2005 collection focuses almost exclusively on the '60s and '70s work of PP&M, with the exception of the deceptively breezy "El Salvador" (from '86) and 2003's "Don't Laugh at Me, " which finds the threesome in fine voice morethan 40 years after the group was founded in New York City's Greenwich Village. Also included are three early-'70s solo tracks--one apiece by Yarrow, Stookey, and Travers--rounding out this wonderfully selected disc, which is a must for anyfolk collection. Reviews: Dirty Linen (p. 85) - "[I]t's fun to see the group really lay its politics on theline in 'El Salvador, ' and 'Weave Me theSunshine' is as vibrant as anything Peter, Paul, and Mary ever recorded. "

Track Listing

• 1 early in the morning
• 2 500 miles
• 3 lemon tree
• 4 if i had a hammer [single version]
• 5 where have all the flowers gone
• 6 puff, the magic dragon
• 7 the cruel war
• 8 this land is your land
• 9 blowin' in the wind
• 10 stewball
• 11 don't think twice, it's all right
• 12 for lovin' me
• 13 for baby (for bobbie)
• 14 the times they are a-changin' [live]
• 15 early mornin' rain
• 16 leaving on a jet plane
• 17 i dig rock and roll music
• 18 too much of nothing
• 19 the great mandala (the wheel of life)
• 20 day is done [single version][live]
• 21 el salvador
• 22 wedding song (there is love)
• 23 follow me
• 24 weave me the sunshine
• 25 don't laugh at me