The Good: Good vocals, Decent lyrics
The Bad: Short, Instrumentally simple
The Basics: A good, but fairly average, album, Peter, Paul And Mary introduced the world to the trio, but is very simple and very short.
So far, I find myself pleased with the time I spent listening to the works of Peter, Paul And Mary. The folk trio was influential on any number of folk-rock artists I listen to more regularly and before the last anthology I have to review by the group, I decided to go back and review their debut. Appropriately enough, Peter, Paul And Mary is the first album by the trio Peter Yarrow, Noel Paul Stooley, and Mary Travers. It also sets up the listener for exactly what they might expect from the group.
Peter, Paul And Mary is a blend of the works of the trio of folk singer/songwriters and more established artists. Unfortunately, it is also a tougher sell on compact disc than it needs to be. Dreadfully short, this is a literal transcription of the original LP (record) release and as a result, it underuses the capacity of the compact disc medium, which leaves many fans somewhat disappointed in how short it is. B-sides from singles released from this album are not present on the c.d. version and as a result, it sounds stark, simple and short. Even so, it is a fairly energetic start to the career of the band Peter, Paul And Mary and it illustrates a high level of quality the band had from their first moment on the music scene.
With only a dozen songs, clocking out at 33:14, Peter, Paul And Mary is a somewhat unambitious album, though it is very typical of folk-rock albums both of the time and now. Yarrow and Stookey wrote (separately or together) five of the songs, the rest are covers by established folk artists like Pete Seeger (“Where Have All The Flowers Gone”) or The Weavers or are traditional (as the medley of “It’s Raining” is). Even so, the album is not devoid of charm or personality. Yarrow and Stookey play all of the guitars and all three of the artists sing on the album. However, none of the trio is involved in the production of the album, so it is worth asking how much influence the band actually had over the initial sound of their works. However, because they continued working with Albert Grossman for several albums, one suspects they were generally happy with the results.
Peter, Paul And Mary is an album that spawned a number of recognizable renditions of recognizable folk songs as well as some truly wonderful originals. I was raised listening to a lot of Peter, Paul And Mary and when I picked up Peter, Paul And Mary, I was surprised how instantly the songs came back to me. While their versions of “If I Had A Hammer” and “Where Have All The Flowers Gone” are fairly traditional, the group gets creative on things like the medley “It’s Raining,” which takes the children’s song and intersperses it with other children’s songs and a hide and seek game. The song has character and the entire album has a wholesome feel to it.
This is not to say the album is without impact. It has punch, most notably in the slow, sad ballad “The Cruel War.” Written by the men and performed with Travers leading the stark and sad vocals, “The Cruel War” explores how a relationship is torn apart by Johnnie having to go off to fight. The song develops as a wrenching musical storysong over the stanzas from “The cruel war is raging, Johnnie has to fight. / I want to be with him from morning to night. / I want to be with him, it grieves my heart so, / won't you let me go with you? No, my love no.” to “Oh Johnnie, Oh Johnnie, I fear you are unkind / I love you far better than all of mankind / I love you far better than words can ere express, / Won't you let me go with you? Yes, my love, Yes” (“The Cruel War”). With Travers singing and the men harmonizing, the song is a perfect track, encapsulating the feelings of loss one feels with just the separation war brings.
The instrumental accompaniment on Peter, Paul And Mary is rather stark. While the album opens with Stookey and Yarrow enthusiastically strumming their guitars to wake listeners up to the song “Early In The Morning,” the album sounds just like what it is, two guys on guitars and three people singing. Songs like “This Train” are almost entirely made up of the vocals with the guitarwork being little more than frenetic strumming to keep time. The melody comes from the vocals that the instrumental accompaniment accompanies.
As for the vocals, here is what truly made the band. Peter, Paul And Mary have amazing voices, which are perfectly in evidence on Peter, Paul And Mary. Mary Travers is a delightful and expressive soprano and while she makes “The Cruel War” wrenching and sad, she also makes “It’s Raining” playful and fun. She has a dynamic range and the ability to switch her voice from fun and childlike to adult and soulful within a track, as she does on her call for social justice “If I Had A Hammer.” Not to be outdone, the men of the trio hold their own with wonderful harmonizing tenor voices. “Lemon Tree” is a creative and well-developed musical storysong in part because the vocals are so engaging and both Stookey and Yarrow sing clearly.
Peter, Paul And Mary is a more general folk album and as a result, it is more about singing universal songs of human emotion – mostly love and loss – than it is standing up for social causes. The group casts themselves as balladeers and they are excellent crooners. When they sing “I am a man of constant sorrow / I've seen troubles all my day / I'm goin' back to California, / Place where I was partly raised. / All through this world, / I'm bound to ramble. / Through storm and wind, / Through sleet and rain” (“Sorrow”), they make the specific, American references seem universal and they create a mood that anyone who has ever been alone is able to relate to.
That sense of the universal is what makes Peter, Paul And Mary timeless, if not as enduring as I might like. The sensibility is one that outlives the changes in mediums and the album has a very universal sense of time and expression that will make it an album most fans of folk music will want. The best song is “The Cruel War,” the low point is the less memorable “Autumn To May.”
For other albums by Peter, Paul And Mary, please check out my reviews of:
Peter, Paul, & Mommy, Too
Lifelines
Around The Campfire
Songs Of Conscience & Concern
In These Times
The Very Best Of Peter, Paul And Mary
6.5/10
For other music reviews, please visit my index page by clicking here!
© 2011, 2009 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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