p2pnet news view | P2P | Music:- The Summer of 2009 witnessed the passing of (IMO) an unprecedented number of influential people. From newsmakers to newsreaders. Entertainers to politicians. Filmmakers to heartbreakers. War makers to peacemakers. Writers, artists, journalists the Summer of 2009 was relentless.

And one human angel. No, not the iconic Charlie’s Angel Farrah Fawcett, although her deaath did indeed shock and sadden a great many people.

On September 16th, 2009, lost her battle with leukemia. She was 72.

Mary was one-third of the most popular and most influential American folk music trio ‘Peter, Paul and Mary’, and many would say she was the very heart, soul, and spirit of PP&M and what they stand for.

In 2004 she was diagnosed with acute myelogenous leukemia the day after Thanksgiving. After two unsuccessful rounds of chemotherapy, Mary underwent a successful bone marrow/stem cell transplant in April 2005: in 2006 she was told she had no trace of leukemia cells. Unfortunately, her remission was short-lived.

PP&M played their last show together in Spring 2009.

PP&M`s music has been enjoyed by four to five generations over the past 48 years, and their messages of peace, love, tolerance, anti-war, anti-prejudice, civil rights, human rights, and justice for all of humanity have been a lesson to countless school children in every country on the planet.

Although many of their songs were originally taken from ‘The Weavers’, Pete Seeger, Bob Dylan, John Denver, and others, PP&M remade them in a way that still speaks to the very core of one`s consciousness, of what`s right and what`s wrong what`s ethical and what`s unethical.

No other performers have ever influenced a society as PP&M have, and none can ever hope to match their commitment for causes and the integrity of their messages.

Folk music has never been about making money. It`s always been about being true to yourself and your beliefs. It`s not about selling records – it`s about sharing and teaching. To paraphrase Mary, ‘If we want to stop the hate, we have to start with the children now.’

Ask any child if they know the words to ‘If I had A Hammer’, ‘This Land Is Your Land’, ‘Blowin’ In the Wind’, and of course ‘Puff The Magic Dragon’. They will all say ‘Yes’, and immediately start singing. Try it. I`ll betcha I`m not wrong.

Most people have memories of PP&M songs, concerts, records, tapes, and videos. Or fond memories of long car trips, or of sitting `round campfires singing ‘Michael Row The Boat Ashore’ or ‘Kumbaya’.

My own childhood memories of PP&M are probably quite typical: the first time I sang ‘If I Had A Hammer’ at camp when I was five or six years old, and on into my adult years when I learned to love ‘Puff’ even more, finally understanding the true meaning of the song is not about drugs, but of the loss of childhood innocence. My VHS tape of the PP&M 25th anniversary concert is all but worn out, but even through the faded colors and scratchy lines, their performance of several songs (especially ‘Puff’) starts me bawling like a newborn.

There are many more things one can say about Peter Yarrow, Noel (Paul) Stookey, and Mary Travers and how they helped change the world for the better, and how they made us, our children, and grandchildren (and generations to come) think for ourselves, helping us realise our place in the world and the universe, and how we can help to make things better.

There are even more things one can say just about Mary, the person. Although I never met her or attended any PP&M concerts, I feel I knew her and loved her. The way she lit up the stage with her presence and her warm smiles and sense of humor. How she clearly loved what she was doing, who she was doing it with, for whom she was doing it, and why.

And her amazing voice that let you know immediately you were in the presence of an angel, even if it was only a recording. That talent of bringing joy and tears to people of all different cultures is something that can`t be faked.

Some final thought from Peter and Paul http://www.peterpaulandmary.com/

‘I have no idea what it will be like to have no Mary in my world, in my life, or on stage to sing with. But I do know there will always be a hole in my heart, a place where she will always exist that will never be filled by any other person. However painful her passing is, I am forever grateful for Mary and her place in my life.’ – Peter Yarrow

‘i am deadened and heartsick beyond words to consider a life without mary travers and honored beyond my wildest dreams to have shared her spirit and her career.” – Noel Paul Stookey

I, too, am heartbroken.

catflap – p2pnet

First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win ~ Mahatma Gandhi

September, 2009

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This entry was posted on Monday, September 21st, 2009 at 8:55 am and is filed under Music. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.

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