Peter, Paul & Mary

Peter Yarrow, Noel Paul Stookey, and Mary Travers entertained and challenged their audiences when they began recording in 1962. Their music prodded the conscience as well as soothed the soul. From the Kennedy era to the days of W., this legendary trio has never stopped singing out and speaking its mind.

To their credit, Peter, Paul & Mary not only sang about times a-changing — they changed with them. Moving beyond traditional folk music, their songs became more personal and experimental by the close of the '60s. The trio's music grew in sonic complexity as well. Trace their creative travels with these tracks.

Over the decades, Peter, Paul & Mary have recorded traditional tunes, activist anthems, introspective ballads, children's sing-alongs, and more. The trio's versatile, exceptionally expressive voices know few artistic boundaries. Here are some of the less-explored corners of PP&M's oeuvre.

Peter, Paul & Mary still embody the optimism and defiance of the '60s like no other group. The urgency of their folk-based harmonies — blending Mary's rich lower range with the keening clarity of Peter and Paul's vocals — expresses a passionate longing for justice. But politics accounts for only part of their appeal: From "Blowin' in the Wind" through "Leaving On a Jet Plane" and into the present day, the trio's music speaks straight to the heart.