LBJ Library photo by Marsha Miller 04/28/2016.
The Upper West Side sadly lost a famous resident this week.
Peter Yarrow, member of the folk trio Peter, Paul and Mary, passed away at his UWS home on Tuesday, according to multiple outlets citing confirmation from Yarrow’s publicist, Ken Sunshine.
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Yarrow sang lead vocals on and either wrote or co-wrote many of Peter, Paul and Mary’s biggest hits, including “Puff the Magic Dragon,” “Day is Done,” and “The Great Mandala,” according to a New York Times obituary. Yarrow later turned “Puff the Magic Dragon” and “Day is Done” into children’s books, the former also becoming a hit children’s television show called “Puff.”
The group was founded in 1961 and recorded six Billboard Top 10 singles, two No. 1 albums and won five Grammys in the 1960s. The trio would disband in the 1970s but ultimately reunite and continue touring until the death of Mary Travers in 2009. Noel Paul Stookey, 87, is the group’s last living member.
“Our fearless dragon is tired and has entered the last chapter of his magnificent life,” Yarrow’s daughter Bethany said in a statement. “The world knows Peter Yarrow the iconic folk activist, but the human being behind the legend is every bit as generous, creative, passionate, playful and wise as his lyrics suggest.”
Yarrow was born in New York City in 1938 and attended the High School of Music and Art, which has since become Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts. After attending Cornell University, Yarrow returned to New York City, where an introduction to Albert Grossman ultimately led to the formation of Peter, Paul and Mary. Grossman would later manage Bob Dylan and Janis Joplin, among other famous acts.
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“I saw these young people at Cornell who were basically very conservative in their backgrounds opening their hearts up and singing with an emotionality and a concern through this vehicle called folk music,” Yarrow said. “It gave me a clue that the world was on its way to a certain kind of movement, and that folk music might play a part in it and that I might play a part in folk music.”
Yarrow was convicted in 1970 and served three months in prison for sexual advances he was accused of making towards two underage girls. He received a presidential pardon from Jimmy Carter in 1981, though the burden of the case would be felt for years to come. In 2019, a planned performance by Yarrow at a festival in Norwich, NY was cancelled due to protests at the height of the #MeToo movement.
Yarrow is survived by his wife, Mary Beth McCartney; daughter, Bethany; son, Christopher; and granddaughter Valentina.
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Not mentioned in the article (a huge omission!) was Peter’s political activism.
I first met Peter when I was about 15. I was the youngest member on the Executive Board of an organization called SANE, the National Committee for Sane Nuclear Policy. It dealt primarily with nuclear energy. Peter was on the Board of another organization, called FREEZE (the Nuclear Weapons Freeze Campaign).
In 1987, the two organizations merged, becoming SANE/FREEZE, and I was, again, the youngest member on the Board of the new organization. The two organizations worked very closely on the merger, which led to a very close relationship between Peter and myself for several years. (In 1993, the organization became “Peace Action.”)
We also marched together in many anti-nuke marches (and other peace-related marches), sang together at many of those events (with others), and bumped into each other regularly, since we both lived on the UWS.
I once attended a major fundraising event at his UWS atelier, which was on 67th Street. It was an extraordinary affair, with everyone from major politicians to music and other celebs to local leaders and friends.
Peter was one of the kindest, most gentle and loving human beings I ever met. He never had a bad word for anyone, and he seemed to have a perpetual smile on his face. He was simply a joy to be around.
RIP, my friend. I will miss you.
He’s down there now with his brethren, Mao, Epstein, Stalin and soon to be, Weinstein and Maduro, too.
You’re following thereafter, we presume?
No, I’ll let you go to visit your buddies. I’m not a communist child molester.