Book about Peter, Paul, Mary reflects more than musical success

Peter Yarrow believes 'Peter Paul and Mary: Fifty Years in Music and Life,” which he co-authored with bandmate Noel Paul Stookey, is a reflection on much more than musical success.

In a phone interview, he discussed the ways in which the trio's work and support for a host of issues - civil rights, the anti-war movement, and many more - were part of a much larger picture, and how integral those things are to the book.

'This was the thread of our lives,” he said. 'It's as much a book about that era and an approach to life as it is about the three of us.”

After Mary Travers died in September 2009, Yarrow and Stookey spent 'two years of processing Mary's passing” before starting work on the book as 'a legacy piece.”

Yarrow and Noel Paul Stookey collaborated on the text and incorporated some of Mary's writings, as well. The narrative voice is collaborative, which is in keeping with the ensemble's approach to music making and advocacy.

'Her (Mary's) voice is really there,” Yarrow said. 'We only gave the group's perspective … It really became a group effort.”

Yarrow is quick to point out that the book wasn't rushed out as for the 50th anniversary of the group's founding in the early 1960s. 'This is not celebrating our 50th anniversary,” he said. 'It is a reflection on our 50 years together.” Rushing a book out sooner, he said, particularly in the time immediately following Mary's death would have been 'opportunistic, tasteless, and insensitive … This is not about commerce. It's about a legacy that is important to some people.”

Which musicians of today might still be carrying that sort of legacy forward? Yarrow, revealing the same sort of volubility and passion that was on evidence in his performance at The Englert Theatre this past May, excitedly mentioned several causes and artists, including his daughter, Bethany Yarrow, as well as Nahko Bear, Tim DeChristopher, and Xavier Rudd.

Asked whether any of these young musicians might find the same sort of mainstream success as Peter, Paul and Mary, Yarrow was definitive: 'Hardly. I do not think so … I don't think (record companies) are looking for the next Bob Dylan or to nurture artists' careers.”

Yarrow is excited to be returning to the Cedar Rapids Barnes & Noble, where he has appeared twice before. He was effusive in his praise of the store: 'Of all the bookstores that I've ever visited throughout the United States, this one is the most amazing. ... It's more like an independent bookstore. It's not corporate at all.”

He vividly remembers his visit shortly after the Floods of 2008. Yarrow painted and autographed a guitar, which was auctioned off for flood relief.

'It was a festival of love and togetherness and a mini-concert,” he recalled. 'I really felt a very special affinity for the folks there.”

AUTHOR READING

' What: Peter Yarrow reads from 'Peter Paul and Mary: Fifty Years in Music and Life”

' Where: Barnes & Noble, 333 Collins Road NE, Cedar Rapids

' When: 4 p.m. Saturday

' Admission: Free