The tumult and the tragedy of the late 1960s sent shock waves across America. After hopes were raised by the Civil Rights struggles earlier in the decade, the continuing war in Vietnam and political breakdowns at home ended the decade in a state of uncertainty and division.

Peter, Paul and Mary had worked mightily to help bring their country together in the cause of social justice and personal freedom throughout the '60s. But the troubling, sometimes heartbreaking world events pulled the trio members in different directions. Consensus about everything from how to address the times on stage, to how they each wanted to live their lives, or find solace from the demands of their career, became harder and harder to find.

What was once a lovely interaction filled with acceptable highs and lows, became a tug of war and produced a weariness in all of them. With no sure sense of when and if they would reunite, the trio decided to go their separate ways in October 1970, all of them at least partly grateful for a hiatus in which to rediscover their own selves, apart from the others.

Fortunately, the parting was only temporary. By 1978 the trio was once again spreading their powerful musical message together. Before they reunited, Peter Yarrow, Noel Paul Stookey, and Mary Travers separately recorded a series of albums that took them into new and sometimes unexpected directions. The first solo releases from each of them especially deserve rediscovery.

         -Barry Alfonso-