The trio Peter, Paul and Mary (often PP&M) is an American musical group tha… Read Full Bio ↴The trio Peter, Paul and Mary (often PP&M) is an American musical group that was one of the most successful folk-singing groups of the 1960s. The trio comprises Peter Yarrow, Noel Paul Stookey, and Mary Travers.

The group was created by manager Albert Grossman, who sought to create a folk "supergroup" by bringing together "a tall blonde (Travers), a funny guy (Stookey), and a good looking guy (Yarrow)." He launched the group in 1961, booking them into the Bitter End, a coffee house in New York City's Greenwich Village that was a favorite place to hear folk artists.

The group recorded their first album, Peter, Paul and Mary, the following year. It included "500 Miles," "Lemon Tree","Where Have All the Flowers Gone," and the hit Pete Seeger tune "If I Had a Hammer," ("The Hammer Song"). The album was listed on Billboard Magazine Top Ten list for ten months and in the Top One Hundred for over three years.

By 1963 they had recorded three albums; released the now-famous song "Puff the Magic Dragon", which Yarrow and fellow Cornell student Leonard Lipton originally wrote in 1959 and was on the charts in 1963; and performed "If I Had a Hammer" at the 1963 March on Washington, best remembered for Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech. Their biggest single hit came with the Bob Dylan song, "Blowin' in the Wind," which was an international #1 hit. It was the fastest selling single ever cut by Warner Brothers Records. For many years after, the group was at the forefront of the civil rights movement and other causes promoting social justice. Their later hit "Leaving on a Jet Plane" was actually written by the then unknown John Denver.

The trio broke up in 1970 to pursue separate solo careers, but found little of the success they did as a group, although Stookey's "The Wedding Song (There Is Love)" (written for Yarrow's marriage to Marybeth McCarthy, the niece of senator Eugene McCarthy) was a hit and has become a wedding standard since its 1971 release.

In 1978, they reunited for a concert to protest nuclear energy, and have recorded albums together and toured since. They currently play around 25 shows a year.[1]

The group was inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 1999.

In 2005, Travers was diagnosed with leukemia, leading to the cancellation of the remaining tour dates for that year. She received a bone marrow transplant and She and the rest of the trio resumed their concert tour on December 9, 2005 with a holiday performance at Carnegie Hall and were scheduled for several additional concerts in 2006.Sadly she passed away in Sept 2009.

Peter, Paul and Mary received in 2006 the Sammy Cahn Lifetime Achievment Award from Songwriters Hall of Fame.

Mockingbird
Peter Paul & Mary Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Hush little baby, don't say a word
Pappa's gonna buy you a mockingbird
If that mockingbird don't sing
Pappa's gonna buy you a diamond ring

If that diamond ring turns brass
Pappa's gonna buy you a lookin' glass
If that lookin' glass gets broke

Pappa's gonna buy you billy goat

If that billy goat don't pull
Pappa's gonna buy you a cart and bull
If that cart and bull turns over
Pappa's gonna buy you a doggie named Rover

If that dog named Rover don't bark
Pappa's gonna buy you a horse and cart

If that horse and cart fall down
You'll still be the sweetest little baby in town

Overall Meaning

The song "Mockingbird" by Peter, Paul, and Mary is a lullaby that assures the child of their parents' love and promises to provide them with various things if they need it. In the lyrics, the father promises to buy a mockingbird for the child to sing if the child is upset or crying. If the bird does not sing, the father will buy a diamond ring for the child. If the ring turns into brass or breaks, the father promises to buy a looking glass. Similarly, the father pledges to buy a billy goat, a cart and bull, a dog named Rover, and a horse and cart, for the child if the previous things fail, but no matter what, the child will always be the sweetest little baby in town.

The song's lyrics represent a typical parent or guardian's attitude towards their child. They will do everything in their power to assist the child, making them feel comfortable and loved, even if it requires buying exotic things like animals. The song focuses on a series of escalating acquisitions and shows how a single disappointment can lead to a chain of events.

Line by Line Meaning

Hush little baby, don't say a word
Please be quiet, baby, and don't say a thing

Pappa's gonna buy you a mockingbird
Dad will buy a mockingbird for you

If that mockingbird don't sing
If the mockingbird doesn't sing

Pappa's gonna buy you a diamond ring
Dad will purchase a diamond ring

If that diamond ring turns brass
If the diamond ring loses its value

Pappa's gonna buy you a lookin' glass
Dad will get you a mirror

If that lookin' glass gets broke
If the mirror breaks

Pappa's gonna buy you billy goat
Dad will buy a billy goat for you

If that billy goat don't pull
If the billy goat can't do its job

Pappa's gonna buy you a cart and bull
Dad will get you a cart and bull

If that cart and bull turns over
If the cart and bull fall over