Peter Yarrow, of the Iconic Folk Group Peter, Paul and Mary, Dies at 86

Peter Yarrow, one-third of the iconic folk group Paul and Mary, died at his Manhattan home January 7 at 86. He had battled bladder cancer.

His death was confirmed to The New York Times by his longtime publicist Ken Sunshine.

Yarrow's had been the lead voice on some of the trio's biggest hits, including the no. 2 smash "Puff (the Magic Dragon)," which he co-wrote.

In the '60s, Peter, Paul and Mary achieved six Top 10 hits: "If I Had a Hammer (The Hammer Song), (1962); "Puff (the Magic Dragon)," "Blowin' in the Wind," and "Don't Think Twice, It's All Right" in 1963; "I Dig Rock and Roll Music" (1967); and "Leaving on a Jet Plane" (1969).

All eight of their studio albums in the '60s were big hits, with their self-titled debut going double-platinum and their "Album 1700" going platinum.

The group was known for progressivism, performing Bob Dylan's "Blowin' in the Wind" at the Lincoln Memorial during the March on Washington in 1963.

Yarrow was born May 31, 1938, in New York City. He took up singing in college and became a frequent performer at Village folk clubs.

Approached to form a commercial folk act, he chose Mary Travers from a photo on the wall of the Folklore Center. Travers suggested her friend Noel "Paul" Stookey. By 1961, they had debuted at the Bitter End and were signed to Warner Brothers.

The following year, they were Grammy winners for "If I Had a Hammer," their cover of a Pete Seeger-Lee Hays classic.

Among Yarrow's most important contributions to the group, along with "Puff," he wrote "The Great Mandala (The Wheel of Life)" (1967), the anti-war hit "Day Is Done" (1969), and the Hanukkah-themed "Light One Candle" (1982).

Outside the group, he co-wrote and produced the seminal 1970s hit "Torn Between Two Lovers" for Mary MacGregor in 1976, and was active in music fests and political rallies. He formed Operation Respect in 2000 to combat bullying, and was formally commended by Congress for it three years later.

Yarrow's legacy was tarnished when, in 1970, he was convicted of taking "improper liberties" with a 14-year-old girl. He served three months, apologized, and was controversially pardoned for his crime in 1981.

In recent years, Yarrow's conviction and at least two other incidents became an issue once more, as he found himself disinvited from a 2019 gig. At that time, saying he did not think the promoter's decision unfair, he told The New York Times in a statement, "I fully support the current movements demanding equal rights for all and refusing to allow continued abuse and injury — most particularly of a sexual nature, of which I am, with great sorrow, guilty."

Yarrow, married to and divorced from Mary Beth McCarthy, niece of failed presidential candidate Sen. Eugene McCarthy, is survived by his ex-wife, their two children, and one granddaughter.