MARY TRAVERSFolk singer/songwriter Mary Allin Travers, best known for anthems such as Blowin' in the Wind, If I Had a Hammer, and Where Have All the Flowers Gone?, died on 16 September, 2009.She was part of the American group Peter, Paul and Mary, along with Peter Yarrow and Noel (Paul) Stookey, one of the most successful of the 1960s.The group also recorded Tell it on the Mountain, Puff the Magic Dragon, and Leaving On A Jet Plane was their only No1 hit - and their final Top 40 hit - in December 1969.The song, If I Had a Hammer, became a Civil Rights anthem of the American Civil Rights movement and covered by dozens of major artists. Written by Pete Seeger and Lee Hays. It was written in 1949 in support of the progressive movement, and was first recorded by The Weavers, and then Peter, Paul and Mary, who took it into the top 10 in 1962.The group had enjoyed enduring success over the years, and after splitting to pursue solo careers, got together again for a nuclear energy protest concert in 1978.They stayed together, recording albums and touring almost up until Mary’s death.She died in hospital, aged 72, from complications arising from chemotherapy, having been diagnosed with – and having a successful bone marrow transplant for – leukaemia in 2005.Peter, Paul and Mary received the Sammy Cahn Lifetime Achievement Award from Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2006.
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