Peter Yarrow of Peter, Paul and Mary talks Puff the Magic Dragon

[@therealphiljohn]

Dear God Why am I sitting here in tears!!!! I am so grateful to have grown up during a time where preserving the innocents of children was still a thing. Every time I hear Puff The Magic Dragon it does something to the soul and makes the heart smile.

[@execatty]

they sure don't protect kids today.. 55 now.. better days are gone forever

[@lincolnparc8897]

Nicely said! Thx u

[@susiefultz2177]

My feelings exactly!

[@Ryder69girl]

GOD bless you🥰 I feel the same here

[@charleneevans96]

I can relate, me too.

[@bcgrittner8076]

I was ten years old, almost eleven, when Puff really broke out. For Christmas 1962 my parents gave me a quality ukulele. In the closing months of my 5th grade year, 1963, I performed Puff with my ukulele for my school’s student body. As I write this it is the fall of 2022. We are planning a variety show at church. I plan to sing Puff for the variety show spring 2023 with that same ukulele. I will be 71 years old when this happens. I will dedicate the song to my four grandchildren. Sixty years between performances. But, it’s never too late for an encore. Thank you Peter, Paul , and Mary.

[@axiomist4488]

That's a beautiful story. Thanks for sharing it .

[@smashandcreate]

I sang this song to my son for the first time tonight. He has a dragon obsession currently. I could hear him silently repeating the words as I sang the chorus. He made me sing it again before bed and repeated a little more of the wording as I sang. I hope he always keeps a little part of his childhood innocents. He's such a sweet boy.

[@boatsandotherproblems5780]

I am 80 now and it still brings a tear or two to my eyes!

[@jreeder6168]

The song was always about growing up. It has finally hit home today when we hear it.

[@guysabol8743]

I am 71 and have played puff for some 45 years at least once every 6 months

[@jreeder6168]

@@guysabol8743 It's not a kiddie song, it's an old person's song. The older we get the more it hits home. It gives us the realization that we can't go back, the one provision God doesn't allow.

[@missmiss975]

Beautiful. Do you still have a family?

[@gusportstv4911]

Im honored and humbled to be able to witness peter and paul while theyre still alive. These guys are legends in the music industry together with the late mary travers. And its a one and a lifetime experience to witness them in flesh

[@BeautifuLakesStreamsBiologists]

Listening in awe. Dad was a tough WW2 Marine. He sang this to us all the time. I had no idea the song was born just a few months before me. As a kid I always thought Puff had lived on Cherry Lane for ages. Rest well my loving parents.

[@nsn73]

In the 1976, a friend and I had a discussion about this song, and I was right. He was reading too much into this sweet song. Puff still brings tears to my eyes.

[@k2thepeak]

As a 61 year old guitarist/singer I finally got around to learning Peter’s fingerstyle on this song. It’s very straight-forward for a fingerstylist, btw. But, I find myself choking up a bit even after playing/singing it 25+ times. So, why is that? I’ve known it all my life, more kitschy than anything else in my setlist, yet the inherent coming-of-age sadness is ageless. Granted, musically Peter was really insightful to ‘put the sad turn’ on the Bm chord in every verse. Simple but really well-crafted makes it timeless. I love it.

[@guysabol8743]

When I turned 70 3yrs ago, an 89 year old man asked me to play one song he remebered ..Puff the Majic Dragon.. it was superb! I lsing it today, long with S O S by S & G and Amazing Grace!

[@ZJ-ne9kn]

A song everyone remembers from being a kid always enjoyed it

[@jerometaperman7102]

Yes, and the remarkable thing is that the song had a double meaning, which you don’t get until you grow up. When you grow up and remember this lovely song, it dawns on you that Jackie Paper also grew up. That epiphany was, for me, another remarkable moment provided by Peter Yarrow. Thank you, Mr. Yarrow.

[@jonathanscott7372]

I am 70 and an innocent. I never imagined it had anything to do with drugs. It was for me, always about growing up. It still brings a rear to my eyes to listen to it. Luckily, I never lost my dragon, and my dragon has been good to me.

[@milesbringhams6869]

it brings a REAR to your eyes?!

[@teresaavizienis8491]

I will be 70 this summer. In 1962, I turned 8 years old, growing up in Toronto, where this song made it to #5 on the CHUM Chart in 1963. I loved the song then. I didn't know about drugs back then, and when I later heard what people were saying, I never believed it was about drugs. I still love the song now. It gives me goose bumps and makes me cry when I hear it. Growing up is highly overrated!

[@marycallahan9618]

I remember this song from my childhood, as well as the little cartoon. I hadn't read the story book until just a few weeks ago. I found a copy in the Goodwill store. I started reading it fondly, and smiling...not remembering the ending. I was with another adult friend of mine and she looked over at me and saw me crying like a baby. And i replied, "this is the saddest little book", I always smiled and laughed when i was a kid, but now that i am 50 years old, it finally hits home. ~Always try to keep the 'dragon' alive in yourself. I didn't and it's heart breaking. Kids, don't try to grow up too fast!! It will be there soon enough. Enjoy your youth, it is the most precious time you will have and it goes so very fast~. And to Mr. Yarrow, i just love the 1965 video, you are such a handsome man and i just love your voice!! This song will always be a favorite of mine and i will always read it to my grand children. ~Puff will live on in my family!!

[@JimBischoff1184]

Well said .

[@pizza-mana.k.a.pizzaparker3615]

Agreed

[@Cat-no8ts]

💯!!

[@mcddetectrespect.7467]

Heart felt comments which bring a tear to my eyes off childhood memories, if we could only go back I’d be gone in a flash.

[@k2thepeak]

Purrfect.

[@gaberayback]

Its sad that people think that beautiful song is about drugs. Its so beautiful. Some people love to ruin the beautiful things in life.

[@AegisNova]

I have a couple of conservative friends still convinced of this.

[@rhondaboncutter5812]

I agree!

[@judsonkr]

I have a couple of liberal friends still convinced of this.

[@mickbuddha50]

Drugs can ALSO open you to the beauty around...

[@63DW89A]

Love Peter, Paul & Mary, and admire their peerless music as it speaks directly to my time, even though my political views are likely 180 degrees away from theirs. For me (and many thousands of guys similar to me) "Puff The Magic Dragon" has nothing to do with drugs. "Puff The Magic Dragon" is the wonderful, timeless twin-engine C-47 (DC-3) set up as an aerial gunship, capable of obliterating anything on the ground within its range. Active USMC, 1974-80.

[@louisromao7183]

I'm a guitar teacher. Not too long ago I taught my 12 year old student how to play Puff the Magic Dragon...and she was the one that requested it.

[@anne-lisebuch5827]

I didn’t come to the US until 1969. Ever since I first heard this songs, I’ve loved it and loved all the songs that this group ever performed! 😍

[@debhale846]

As a youngster, I can remember having a sing alongs with my mother. Usually in our 70’ VW bug. Never once in my mind nor hers did drugs ever ever come in the picture. It was just sheer joy to sing together with mom. She is 84 now. I think we are due to pick up where we left off with our sing alongs.

[@shellydrew100]

I still love this magical song from when i was a kid , the magic is still there in my mind , not drugs , no not at all , do i wan't to grow up to be an adult and lose what i had as a child ?...not at all

[@djc728]

How can you not love the genius that was and continues to be "Peter, Paul & Mary". Timeless classics.

[@clerieginus]

Peter Yarrow is one of those people who you just take one look and you'd know that he's a genuinely nice guy lol. Like you just wanna be his friend and hang out, playing the guitar and telling stories. I'm from a younger generation and when I saw Peter Paul and Mary here in KZbin, I became an instant admirer! Esp of Peter. Puff the Magic Dragon is one of my pick-me-up songs.

[@emilytarter7014]

clerieginus I know him and he just as kind and loving in real life.

[@briansivley2001]

@@emilytarter7014 wow.

[@tisoychuy8433]

@@emilytarter7014 wow! really? I want to meet him and sing with him in a table.

[@igloo.550]

@@tisoychuy8433 ​ Im afraid I just discovered today that he is/was a convicted sex offender against a child. He got a presidential pardon from Jimmy Carter for some reason. Also seems it wasn't an isolated occurrence. :( Sad world we live in.

[@tisoychuy8433]

@@igloo.550 uhmmm. really? thank u for that information. I really entertained with their song, Puff the Magic Dragon. Sad reality for him

[@j.jester7821]

I was born in 64 and puff the magic dragon is one of the earliest songs i have memory of hearing along with I wanna hold your hand and crimson and clover. Special to me.

[@carriecox8198]

My mom's lullaby for us. And my favorite lullaby I sang for my babies!

[@JohnNeumeister-xn3vm]

Im 63 yrs old and a group of us (all my age) were playing poker on a Friday night and had the oldies station playing in the background and Puff came came on and 6 grown men stopped and turned to listen. In less than a minute we were ALL teary eyed..Turns out 4 of us had this song sung to us by our mothers and the other 2 just introduced this classic to their Grandkids.

[@deviantartguy0]

Wow, I was feeling nostalgic for this song! What a crazy story behind it.

[@mikegilliland4754]

I first heard "Puff" when I was about 5 or 6 years old. I remember feeling really sad at the time but, to this day, it's one of my favourite songs ever. I can't explain why - I guess it's just part of my youth. I also love "Leaving On A Jet Plane"...this band was wonderful and I'm privileged to have lived in the era in which these legends live(d).

[@shuroom57]

Do you remember buying (or having been given) their 1969 album with these songs on it? I was 11 years old and I proudly hiked to our local record store that year to plunk down my hard-earned $3.50 so i could walk out with a record I would eventually play so much you could READ through it.

[@jpmccray6754]

Wasn't "Leaving on a Jet Plane" written by John Denver????

[@davidday8417]

@@jpmccray6754 yes it was Thank You John !!

[@leonparisi9142]

Yes at 72 yrs,i still love listening to Puff The Majik Dragon, Love The 60 s 70s 80s Songs were the Best

[@paigechoi5960]

In April 2010 my two daughters and I met him here in Seoul. After he signed on my own copy of PUFF, THE MAGIC DRAGON, he gave my daughters a big big hug. I can't forget his warm smile.❤

[@e.conboy4286]

Oh my goodness! What a wonderful memory! Love DOES make the world go round, doesn’t it!?

[@addeyderoubaix1767]

I love this song...always have, from the moment I heard it. What a wonderful gift to be able to create something that seems so light, yet is so deeply moving. Forgive me, but I wrote this short poem a while back: The Child Within (Be Brave, Puff) A little bent signpost (made of Cherrywood) All alone it stood Bravely resolute Near the windy coast Of a foamy wavy sea And pointed the way To Honah Lee There be dragons It said to me But I didn’t care “cause an Autumn mist Was rolling in And if I hurried soon I could be In a warm and safe cabin listening to the frolicking Of that great big dragon For, as long as I listened, Even though away in another far place, As he danced along the shore, Hopping over every wave, He’d never need to creep Into that dismal cave

[@pyro_mania67]

I grew up listening to this to go to sleep and hearing this brought a small tear to my eye because now my son does the same. Amazing how some days it feels like time couldn't go any slower and others you look back and it feels as if time is none existent as if all time happens in the twinkling of an eye and the only time we realize it is when we are present in the moment remembering how it felt when we were young and innocent before life began throwing curve balls at us relentlessly. Amazing how a song or a smell can do so much to help us remember that innocence and bring back a nostalgia that makes you remember being young and remember that time truly doesn't exist only our memories are real and will carry on. I suppose that is why we tell our kids and grandkids stories from our life to carry our memories into the future generations in hopes they use our life lessons and be better then we were.

[@RobinRotfleisch]

Beautiful! My whole youth was enriched by Folk music- and P P&M were in the center!

[@hehhehhuhhuh7014]

Of all the great folk groups over the years, IMO Peter Paul and Mary were the greatest!! And if Mary were still with us today, I have no doubt that the group would be booked solid now (60 years later)!!! Talk about music that stands the test of time!!!

[@donmckechnie9858]

Why are there none of these wonderful singers today. Too much meanness and not enough introspection and love. Those songs are needed today. We can hope. Thank you Peter Paul and Mary!

[@Cat-no8ts]

It's amazing! Every time I hear this piece, I absolutely cry! I remember when Gene London on TV told this story and played the music. I'll always remember this!!

[@PeterParker-tq3wh]

Hello Cat how are you doing today?

[@beeicecream]

Thank you for making such a great song that will be played forever.

[@randysandford4033]

Always loved Peter's humor and rolling commentary especially during live concerts. They were the best and have left us with so many memories.

[@michaelfranklin4276]

Mr. Yarrow, you're only human. I saw the tear under your eye during your live performance clip in France. It's amazing how powerful a dragon's loyalty and affection can actually be.

[@d.deckert6634]

That song reaches the soul of us all. It always has, and always will. . .no matter your age their is always a child within, and always loved his best friend... Always 💕

[@frankshuffitt3925]

It's good to know that puff is still out there Sir.

[@jimayala7766]

We sang it in music class back in the 60s in Brooklyn NY. It sounded innocent enough and all us kids liked it. But then I did hear that "Puff" was actually a weed pipe, and "Jackie" was pot smoking kid. Their adventures took place in "Jackie's" mind while stoned to the bone. "Jackie" grew out of his habbit and "Puff" the pipe was permanently put away. So said my weedhead friends in the 70s. 😅

[@davidschmidt6013]

This gentleman is SUCH a treasure!! Imagine being able to go to your rest KNOWING you had left such an incredible, universally-loved song behind! Bless you, Peter, and Paul. Mary is already at peace but I think of her as well!

[@tomanderson9257]

Gentleman? LOL

[@joejones9520]

@@tomanderson9257 yep...someone obviously is "sanitizing" this comment section for there to not be any other comments about that...

[@kissyboots59831]

I got to get up on stage as a child at a very small Long Island venue. Gave Mary flowers, and hugged them all. Something I'll never forget. I was too young to truly appreciate it. Or their music. I'm here now because it stuck with me, and will forever.

[@greenbeagle13]

Amazing that people thought this song was about taking drugs - ridiculous. It is so evident that this is the loss of childhood and becoming an "adult". This song brings tears to my eyes as I look back in time

[@albertbarksdale8430]

I grew up in 50s/60s listening to most of their 33 LPs. I grew up in acapella singing. They were an inspiration to me. I learned all 3 parts to most of the songs. When I started playing a guitar, I started putting the guitar to the songs. So many were quite memorable. These folk songs are forever classics that will never go away. The biggest challenge was learning to play the Wedding Song as it was intended. I have played it for numerous Weddings. Still cannot do it like Paul with his 12 string Sebastian guitar tuned to a 3rd below Concert C but with the capo I can get close. I love the travis picking style Paul uses in most of the songs. But no group IMHO has brought more holsom joy to the hearts of kids and adults alike than they have. Beautiful blended voices with great harmonies and songs of real meaning and not some of the crap we hear today. They were true Musicans and Entertainers. We will most likely never see anything like them ever again. God Bless each of them as they complete their journey through life and pass on the gifts they left us with.

[@pianoman2276]

What a powerful message! That's beautiful!

[@kelliesaunders4905]

It’s a sad damn song. So very sad. That’s why it’s still talked about. We cry for the loss of Puff’s dear friend and the loneliness that followed. Maybe we can relate to it too much.

[@Clothahump1]

I had the privilege of seeing PP&M perform live in 1979. One of the high points of my life. Their music was what I learned to play guitar to, and yes, I still do Puff every once in a while.

[@johnm-wv6bo]

seemed a happy song when i was young. A very sad song if you listen to it as a grown up

[@vickigarcia2094]

I think I was about 6 and it made me cry for poor ole Puff...

[@HaywardEntertainment]

Thank you Peter for writing this timeless classic 🎵🎙️

[@ritablanchard8133]

Greatest song ever. Thank you for this song.

[@DuctTapeADK]

I am GenX and used to listen to my parents records as a kid. Peter, Paul & Mary, Mamas& Papas, Beatles, Dylan, Baez... PPM always had a special place.

[@stephenhenion8304]

Peter Paul and Mary CHANGED THE WORLD!!! THEY MADE IT MUCH BETTER.... Peter has such a genuine reverence for music. I saw them multiple times!

[@slrdarien]

Puff was the first song i ever sung publicly and i still sing it to this day when i need to be cheered up. Love them so much.

[@ElledieWildAndFree]

The ending of Puff the Magic Dragon upset my son so much I had to make up another verse in which he met Puff and they became friends

[@m3ylin]

Legends never die.

[@rillianr-moise4652]

Peter Paul and Mary are what got me into singing in to begin with my Idols best group that's ever existed

[@chaoskumagawa1464]

I loved this song after the first time listening to it at 6-8 years old. I only thought it was entirely an innocent children's song. Ironically, now that I am older and only have an infinitesimal fraction of my innocence, still having the same imagination however, I now know it is very emotionally tragic in the ending lyrics signalling a departure from childhood innocence that I also definitely went through at 14-17. When I heard it much more recently, within the last 4 years, near 20, I almost broke down at the revelation.

[@sherimcdaniel3491]

This song is one of the songs Mama would sing to me when I couldn’t sleep. Puff, Fees the Birds and Stay Awake (from Mary Poppins). Mama had a beautiful voice do so wish I had recorded them. Ah, childhood…..it should be a time of believing in magic and dragons to play with and being a fairy princess. I hurt so much for the children who have very little happy family memories.

[@kdjspanner3930]

One special song where imagination was magic!!

[@rnhealer6044]

I always cry at the end of Puff The Magic Dragon when Jackie grows up and leaves his friend Puff behind. But I learned a long time ago the way to stay young at heart. I still love this song at 70. Just as I will always love Peter Pan and The Wizard of Oz. That way a little piece of my own Puff will always live in my heart.

[@smangheart]

I just followed the youtube relative selection lol. I searched first but it was my 1st time to listen an interview! What a touching song..

[@gmoops8986]

I have seen PP&M three times. The music was filled with joy and happiness. PP&M also had a huge comment about the social situation. That's what folk performers do. Perhaps some of that inspiration came from Woody Guthry. Compelled to poke their finger into the eye of injustice. To say NO! NO! NO!. This is not what our country stands for! Humanity means just that. Puff is trying to teach us. Jackie realizes he is human. The song doesn't say, but my bet is that he sends Puff a birthday card.

[@johnellis2523]

As a little kid I can remember crying for the Dragon

[@Ki-nv2jt]

Lol, me too! (p.s. I'm 52 & I teared up today)

[@stanleymyrick4068]

Yeah same. It was so sad to me as a child, and I didn't fully understand it.

[@AndrewHager02]

4:51 Cheers to the version of Puff the Magic Dragon I grew up with and all the fond memories that came with it!

[@mclougeeborja4406]

That little message is super strong to be honest

[@tisoychuy8433]

I love this interview.

[@darthstarkiller1912]

4:51 I've loved the cartoon ever since I was a toddler.

[@roberttarquinio1288]

Puff the Magic Dragon is my favorite since I was a child

[@axiomist4488]

I find the story of Puff sad. How he ended up so hurt that he just hid away forever . Mary did this on a TV show called , I believe : "Peter Paul and Mommy". It was all kids and it's beautiful. Mary sang "We Shall Overcome" having told the kids the story behind it and they all sang together. One little girl cried as she sang (and so did I). I think only Mary was in the show and her grand daughter came out and Mary sang to her . A beautiful experience . I loved hearing now about how PP&M became a group back in the Village. That used to be the Mecca for young people at the time ; I thought The Village was Paradise. When I finally left home, at 21, I went and lived there, on Waverly Place, 1/2 a block from Washington Square and McDougal St. (the main street in the Village) .

[@olaochoa3217]

its beautiful

[@jerometaperman7102]

Noel's middle name is Paul so it wasn't that much of a stretch. The magic of Puff is that, as a child, you hear it one way and, as you grow up, you see the different interpretation. That was such a positive experience in my life that, when I raised my daughter, I didn't tell her about the two meanings. I let her discover it on her own because it is much more gratifying that way. I waited until she was 22 before I asked her about it and, being a smart young lady, she had had the realization.

[@nhdoodle3167]

So grateful for this documentary love their music

[@PeterParker-tq3wh]

Hello NHDoodle how are you doing today?yeah l agree with you

[@MarkWilson-rn8tx]

I asked a neighbor "When was the last time you bought an album or CD because of one song you just had to have?" Well, I just now bought Peter Paul and Mary's greatest hits!!! Where are the musicians like this today????

[@georgiamule]

I once read that all three were saddened that the military had taken the name “Puff the Magic Dragon” to identify a new high altitude gunship introduced in Vietnam. The aircraft had the capability of applying deadly fire to ground targets. When firing at targets at night, the rain of bullets left a trail of fire so frightening the Vietnamese called the aircraft Dragon ships. Hence the nickname applied by the GIs, “Puff”. A beautiful song of love had become a tool of war. RIP Mary, a beautiful heart, a life well lived.

[@kevinbutler1955NYC]

Thanks for this story about how your famous children's musical story came about..Mr.Yarrow.

[@nhdoodle3167]

Love this story. We sang their songs when I was a child

[@chrissimpson1183]

Thanks Peter, you still got it!!!!!!

[@NaseRote-kc7uz]

thank you peter to write such a beautiful song

[@brucelanzerotti]

My wife & I play this song on out instruments (Me on guitar and Her on Ukulele and vocals) and we end up crying every time. Such an awesome song

[@matttangles2106]

I just heard puff which led me to here and sure enough while listening to peter tell his tale i had a lump in my throat

[@chroniclesofbap6170]

Still makes me cry

[@SimonAmazingClarke]

One of my childhood favourites from the late 60s.

[@63DW89A]

Love Peter, Paul & Mary, and admire their peerless music as it speaks directly to my time, even though my political views are likely 180 degrees away from theirs. For me (and many thousands of guys similar to me) "Puff The Magic Dragon" has nothing to do with drugs. "Puff The Magic Dragon" is the wonderful, timeless twin-engine C-47 (DC-3) set up as an aerial gunship, capable of obliterating anything on the ground within its range. Active USMC, 1974-80.

[@wescreek5666]

saw them when I lived in NYC they were awesome

[@kenthgreen2249]

I love your song 👍🏽🇯🇲👍🏽

[@Kd4stt.]

I'm forever grateful for the blessings that our Creator has given through the gift of the children of Israel 🇮🇱.

[@mikerusby]

loved that song. people should not be allowed to get old :)

[@jimbrew4529]

Nor should our loving canine companions get old and need to leave us. 😢

[@tommystevenson2921]

brilliant

[@XX-gy7ue]

GENIUS

[@juliemcintyre664]

I saw Noel Paul Stookey in the mid 80s and it was an amazing concert

[@floydrebello4900]

'If we keep our ethics and our values strong within us , our dragon will be safe and happy ' powerful message ........!!!

[@dsthorp]

Peter Yarrow, may your art decorate the eons!

[@redneckgirl3326]

As a child in the late 1970s, I named my puppy after this song.

[@marksheiman1538]

My first piece of sheet music I purchased was Puff the magic dragon. Puff lives in Lauderdale by the sea. Jackie's grand daughter goes to visit Puff.

[@miftahabidin2504]

beautiful

[@marcschneider4845]

It is such a sad song that I can barely listen to it. But it's wonderful.

[@salmanrashid8880]

There are 9 sick person who had to give this beautiful video thumbs down.

[@seetasingh2032]

I felt sorry for Puff.I can see him dancing around in the mist and then when Jackie left he became depressed😢

[@kikitaube-hansen]

They will always be my stars. Espessially Peter.

[@childrensoutdoorplay6499]

This piece leaves out the important fact that the lyrics were written by Lenny Lipton, a Cornell classmate of Peter's. Peter put Lenny's lyrics to music sometime later.

[@Paul-lm5gv]

There will never be another decade like the 1960s - where folk singers and rock and roll groups and vocalists like Frank Sinatra and Connie Francis could be heard on the same Top 40 radio station! Such a varied collection of music and artists - and don't forget the 'Girl Groups!' (Country was its own thing back then). I started spinning records as a radio Deejay in 1969 having grown up in the 50s and 60s - and by the mid 70's the magic was gone! There was no more melody in music, no more harmony, NO MORE POETRY! Just loud guitars.

[@Ty4Tiberius]

As a stoner, I wouldn't be mad if puff the magic dragon was about pot but also I respect what the songs true meaning is, and it's still one of my favorites.