Carry It On  (Audio CD) 
by Peter Paul & Mary

Peter, Paul and Mary weren't the first folk group to scale the music charts in the early 1960s, but they were far and away the most commercially successful. Carry It On is a four-CD (plus one DVD) box set that gathers all of their hits, along with generous helpings of rarities, B-sides, and previously unreleased songs. Although they had a magical vocal sound, a camera-ready image, and strong songwriting chops of their own, perhaps the trio's greatest strength was their ability to recognize outstanding songs from then-unknown composers. They were the first major group to cover songs by Bob Dylan, Gordon Lightfoot, Laura Nyro, John Denver, and Tom Paxton, which helped introduce the work of these songwriters to a wider audience. Carry It On is a worthy testament to the legendary group that proved you could make a career out of singing songs of social protest, ancient ballads, modern heartbreak, and even magic dragons, as long as you did so with sincerity, humor, and gorgeous three-part harmonies. --Michael John Simmons