Making the song new again

Young Chang

The first two lines of a little-known Peter, Paul and Mary song titled

“The Kid” make Noel “Paul” Stookey, the Paul in the trio, thoughtful and

even a little bit sad.

They go: “I’m the kid who ran away with the circus, and now I’m

watering elephants.”

It’s about a dream had and then a dream turned into reality, about how

life is so much more instructional than people hope it to be. The words

will likely form a tear in listener’s eyes, Stookey says.

The 63-year-old singer/songwriter, whose solo work has paid tribute to

political and religious movements in Central America, takes pride in how

the lyrics the group sings contain more than just a series of “ooh-babys”

and then a “yeah.”

“We’re talking about a story that has a beginning and middle and an

end,” he said.

Peter, Paul and Mary -- also known as Peter Yarrow, Paul Stookey and

Mary Travers -- will perform stories from their four-decades of

performing accompanied this time by the Pacific Symphony Pops today and

Saturday at the Orange County Performing Arts Center. They’ll sing some

of their classic hits, including “Leavin’ on a Jet Plane,” “Puff the

Magic Dragon” and, of course, “The Kid” as part of the Pops’ season

finale.

Conductor Richard Kaufman will lead the orchestra in the first half of

the show with pieces by American film composer Elmer Bernstein, whose

scores include “Ghostbusters” and “A River Runs Through It.” Bernstein

celebrates his 50th anniversary this year of writing scores for films.

“I would say Elmer’s music is a great representative of American

musical culture in the same way that the music of Peter, Paul and Mary

captures the spirit and character of American music,” Kaufman said.

Stookey is grateful for this -- how their music has survived for

generations without scraping away the thrill of performing the songs,

even today.

“If you can see the people singing along with you, the song becomes

new again,” he said. “You have four generations of people singing it, and

the kids are absolutely transfixed by their parents singing out loud.”

But Stookey clarifies one concern people may have about folk music

combining with a symphony.

“One sometimes wonders if the simplicity of folk music is not

overburdened by a symphony orchestra, but in fact I like to compare it to

movies,” he said. “It’s like a very intimate story told on a wide screen

with a beautiful soundtrack . . . in many instances it helps bring the

melodic part of the music alive.”

But there is some folk music that should be left alone, in Stookey’s

opinion. The trio’s 1962 hit “If I Had a Hammer” is one that has “kind of

a raw energy” and doesn’t have scoring. The 1963 hit “Don’t Think Twice,

It’s All Right” also doesn’t have symphony accompaniment, but for a

different reason.

“It has intimacy, and the trick is to preserve intimacy,” Stookey

said.

He cares about each song, as do his two co-members. When asked which

is his favorite, he answers with what is often offered by his co-star

Travers.

“Songs are like children,” Stookey said. “And some of them behave

better some nights than others.”

FYI

WHAT: Peter, Paul and Mary perform with the Pacific Symphony Pops

WHEN: 8 p.m. today and Saturday

WHERE: Orange County Performing Arts Center, 600 Town Center Drive,

Costa Mesa

COST: $25-$79

CALL: (714) 755-5799