Noel Paul Stookey (born December 30, 1937) is an American singer-songwriter who was famous for being in the 1960s
folk
Folk or Folks may refer to:
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Arts, entertainment, and media
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trio
Peter, Paul and Mary
Peter, Paul and Mary was an American folk group formed in New York City in 1961 during the American folk music revival phenomenon. The trio consisted of tenor Peter Yarrow, baritone Paul Stookey, and contralto Mary Travers. The group's reper ...
; however, he has been known by his first name, Noel, throughout his life. Nowadays, he continues to work as a singer and an activist, performing as a solo artist, and occasionally with then-bandmate
Peter Yarrow
Peter Yarrow (born May 31, 1938) is an American singer and songwriter who found fame for being in the 1960s folk trio Peter, Paul and Mary. Yarrow co-wrote (with Leonard Lipton) one of the group's best known hits, " Puff, the Magic Dragon". H ...
.
Early life
Stookey was born in
Baltimore
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...
, Maryland, United States. His family moved to
Birmingham, Michigan
Birmingham is a city in Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is a northern suburb of Detroit located along the Woodward Corridor ( M-1). As of the 2010 census, the population was 20,103.
History
The area comprising what is now the ...
, when he was 12 years old, and he graduated from Birmingham High School (now
Seaholm High School
Ernest W. Seaholm High School (simply referred to as Seaholm High School) is a public high school in Birmingham, Michigan, United States. It was established in 1951 and is part of the Birmingham Public Schools district.
History
Seaholm opened ...
) in 1955.
Stookey is an alumnus of
Michigan State University (MSU) in
East Lansing, Michigan
East Lansing is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. Most of the city lies within Ingham County with a smaller portion extending north into Clinton County. At the 2020 Census the population was 47,741. Located directly east of the state capital ...
. While attending MSU, he joined
Delta Upsilon
Delta Upsilon (), commonly known as DU, is a collegiate men's fraternity founded on November 4, 1834 at Williams College in Williamstown, Massachusetts. It is the sixth-oldest, all-male, college Greek Letter Organizations#Greek letters, Greek-let ...
fraternity. Though he credits a deep spiritual core for his work, Stookey "dispelled reports that he was born a
Buddhist
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
, saying his mother was a
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
* Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
* Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...
and his dad was an ex-
Mormon
Mormons are a religious and cultural group related to Mormonism, the principal branch of the Latter Day Saint movement started by Joseph Smith in upstate New York during the 1820s. After Smith's death in 1844, the movement split into severa ...
" and recalling the family's "eclectic attendance at church. I had no real spiritual sense until I was 30.'"
Personal life
Stookey married Elizabeth "Betty" Bannard in 1963 and they have three daughters. After raising their family in
Blue Hill, Maine
Blue Hill is a town in Hancock County, Maine, United States. The population was 2,792 at the 2020 census. It is home to the Blue Hill Public Library, Blue Hill Memorial Hospital, George Stevens Academy, the Blue Hill Harbor School, The Bay Sch ...
, the couple lived for several years in
Massachusetts
Massachusetts (Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut Massachusett_writing_systems.html" ;"title="nowiki/> məhswatʃəwiːsət.html" ;"title="Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət">Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət'' En ...
while Betty served as the
Northfield Mount Hermon School
Northfield Mount Hermon School, often called NMH, is a co-educational preparatory school in Gill, Massachusetts, in the United States. It is a member of the Eight Schools Association.
Present day
NMH offers nearly 200 courses, including AP a ...
chaplain, and in 2005, they returned to Maine. Stookey originally recorded his solo albums in his private studio—a converted four-story henhouse—on his Maine property. This studio, known as "The Henhouse", was also the origin point of the first broadcasts of
WERU
WERU-FM (89.9 MHz) is a noncommercial, listener-sponsored community radio station licensed to the town of Blue Hill, Maine. It is owned by the Salt Pond Community Broadcasting Company. WERU-FM has studios in East Orland and its transmitter is ...
upon that station's inception in 1988.
Music career
Peter, Paul and Mary
Performing as ''Paul'' in the Peter, Paul and Mary trio, he participated in one of the best-known ensembles of the 1960s phase of the
American folk music revival, and included some of his solo songs and extended monologues in their performances and recordings.
One of Stookey's songs, "Norman Normal", which appeared on ''
The Peter, Paul and Mary Album'' (1966), inspired a Warner Bros. animated cartoon also titled ''
Norman Normal'' (1968). Stookey co-wrote the story for the cartoon and voiced several of the characters.
In addition to his recordings with the trio, he released a number of solo works, several albums with the ensemble Bodyworks, and some anthologies. He was an important artist in the young
Jesus music
Jesus music, known as gospel beat music in the United Kingdom, is a style of Christian music that originated on the West Coast of the United States in the late 1960s and early 1970s. This musical genre developed in parallel to the Jesus movemen ...
movement, which would later bloom into the
Christian music industry
The Christian music industry is one aspect of the broader music industry, with a focus on Christian music and subgenres such as gospel music, southern gospel, contemporary Christian music, contemporary worship music, and even traditional church mus ...
, although his generally liberal political views distinguish him from many such artists.
In 1986, Stookey teamed up with Jim Newton, Paul G. Hill, and Denny Bouchard at Celebration Shop in Texas. The company, now known as Hugworks, uses original musical compositions as music therapy to address the special needs of children. The company has produced three award-winning children's CDs used in hospitals, medical camps and homes across the country.
Stookey was awarded the Kate Wolf Memorial Award by the
World Folk Music Association The World Folk Music Association is a non-profit organization formed in 1983 by folk singer/songwriter Tom Paxton and Dick Cerri, a radio host from Washington D. C. The first chairman of the board was Paxton and Cerri served as president.
Paxton ...
in 2000.
Solo career
During 1971 and 1972 Warner released an eponymous debut solo album by each member of the group. Each of these had similarly styled cover art. Stookey's album, titled "Paul, and", was the highest charting of the three. It reached #42 on the
Billboard 200
The ''Billboard'' 200 is a record chart ranking the 200 most popular music albums and EPs in the United States. It is published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine and is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of ar ...
chart in the United States in September 1971.
Stookey's best-known composition "
The Wedding Song (There Is Love)
"Wedding Song (There Is Love)" is a title of a 1971 hit single by Paul Stookey: the song—which Stookey credits to divine inspiration— has since been recorded by many singers (with versions by Petula Clark and Mary MacGregor returning it to th ...
" was included on his debut solo album. The song was also released as a single which charted in the
Billboard Hot 100
The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streamin ...
at #24. The song remains popular for performance during wedding services. He wrote the song as a wedding gift for
Peter Yarrow
Peter Yarrow (born May 31, 1938) is an American singer and songwriter who found fame for being in the 1960s folk trio Peter, Paul and Mary. Yarrow co-wrote (with Leonard Lipton) one of the group's best known hits, " Puff, the Magic Dragon". H ...
, and refused to perform it for the public until Yarrow requested it at a concert where his wife was present. Stookey assigned the copyright of this song to the Public Domain Foundation, a nonprofit 501(c)3 that facilitates the creation and impact of music for social change (M4SC). Generating over $1.5 million for charity worldwide, PDF has facilitated the creation of M4SC through its Music to Life (M2L) contest and other educational, entertainment and outreach activities, bringing together the global community, communicating how activism through music is alive and possible.
After Peter, Paul and Mary
Paul performed as a member of Peter, Paul and Mary until the death of
Mary
Mary may refer to:
People
* Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name)
Religious contexts
* New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below
* Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...
in September 2009. His work after
Peter, Paul and Mary
Peter, Paul and Mary was an American folk group formed in New York City in 1961 during the American folk music revival phenomenon. The trio consisted of tenor Peter Yarrow, baritone Paul Stookey, and contralto Mary Travers. The group's reper ...
has emphasized his Christian faith, family life and social concerns. He remains active in the music industry, performing as a solo act, and also performing occasionally with Peter Yarrow.
In 2000 Noel and his daughter, Elizabeth Stookey Sunde, founded the nonprofit Music to Life, which builds on the strong historical legacy of social movements' intentional use of music to educate, recruit, and mobilize. M2L revitalizes music to meet the challenges of the modern world and revolutionize the role activist artists can play in accelerating social change. Music to Life understands the complexity of contemporary causes and the diversity of musical genres. They blend this knowledge with multimedia technologies and programming techniques to develop unique musical experiences that amplify an organization's message, spark engagement with a cause, and empower activist artists to stand on the front lines of social change.
In January 2011, centered on
Martin Luther King Jr. Day
Martin Luther King Jr. Day (officially Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr., and sometimes referred to as MLK Day) is a federal holiday in the United States marking the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr. It is observed on the third Mond ...
, Stookey participated in several events at
Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native ...
that celebrated King's life, including "Music for Social Change with Noel Paul Stookey and Company."
Production
He also has production credits on albums by several lesser-known singer-songwriters, including
Dave Mallett and
Gordon Bok
Gordon Bok (born October 31, 1939) is an American folklorist and singer-songwriter, who grew up in Camden, Maine and is associated with music from New England.
Career
Bok's first album, self-titled, was produced by Noel Paul Stookey (Paul of P ...
. He was the founder of the Neworld Multimedia record label.
Discography
Albums
Singles
References
External links
*
Peter, Paul and Mary official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stookey, Noel
1937 births
Living people
American folk guitarists
American folk singers
American male singer-songwriters
Michigan State University alumni
People from Blue Hill, Maine
People from Greenwich Village
People from Birmingham, Michigan
American performers of Christian music
Warner Records artists
American baritones
American acoustic guitarists
American male guitarists
Singer-songwriters from Michigan
Guitarists from Michigan
American banjoists
20th-century American guitarists
20th-century American male musicians
Singer-songwriters from New York (state)