TOD: The first album I ever bought was Peter, Paul and Mary's "Moving". (Their breakthrough album.) They were the first group I followed and I bought their albums for years. Also, they were the first group I saw in concert. I was SO excited to see them live!
Later I became a fan of The Smothers Brothers, John Hartford, Pete Seeger (especially his Sacco and Vanzetti songs) Dylan, The Kingston Trio, and The Greenwood County Singers (featuring a young Van Dyke Parks, his brother Carson, and the writer Tom Robbins).
My current favorite folk singer continues to be Roy Zimmerman, a combination of Tom Lehrer and Jon Stewart. Here's a song he frequently recycles: Ted Haggard, George Rekers...next week, who knows?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IlnQZVTAcRcand another favorite skewering the right for their hypocritical attitudes about same-sex marriage:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IlnQZVTAcRc