There is an elitist concept of talent. It's reserved for an exalted few.

Folk music is accessible.
It's for everyone to sing. I think that's what Mary Travers meant. It certainly is the text of Pete Seeger's sermons. The idea of "talent" comes from stuffy academics who maintain that their view of talent is better than someone else's. This comes from the classical music world.

Mary Travers did what she did naturally. She honked it out regardless of how talented it would be perceived. She was bold, aggressive, never shy, and represented for many women an emancipated way of singing and being. The idea that Grossman wanted to convey that Mary T. was a shy, introverted person is pure hype.

Talent has to be identified and defined. Mary's personality was her talent. She was outgoing,warm, conveyed a kind of humanity onstage and it really didn't matter too much if she flatted a few notes. She looked and sounded good and was a solid presence. That is talent. She communicated to many big time. That is talent. But it's not the stuffy academic definition.