The Mamas & the Papas Biography, Photos and Posters

The Mamas & the Papas

Biography

Started: 1965
City and Country of Origin: New York, NY/Los Angeles, CA
Music Background:
Awards: 1998 inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame; 2000 inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame
Top Recordings: "California Dreamin'," "Monday, Monday," "I Saw Her Again," "Words Of Love," "Dedicated To The One I Love," "Creeque Alley," "Twelve Thirty (Young Girls Are Coming To The Canyon)," "Dream A Little Dream Of Me,"
The Mamas & the Papas Biography: The Mamas & the Papas were one of the few American groups to achieve widespread success during the British invasion of the mid 1960s. The group released 5 albums and achieved 10 hit records from 1965 thru 1968. The group consisted of Denny Doherty, Cass Elliot, John Phillips, and Michelle Phillips and grew out of the same musical background as The Lovin' Spoonful, the jug band The Mugwumps.

The groups success was built upon its vibrant harmonies and easy going California lifestyle of the 60s pop culture. John Phillips was born in 1935 and already had a wife and 2 children, one of whom was actress MacKenzie Phillips, when he finally struck paydirt when he formed the Mamas and Papas. He had already turned his troubled childhood around when he entered the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis, MD. John paid his dues in the music world before landing with Dick Weissman and Scott McKenzie in one of the most promising small groups of the day The Journeymen. Although the group landed a recording contract with Capitol the group eventually disbanded.

Phillips then formed the New Journeymen with future screenwriter Marshall Brickman and a flirty young model singer named Michelle Gilliam. The two had met while John was with the Jouneymen and a teenage Michelle became a regular follower of the group. Today, she still muses about how she fell for the tall thin one rather than the handsome Scott McKenzie. After his first marriage ended he married Michelle. Cass Elliott sang with a group called the Big 3 which eventually evolved into the Mugwumps a group which consisted of Elliot, James Hendricks, Zal Yanovsky, John Sebastian, and Denny Doherty. The group styled itself after the West Coast group The Byrds, but never quite made the big time. After Marshall Brickman left the New Journeymen John Phillips recruited Doherty. Cass moved to Washington where she earned her way singing jazz. When Doherty brought the group to watch her perform the last piece of the puzzle fell into place.

At first John was not sold on Cass due to her size, her powerful personality and supposedly her pitch which was supposedly corrected during the group's hiatus on St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands, immortalized in the song "Creeque Alley," when she was hit on the head and came too suddenly able to hit the right notes. The group hit the West Coast in 1965 and after being turned down by Frank Werber, the group was signed after auditioning for Lou Adler. The groups first album If You Can Believe Your Eyes and Ears was one of th efinest examples of the sound known as "sunshine pop" and included hits "California Dreamin'" and "Monday, Monday," and songs like "Go Where You Wanna Go," "Got a Feeling." This would prove to be their biggest album success.

Like so many other groups, especially co-ed groups, the wheels began to come off due to sexual tensions brought about mostly, but not totally by the flirty young Michelle who had an affair with Doherty whom Cass had a crush on. The love triangle even inspired John to write the song "Glad to be Unhappy." The group disbanded in 1968, when Cass walked away after John had made a disparaging remark about Elliot while she was conversing with Mick Jagger. However, Cass was still bound to the group by contract and one last effort the groups fourth album The Papas & the Mamas was able to heal the riff. Elliot embarked on her solo career having immediate success with "Make Your Own Kind of Music" and "It's Getting Better." After reviewing th econtract the record label concluded that the group owed them one last album. So, the members got together again to record People Like Us in 1971.

Elliot's early success as a solo act did not last long as she passed away from a heart attack on July 29, 1974 while on tour. John died of heart failure on March 18, 2001 and Denny Doherty died in his native Toronto on January 19, 2007. The lone survivor of the group is Michelle Phillips who was much younger than the rest of the members.

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