The Mamas & the Papas

Folk-pop, contemporary folk, singer-songwriters

The Mamas & the Papas were, sonically, very much a product of their era. Their music was heavily built on four-part vocal harmonies. Though they were more solidly a pop band than some of their contemporaries (say, Peter, Paul and Mary), it's not difficult to hear the solid folk influences in their work. As such, they helped define a '60s folk-pop era which led to a '70s singer-songwriter movement led by folks like Joni Mitchell, Cat Stevens, Jackson Browne, and others. Fans of those artists would enjoy the Mamas & the Papas, and vice-versa.

The Mamas & the Papas were made up of John and Michelle Phillips, Denny Doherty, and "Mama" Cass Elliot. They performed together as a group from 1965-1968, making time for a brief reunion in 1971. John Phillips was the primary songwriter, who had known Doherty from previous bands called the Mugwumps and the New Journeymen.

The band was originally called the Magic Cyrcle, but that proved unmemorable and unfavorable to the band's members. They reportedly took the name The Mamas & the Papas from the Hells Angels, who said they called their women "Mamas."

If You Can Believe Your Eyes and Ears (Dunhill, 1966) compare prices

Deliver (Dunhill, 1967) compare prices

Greatest Hits (MCA, 1998) compare prices

"California Dreamin"
"Creeque Alley"
"San Francisco"

By the mid-1960s, John Phillips and Denny Doherty had already played in two bands together - the Mugwumps and the New Journeymen. In 1965, they formed a band of their own, called the Magic Cyrcle. This new group incorporated the vocals of John's wife Michelle and, later, also the vocal strength of Laurel Canyon songstress Cass Elliott. Reportedly, Phillips wasn't thrilled when Elliot joined the group - he thought her size would prevent them from commercial success.

Quite the opposite, though.

They changed their name and released their first single, "Go Where You Wanna Go," in 1965, followed by the more commercially successful "California Dreamin'." The latter climbed all the way up to Number 4 on the pop charts, making the Mamas & the Papas a certified success. Their debut album If You Can Believe Your Eyes and Ears dropped early the following year and went to Number 1.

Despite the five-album deal they'd signed with Dunhill Records initially, the band would only release four albums before breaking up and going their separate ways. Their final performance was on the Ed Sullivan show in 1967, shortly before they went into the studio to work on album number four - The Papas & the Mamas. The band split, though, after John Phillips made a derogatory remark about Cass Elliot in front of a room full of people (which included members of the Rolling Stones) while they were in Europe at a Dunhill Records party.

Elliot's "Dream a Little Dream of Me" (purchase/download) from The Papas & the Mamas proved the disc's highest charting single, establishing a precedent for her to pursue a solo career following the foursome's split. Though they reunited in 1971 to cut the fifth album in their Dunhill contract, the album met little success, and they split once and for all. Each of the members pursued their own interests after 1971.

Elliot died of a heart attack in 1974, but managed to enjoy three years of a successful solo career. John Phillips's solo career was less successful, though he's had success as a songwriter for other artists. He died of heart failure in 2001. Phillips and Doherty had formed the New Mamas & the Papas with Phillips's daughter MacKenzie, but Doherty left that group and became the producer of a children's TV show. He died in 2007 from kidney failure. His ex-wife Michelle (they divorced in the early '70s) released an album in '77, before taking to Hollywood and becoming an actress. She's the only living member of the Mamas & the Papas.