The Mamas & the Papas - Did You Know?
May 8, 2018Music facts, music trivia, interesting stories and much more. Introducing the "Did You Know" page about American folk rock vocal group, The Mamas & the Papas.
Enjoy!
The Mamas & the Papas were an American folk rock vocal group that was formed in Los Angeles, California and recorded and performed between the years 1965 to 1968.
The Mamas & the Papas consisted of Denny Doherty, John Phillips, Michelle Phillips, and Cass Elliot. Their sound was based on vocal harmonies that was arranged by John Phillips who was the songwriter, musician, and leader of the band.
He adapted folk music to the new beat style of the early sixties, and the band beame a defining force in the music scene of the Counterculture of the 1960s.
But, did you ever wonder how The Mamas & the Papas became to be The Mamas & the Papas? Originally, they were known as The Magic Circle, that was until Cass Elliot saw a TV documentary about The Hells Angels.
Elliot heard that The Hells Angels called the ladies in the gang mamas, and while she was lying on her back, she started kicking her feet in the air, saying that she wants to be a mama too. John Philips said that he and Denny Doherty would be papas, and that became the band's new name.
In the course of their music career, The Mamas & the Papas released 5 studio albums and 17 singles, 6 of the singles entered the Billboard top ten. The band have sold almost 40 million records all over the world.
In 1998, The Mamas & the papas were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, for the band's contributions to the music industry.
In 1963, Michelle Phillips was newly married to John Phillips and the two were living in New York, which was having a particularly cold winter, by Michelle's standards.
John would walk around the apartment at night working out tunes, and one morning he brought the first verse of the song "California Dreamin'" to Michelle.
It was a song about longing to be in another place, and it was inspired by Michelle's homesickness. Michelle enjoyed visiting churches, and a few days earlier, she and John visited St. Patrick's cathedral, which inspired the second verse of the song (""Stopped into a church..."). John hated this verse, due to unpleasant memories of parochial school, but he could not think of anything better, so he left it in.
While awaiting the release of "California Dreamin'," The Mamas & The Papas band member Denny Doherty was prodding songwriter John Phillips to come up with some new material. Phillips said that he would come back in the morning with a universally appealing song.
Ignoring the sarcastic comments of the other band members, Phillips came up with the song "Monday, Monday," which is about the lousy feeling that comes with the end of the weekend and beginning of another workweek.
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