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Showing posts with label the mamas & the papas. Show all posts
Showing posts with label the mamas & the papas. Show all posts

Wednesday, 13 February 2019

Tidy Tunes 2019 #13/28 California Dreamin' - The Mamas and The Papas

California Dreamin' - The Mamas and The Papas
RCA Victor (UK) Dunhill (US)
Released 8th December 1965
US Chart #4*
UK Chart #23

*Didn't make the charts until January and spent 17 weeks on the charts in the US.


California Dreamin' was the second single release by The Mamas and Papas. Their first, 'Go Where You Wanna Go' flopped and was discontinued pretty sharply. The B-side, 'Somebody Groovy', was also the flipside to the second single.

The song was first recorded by Barry McGuire for his 'This Precious Time' album in 1965. His version has The Mamas and The Papas on backing vocals. Funnily enough when The Mamas and The Papas came to record it they used the same backing track that McGuire's version had but they wiped his vocal from the track (though if you listen very carefully at the start of the song you can faintly hear McGuire's voice on the opening vocal of "All the leaves").

The single had a new lease of life in the UK in 1997 when it was used in a commercial and peaked at #9 on the charts.

This month sees the 53rd anniversary of the release of their debut album, 'If You Can Believe Your Eyes and Ears', and I've added a link below so you can have a listen.

I included a picture of the original cover of the album because it's actually funny to think that this was actually deemed indecent because of the presence of the toilet! So the cover was changed and there's about four other different covers altogether, one of which shows the same picture but cropped so much that you would never know they were actually in  a bathroom at all! 

 Now, although I would have been only two years old (a few months from my third birthday) when the debut album was released and I can't say that I have memories from that age hearing it, the songs that are on the album are totally familiar to me because they were ones that I heard as I got older and could actually process what I was hearing better.

 When you look at and listen to this debut album now it almost has the feel of a Best of Compilation because pretty much every song on it is considered to be a Classic Song by The Mamas and The Papas. The album also contains their one and only US #1 single 'Monday, Monday'.

If You Can Believe Your Eyes and Ears - The Mamas and The Papas
Dunhill
Produced by Lou Adler
Released February 1966
US Chart #1
UK Chart #3

Listen to the album here.

 The Mamas and The Papas
Live at Monterey Pop Festival 1967

Set:
 Straight Shooter / Somebody Groovy / I Call Your Name / Monday Monday / San Francisco (Be Sure To Wear Some Flowers In Your Hair / Dancing In The Streets
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Friday, 14 July 2017

45RPM: #128 Dedicated To The One I Love - A Brief History

On this day in 1926 Lowman "Pete" Pauling was born. He was the guitarist of The "5" Royales, who in 2012 were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (after twice being nominated and failing in 2002 and 2004!). Sadly, none of the band were alive to celebrate this great achievement. Pauling passed away in December 1973, from an apparent seizure after battling alcoholism for years.

You might be thinking, "What on earth has he got to do with the song Dedicated To The One I Love?" Well, the answer to that question is simple, he was the man who wrote it and his band were the first to record and release it.

Here's a brief history of the song. It has been recorded a number of times by many different artists ( there's a load of links down at the bottom of the page to check out) over the years for albums and released as an A-Side and B-Side for a few artists as well and below is just a snapshot of its release on 7" Vinyl.

1957
 The song was featured on the Debut Album of The "5" Royales entitled Dedicated To You (Listen To the Album Here).
They also released it as a single in December 1957 and it was a minor hit!
Dedicated To The One I Love / Don't Be Ashamed - The "5" Royales
King
Released December 1957
US R&B Chart #13


1959
 Dedicated To The One I Love / Look A Here Baby
Scepter
Released May 1959
US Chart #83


The first time around the fourth Single for The Shirelles was a very minor hit creeping into the lower reaches of the chart but when re-issued in 1961 it became their second of five Top Ten Hits between 1961-1963.

1961
 Dedicated To The One I Love / Look A Here Baby
Scepter Records
Re-issue May 1961
US Chart #3
US R&B Chart #2


Dedicated To The One I Love / Miracle of Love - The "5" Royales
King
Re-issue (different B-Side) 1961
Did Not Chart

I am assuming, as I don't know the release date for the re-issue of The "5" Royales' version of the song, that King Records had sought to give it a new lease of life in response to The Shirelles having a huge hit

1965
Runnin' Bear '65 / Dedicated To The One I Love - Johnny Preston
Hall Records
Released March 1965
Did Not Chart

1967
 Dedicated To The One I Love / Free Advice - The Mamas & The Papas
Dunhill
Released February 1967
US Chart #2
UK Chart #2
Australian Chart #3

(German Picture Sleeve)



Probably the version that most people are aware of was recorded by The Mamas & The Papas in November 1966 and then released as a single in February 1967. It was a huge hit both sides of the Atlantic. It was their fifth Top Five Single in the USA and their second Top Five Single in the UK.
This release for The Mamas & The Papas was a little different as it was the first to feature as the lead vocalist Michelle Phillips.

1968
Love Machine / Dedicated To The One I Love* - The O'Kaysions
ABC Records
Released November 1968
US Chart #76

*Can't seem to find a version of this on You Tube

1972
Dedicated To The One I Love / I Love You, You Love Me - The Temprees
We Produce Records
Released August 1972
US Chart #93
US R&B Chart #17

1981
Dedicated To The One I Love / Broadway Baby - Bernadette Peters
MCA Records
Released August 1981
US Hot 100 Chart #65

1994
Dedicated To The One I Love / It Keeps Rainin' (Live) - Bitty McLean
Brilliant!
Released March 1995
UK Chart #6

*******************
Other Cover Versions of Dedicated To The One I Love

A Wee Bonus
Dedicated  - A Salute to The 5 Royales - Steve Cropper
429 Records
Released 2011



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Tuesday, 30 August 2016

Let The Day Begin...Let The Day Start!: Day 243 - The Mamas & The Papas (Again!)

 The Mamas &The Papas -  The Mamas & The Papas
Dunhill
Produced by Lou Adler
Released 30th August 1966
US Album Chart #4
UK Album Chart #24

 Original Tracklist
All songs by John Phillips, unless otherwise noted.
Side One
   01. "No Salt on Her Tail" - 2:35
   02. "Trip, Stumble and Fall" (John Phillips, Michelle Gilliam) - 2:35
   03.  "Dancing Bear" - 4:08
   04. "Words of Love" - 2:13
   05. "My Heart Stood Still" (Richard Rodgers, Lorenz Hart) - 1:43
   06. "Dancing in the Street" (Marvin Gaye, William "Mickey" Stevenson, Ivy Jo Hunter) - 3:00

Side Two
  01. "I Saw Her Again" (Phillips, Denny Doherty) - 2:50
  02.  "Strange Young Girls" - 2:45
  03.  "I Can't Wait" - 2:40
  04.  "Even If I Could" - 2:40
  05.  "That Kind of Girl" - 2:20
  06.  "Once Was a Time I Thought" - 0:58

************************
Personnel
Denny Doherty - vocals
Cass Elliot - vocals
John Phillips - vocals, guitar
Michelle Phillips - vocals
Jill Gibson - vocals
Hal Blaine - percussion
Larry Knechtel - organ, piano
Joe Osborn - bass guitar
"Doctor" Eric Hord - guitar
Tommy Tedesco - guitar
P. F. Sloan - guitar
Peter Pilafian - electric violin
Ray Manzarek - organ, piano on "No Salt on Her Tail"
Jimmie Haskell - string arrangement on "I Saw Her Again"
Gene Page - horn arrangement on "My Heart Stood Still"
 
 *********************************
Singles from The Mamas & The Papas


US Chart #5
UK Chart #11

US Release Double A-Side
US Chart #5

UK Release
UK Chart #47

**************************

Just about 20 days ago we had a little look at the third studio album from The Mamas and The Papas. Today though we are going to have a quick glimpse at the second album that was released on this very day in 1966. There's a wee spot of drama surrounding it that's quite interesting. More about that in a moment though.

The band had already enjoyed some early success with their debut album hitting the #1 spot on the charts. California Dreamin' had given them a #4 Single and Monday Monday their first #1 Single but all was not well within the camp. Life is not always a series of events that bring success and joy, you can pretty much guarantee that somewhere along the road there will be "trouble ahead" (as the old song says).

That trouble first came when Michelle Phillips had "a liason" with fellow band member Denny Doherty sometime in 1965. John Phillips had forgiven Doherty and they had reconciled and wrote about the event in the lead single for the new album, I Saw Her Again. There has been some debate as to how much Doherty had actually contributed to the song. During the recording of the second album though news came out that Michelle Phillips had been involved in an affair with Gene Clark of The Byrds. This provoked John Phillips to call for her to be fired from the band. So on 28th June 1966 Michelle was fired by her bandmates.

With such a void to fill in the group Jill Gibson was hired as replacement. After being introduced to the band by its producer, Lou Adler, she was soon taking part in concerts (at Forest Hills, New York, Denver, Colorado, and Phoenix, Arizona) television appearances (Hollywood Palace on ABC), and recording sessions. While Gibson was a quick study and well regarded, the three original members concluded that she lacked her predecessor's "stage charisma and grittier edge", and Michelle Phillips was reinstated on August 23, 1966. Jill Gibson, so nearly a full-time Mama, left and was paid a lump sum from the group's funds.
It remains unclear whose vocals appear on The Mamas & The Papas as released on August 30, 1966. Gibson says she sang all but two songs. Studio documents appear to show that Michelle Phillips had already recorded six songs for the album in April 1966, including the singles I Saw Her Again and Words of Love. Lou Adler has said, "We recorded Jill on six songs ... got six vocal performances out of her, which we later replaced, some of 'em." Michelle Phillips has said that she does not know who is singing on the album: "There's no way to know who sang on what, because we both sang on all the parts, and it was up to Bones [Howe] and Lou [Adler] and John [Phillips] what was in the final mix. And they had a lot to choose from! When you listen to the second album ... listen to it ... because I swear I don't have any idea who's singing on it."

I wasn't aware of this particular note regarding the album before so it's quite interesting how quickly they must have been working from the moment Michelle Phillips was thrown out of the band and Gibson brought in to record her parts for the album: 



The photo already chosen for the album's cover featured Michelle Phillips prominently, so Dunhill had Gibson take a photo posed in exactly the same position as Michelle, and then superimposed the new photo over that of Phillips. However, the decision was then made to shoot an entirely new picture with the new line-up, and to also change the album's title to Crashon Screamon All Fall Down. Several thousand advance pressings of the album with this cover and title were sent out to radio stations and record distributors, but with the return of Michelle to the group just prior to the LP's general release, the original cover and eponymous title were quickly reinstated. Copies of the rare Crashon pressings are now highly sought after collectors items.


Let The Day Begin...Let The Day Start!
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Wednesday, 10 August 2016

Let The Day Begin...Let The Day Start!: Day 223 The Mamas & The Papas

The Mamas & The Papas Deliver - The Mamas & The Papas
Dunhill
Produced by Lou Adler
Released February 1967
US Chart #2
UK Chart #4


A1. Dedicated To The One I Love
A2. My Girl
A3. Creeque Alley
A4. Sing For Your Supper
A5. Twist And Shout
A6. Free Advice
B1. Look Through My Window
B2. Boys & Girls Together
B3. String Man
B4. Frustration
B5. Did You Ever Want To Cry
B6. John's Music Box

 There's a number of links below, feel free to click on them and enjoy more music from The Mamas & The Papas.

Singles From Deliver
01. Look Through My Window / Once Was A Time I Thought
Released: 1966
US Chart #24

02. Dedicated to the One I Love / Free Advice
Released: 1967
US Chart #2
UK Chart #2

03. Creeque Alley / Did You Ever Want To Cry
Released: 1967
US Charts #5
UK Charts #9

*********************

My music listening throughout a week is very diverse and I like to make this blog musically diverse as well because whilst some who read it might be up on some of the particular styles of music I post, not everyone is, and therefore it's a great opportunity to maybe hear something you might never have had the chance to hear before.

Today's choice is a good example. I have posted about The Mamas & The Papas before so it's nice today to turn the spotlight upon them again and upon an album from their short but sweet catalogue. 

This time around it is their third Studio Album, The Mamas & The Papas Deliver. I saw a video yesterday evening of The Mamas & The Papas on a TV show doing Dedicated To The One I Love, Michelle Phillips vocal on it is just so gorgeous and it had me digging through the collection to listen afresh to the album.

As is typical with The Mamas & The Papas their Cover Versions are always quite remarkable and so you get My Girl, Twist and Shout, and a surprise number Sing For Your Supper that dates back to the 1938 Broadway Musical The Boys From Syracuse, Mama Cass does a great job on lead vocals.

Side A of the album is probably the stronger side and it features Dedicated To The One I Love and the most excellent Creeque Alley, which of course tells the tale of how the band got together. Back in August last year I had included Creeque Alley as part of the 45RPM Series here on the blog.

The album's title was an in-joke among the group, as recording commenced shortly after Cass Elliot gave birth to her daughter, Owen. Given the social stigma of unwed mothers at the time, both the pregnancy and the birth had been kept a closely guarded secret from the public, and the LP's name was meant to imply that Cass and the others had "delivered" a newborn creative creation.


Here's a little spotlight I did called Remembering Mama Cass from way back in 2013.
 

Let The Day Begin...Let The Day Start!
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Sunday, 30 August 2015

45RPM: #15 - Creeque Alley - The Mamas and the Papas (1967)


Today would have been the birthday of John Phillips founding member of The Mamas and Papas . He was born 30th August 1935 and died aged 65 on 18th March 2001.

I've posted last year as part of the Alphabet Beats series about the group and how I grew up listening to them. Probably one of my favourite songs of theirs is Creeque Alley (though there are loads of great tunes to choose from). 

Creeque Alley was the third single taken off the 1967 Deliver album by The Mamas and the Papas. It was a #5 Hit in the US and reached #9 in the UK.


The Original Mono Mix of Creeque Alley



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Monday, 30 March 2015

Alphabet Beats #088: M is for...The Mamas and The Papas

M is for....
Back when I was a kid my folks had a well worn copy of The Greatest Hits of The Mamas and The Papas that was released in 1969 and I can remember listening to it and totally loving the harmonious sound that came from these four people. I didn't really know too much about them then and probably didn't understand everything they were singing about but as I got older their music has always been something special to me. There is a timelessness about their sound that even 50 years on from their forming it still sounds great.
Click on the links to enjoy the sound of The Mamas and The Papas.

The Mamas and The Papas were an American folk rock vocal group that recorded and performed from 1965 to 1968, reuniting briefly in 1971. They released five studio albums and seventeen singles, six of which made the top ten, and sold close to 40 million records worldwide. The group was composed of John Phillips (1935–2001), Denny Doherty (1940–2007), Cass Elliot (1941–1974), and Michelle Phillips née Gilliam (b. 1944). Their sound was based on vocal harmonies arranged by John Phillips, the songwriter, musician, and leader of the group who adapted folk to the new beat style of the early sixties.
According to Denny Doherty it was Cass who had the inspiration to name the band The Mamas and The Papas:



 "We're all just lying around vegging out watching TV and discussing names for the group. The New Journeymen was not a handle that was going to hang on this outfit. John was pushing for The Magic Cyrcle. Eech, but none of us could come up with anything better, then we switch the channel and, hey, it's the Hells Angels on the Carson show... And the first thing we hear is: "Now hold on there, Hoss. Some people call our women cheap, but we just call them our Mamas." Cass jumped up: "Yeah! I want to be a Mama." And Michelle is going: "We're the Mamas! We're the Mamas!" OK. I look at John. He's looking at me going: "The Papas?" Problem solved. A toast! To The Mamas and the Papas. Well, after many, many toasts, Cass and John are passed out."

The first single release was 'Go Where You Wanna Go' in 1965 but it failed to chart. Their big breakthrough came via Barry McGuire. He recorded a version of 'California Dreamin' for his album 'This Precious Time' that had The Mamas and The Papas on backing vocals. They then recorded their own version of the song using the same instrumental and vocal backing track to which they added new vocals. Although the single was released in September 1965 it was not an immediate hit and it would take until March the following year before it finally broke and reached #4 in the charts.

The follow-up single 'Monday Monday' gave them their only #1 (they did have a further four U.S. Top Ten Hits: 'I Saw Her Again', 'Words of Love', 'Dedicated to the One I Love' and 'Creeque Alley').


Deliver (1967).
The Mamas and Papas broke up in 1968 (they would reform again in 1971, releasing a final album together 'People Like Us' - Michelle Phillips said that it sounded like what it was "four people trying to avoid a lawsuit" - which they had to do in order to avoid a breach of contract charge against them).
 People Like Us (1971)
Side A
    "People Like Us" - 3:25
    "Pacific Coast Highway" - 3:04
    "Snowqueen of Texas" - 2:37
    "Shooting Star" - 2:54
    "Step Out" - 3:03
    "Lady Genevieve" - 3:48

Side B
    "No Dough" - 3:05
    "European Blueboy" - 3:39
    "Pearl" - 2:24
    "I Wanna Be a Star" (J. Phillips, Michelle Phillips) - 2:17
    "Grasshopper" - 2:57
    "Blueberries for Breakfast" - 2:59  

The live video posted above is the set that appeared in the film by The Mamas and The Papas at The Monterey Pop Festival in 1967.

The full set from the night was this:


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Tuesday, 29 July 2014

Rewind: 1974 - The Death of Mama Cass Elliot


 On this day (29th July) back in 1974 Mama Cass Elliot passed away from a heart attack following a performance in London.




Monterey Pop Festival 1967.
Got A Feelin'
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Thursday, 19 September 2013

Remembering Mama Cass Elliot


Today would have been the birthday of Mama Cass Elliot. She was born Ellen Naomi Cohen in Baltimore on 19th September 1941.

Her first recording was with a group called The Big 3 in 1963.

When Tim Rose left The Big Three in 1964 the remaining members (Cass and James Hendricks) teamed up with Zal Yanovsky and Denny Doherty from Canada and John B. Sebastian to form The Mugwumps. In their 8 months together released one album (only 9 songs were recorded in 1964 and the album would be released in 1967 after the members of the band had success with other bands).


Sebastian and Yanovsky would go on to form The Lovin' Spoonful, Hendricks didn't achieve great fame but quitely gained success as a performer and songwriter of note (word is that he has released more tha 50 albums of American Folk, Mountain, Gospel and Western Music). Cass would perform as a solo artist for a brief period and Denny Doherty would join The New Journeymen that featured John and Michelle Phillips who of course would end up inviting Cass to join them and then they became The Mamas and The Papas in 1965.


 According to Denny Doherty it was Cass who had the inspiration to name the band The Mamas and The Papas:


 "We're all just lying around vegging out watching TV and discussing names for the group. The New Journeymen was not a handle that was going to hang on this outfit. John was pushing for The Magic Cyrcle. Eech, but none of us could come up with anything better, then we switch the channel and, hey, it's the Hells Angels on the Carson show... And the first thing we hear is: "Now hold on there, Hoss. Some people call our women cheap, but we just call them our Mamas." Cass jumped up: "Yeah! I want to be a Mama." And Michelle is going: "We're the Mamas! We're the Mamas!" OK. I look at John. He's looking at me going: "The Papas?" Problem solved. A toast! To The Mamas and the Papas. Well, after many, many toasts, Cass and John are passed out."

The first single release was 'Go Where You Wanna Go' in 1965 but it failed to chart. Their big breakthrough came via Barry McGuire. He recorded a version of 'California Dreamin' for his album 'This Precious Time' that had The Mamas and Papas on backing vocals. They then recorded their own version of the song using the same instrumental and vocal backing track to which they added new vocals. Although the single was released in September 1965 it was not an immediate hit and it would take until March the following year before it finally broke and reached #4 in the charts.



Their debut album followed on from the success of Califonia Dreamin', released in March 1966 it would become a #1 on the U.S. Billboard Charts (and a #3 on the UK Charts). The original cover for the album featured a toilet where the scroll with featured song titles is on the above picture. The toilet was declared as 'indecent'! Here's the original cover:
The follow-up single 'Monday Monday' gave them their only #1 (they did have a further four U.S. Top Ten Hits: 'I Saw Her Again', 'Words of Love', 'Dedicated to the One I Love' and 'Creeque Alley').

Straight Shooter Documentary. (This has been highly edited due to copyright issues but there's enough still there to get a picture of the story of the band).

Monterey Pop Festival 1967.
Got A Feelin'

The Mamas and Papas broke up in 1968 (they would reform again in 1971, releasing a final album together 'People Like Us' - Michelle Phillips said that it sounded like what it was "four people trying to avoid a lawsuit" - which they had to do in order to avoid a breach of contract charge against them).

Cass meanwhile had released her first solo single (released as Mama Cass with The Mamas and the Papas), 'Dream a Little Dream of Me' which peaked in the charts at #12. All her other Single releases between 1968-74 failed to break into the Top #20, some not even making the chart at all. Her album releases faired no better, not a single one of them even got close to the Top 50 apart from the 1971 album 'Dave Mason and Cass Elliot' (on which Cass actually does more backing vocals then anything else, though she did co-write two songs, 'Here We Go Again' and 'Something To Make You Happy'). 

Her final album before her death was released in 1973. The shows at which the album was recorded (in Chicago) were deemed a success but that didn't translate into sales.


At the height of her solo career in 1974 Cass was performing two weeks of sold out shows at the London Palladium. After the final show on 28th July she went back to her flat which was on loan from Harry Nilsson and she died in her sleep at aged 32. She died of a heart attack (and not the myth that she had chocked on a ham sandwich!). It was reported that the heart attack could have been brought on by extreme weight loss (she had lost over 80 pounds in the space of four months by fasting four days a week. This, reports say, severly weakened her heart).

Although the last years of her life were blighted by poor record sales etc I like to remember Cass Elliot more for her time with The Mamas and The Papas and all the brilliant music they made within a three year period of 1965-68. 
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