1965-1968, 1971-1972John Phillips
Michelle Phillips
Denny Doherty
"Mama" Cass Elliot
The Mamas & the Papas had a rare configuration of two male and two female singers, which gave them a distinctive sound. John Phillips, the leader of the group, originally wanted them to be a trio with his wife Michelle as the focal point and their friend Denny Doherty the third member, but that changed when Cass Elliot convince him to let her join.
They came up with the name for the group when they were watching a talk show called the Les Crane Show. The guest was a member of the Hell's Angels biker gang, who responded to a question about the women in the gang by saying they're affectionately known as their "mamas." Cass Elliot decided on the spot that she and Michelle were the Mamas, which made John and Denny the Papas. John agreed that they should be The Papas & the Mamas, which Cass quickly corrected to The Mamas & the Papas.
John often made up outlandish stories about how they got the name to amuse himself in interviews, but Michelle set the record straight in her autobiography California Dreamin'.
The Mamas & the Papas had an impressive run of six Top 5 hits starting with "
California Dreamin'" in 1965 and ending with "
Creeque Alley" in 1967, but they fell apart in 1968 due to a schism in John and Michelle's marriage and a dispute with their record label. They released a reunion album in 1971 that got little attention, so they again disbanded.
In 1982, John and Denny re-formed the group with two new Mamas: John's daughter Mackenzie Phillips and Spanky McFarlane of the group Spanky and Our Gang. They played the oldies circuit with various lineups until about 2000.
John and Michelle Phillips were married when The Mamas & the Papas formed in 1965 - he was nine years older. Their marriage suffered from infidelity, including an affair between Michelle and Denny Doherty.
John Phillips has five children: Jeffrey and Mackenzie from his first marriage, Chynna from his marriage to Michelle Phillips, and Tamberlane and Bijou from his third marriage to South African model Genevieve Waite. Mackenzie is an actress who was on the TV series One Day At A Time and the movie American Graffiti; Chynna is a member of the pop group Wilson Phillips.
Mama Cass was just 32 when she died on July 29, 1974 in Harry Nilsson's London apartment. She died of a heart attack, but her obituary in The Hollywood Reporter said she died from choking on a ham sandwich, a story that was often repeated but not true. Decades later, the writer of that obit, Sue Cameron, explained that she printed it at the urging of Allan Carr, Cass' manager, who thought she died of a drug overdose and didn't want that story to get out.
They were inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 1998.
On their first album, If You Can Believe Your Eyes And Ears (1966), the group name is rendered with grammatically incorrect apostrophes: The Mama's And The Papa's.
Michelle Phillips is the only surviving member of the group. John Phillips died from heart failure in 2001; Denny Doherty died of kidney failure in 2007.
Michelle Phillips was married to the actor Dennis Hopper for eight days in 1970.
John Phillips battled substance abuse and spent time in jail for cocaine possession in 1981. He described his struggles and his failings as a father in his 1986 autobiography Papa John.
Michelle got the name "Chynna" from a snide remark made by John at the time of Chynna's conception. When Michelle suggested they name the baby "India," John retorted, "You might as well name her North Vietnam or China."
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Suggestion credit:
Michelle - Houston, TX
