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Tuesday, 13 February 2007 18:39 |
ìAll the leaves are brown and the sky is gray
Iíve been for a walk on a winterís day
Iíd be safe and warm if I was in L.A.
California dreaminí on such a winterís day.î
ó ìCalifornia Dreaminíî
The Mamas & the Papas
ï
The Jan. 19 death of Denny Doherty, a founding member of the Mamas and the Papas, provided a vivid jolt to me that mortality looms for everyone.
Indeed, this great 1960s San Franscisco-based folk-pop band, which once exuded so much life and vitality, now has only one surviving original member ó the ever-lovely Michelle Phillips.
The
timing of Dohertyís death, amid winterís gloom, especially evoked my
memories of the groupís first hit, ìCalifornia Dreaminí,î that pines
for sunny respite.
Who could ever forget such dramatic lyrics as these?
ìWell, I got down on my knees
And I pretend to pray
You know the preacher likes the cold
He knows Iím gonna stay.î
The band, formed
in ë65, broke up in ë68 when one of its top singers, Mama Cass Elliot,
decided to go solo ó and the Phillipsí divorced. Alas, Cass died in
1974 of a heart attack. In 2001, John Phillips, Michelleís ex-husband,
died of heart failure.
Doherty, 66, may
have succumbed as the result of kidney failure following a surgery for
a stomach aneurysm. A Canadian native, he died at his home in
Mississauga, Ontario.
In the group,
Doherty sang most of the male leads in a clear tenor, punctuated by
rock ëní roll growls. He also was part of an ultimately destructive
love triangle centering on Michelle that infuriated her husband John.
The Mamas and
the Papas was among the first major rock groups to feature two male and
two female singers who were equals on stage. During their performances,
they struck an image of casual, collegial friendship.
In my
estimation, the quartetís songs were simply smashing, with
thought-provoking lyrics, rich, meticulous harmonies tinged with
darkness and musical arrangements featuring chiming guitars. The group
ìmixed the gentle jangle of folk with a rock backbeat and sweet,
layered pop vocals,î according to Ben Sisario in a Jan. 20 story in The
New York Times.
As one might
expect from a ë60s-era band, its membersí lifestyles were Bohemian and
eclectic. While I admired them musically, I disliked that they
reportedly were so caught up in the use of alcohol and psychedlic
drugs, sometimes with children present.
Some music
critics have ranked the Mamas and the Papas among the most influential
American bands between the ìBritish invasionî and Woodstock. They were
inducted into the Rock ëní Roll Hall of Fame in 1998.
In the early
ë80s, the band was reconstituted for a reunion tour with Doherty, John
Phillips, Phillipsí daughter Mackenzie and Elaine ìSpankyî McFarlane.
Besides
ìCalifornia Dreaminí,î my other favorite songs of the group include
ìMonday, Monday,î ìDedicated to the One I Loveî and ìGo Where You Wanna
Go.î
Despite The
Mamas and the Papasí brief period in the ë60sí spotlight, I think the
quartetís innovative music and youthful spirit will endure because of
its clever juxtapositioning of light and dark elements ó and its
combustible combination of four exceptional vocalists.
ï
John North, publisher and editor of the Daily Planet, may be contacted at publisher-at-ashevilledailyplanet.com. |
