Even with British invasion of the pop charts during the 1960’s there was one group who held their own and just kept delivering all those ‘memory’ making songs. But eventually their demise would be due to their drink and drug lifestyles and relationship conflicts within the group. 

The Mamas & The Papas were initially formed by Denny Doherty, Cass Elliot, John Philips and Michelle Philips, who married just a few years before the group was established. After many months of financial problems, founding a new group appeared to be their way out of trouble and their main route to solvency and would put them on the road to stardom. They were signed up by Larry Adler and together they supplied backing vocals for folk singer Barry McGuire. After performing vocals on ‘California Dreamin’’ the group decided to release the track as a single for themselves.

The group became an immediate hit with the song. With the original name of ‘The Magic Circle’ the group believed that the name was not catchy enough and after a think tank meeting in their shared apartment in Los Angeles, they decided on the catchy name, ‘The Mamas & The Papas’. 1965 was a year of trauma for the two Philips’ in the band. After Michelle admitted to having an affair with Doherty, John Philips found he could no longer work with his wife, Michelle, and before long she was ejected from the group in 1966. The group were then on the hunt for a replacement and came up with Jill Gibson who instantly appeared on the group’s second album.

Although seen as an asset by the band, Jill was not well received by fans and eventually in August 1966 she was sent on her way with a lump sum settlement and Michelle was reintroduced into the lineup. The band recorded another three albums together amidst rumours of heavy marijuana smoking and the use of other illegal substances, but still the conflicts continued. They gave a less than polished and successful performance at the Monterey International Pop Festival in 1967, and appearance which was also affected by the late arrival to the show by Doherty. Once again the group were experiencing problems. 

In late 1967 the four took a trip to England with the hopes of revitalizing their musical skills and their relationship with one another. However, more trouble was to follow. While at a party being thrown by their record label, Dunhill Records, Cass Elliot was insulted by Doherty while engrossed in a conversation with Mick Jagger. That was the final straw for Cass and she left the group to begin a solo career. 

1968 saw Cass Elliot releasing several hits of her own, ‘Its Getting Better’ and ‘Make your own kind of Music’ followed by a very well received tour of the US and Europe. With contractual pressures being brought to bare in 1971 the group had to reform to record a final album. The album ‘People Like Us’ was the final album by The Mamas & The Papas, after which they went their separate ways, permanently. 

The permanents of their parting was further enforced with the sudden death of Cass Elliot after a heart attack in July 1974 while she was touring with her solo act. In 2001 John Philips also passed away after suffering a heart attack and six years later, after a minor hit ‘You’ll Never Know’, Denney Doherty died after a short illness, while living in Toronto, Canada. 

The sole remaining member of the group, Michelle Philips went on to enjoy a successful acting career appearing with Joan Van Ark, Ted Shackelford and Donna Mills in the long running television soap opera ‘Knots Landing’. Her acting career also saw her appearing in the 1973 movie ‘Dillinger’ alongside Richard Dreyfuss, Cloris Leachman and Ben Johnson.