That song personified the hopes and dream of the mid ‘60s. Southern California was the center of the universe and American culture. Yes there were bad aspects of it but generally that was an America with a positive outlook and an unstoppable mindset. Not like the dark outlook of today. Having lived through it I mourn the loss of those ideals.
Cass Elliot was a massive talent, she nailed every note in that song flawlessly.
The worst aspect of life in Southern California at the time was the smog. During much of the year, you couldn't see the mountains from downtown La, and weather reports would include information on eye irritation. But after the Kaiser Steel mill in Fontana was sold to China in the early 1980s, the phrase "moderate to heavy eye irritation" in weather reports would become a thing of the past.
The political climate of Southern California was a far cry from 2025. Sam Yorty, the Democrat mayor of LA was more conservative than most Republicans, and from 1965 until 1969 we had two Republicans in the Senate, George Murphy, a conservative, and Tom Kuchel, a RINO. The Democrats ruled the statehouse until 1967, but in 1962 Californians elected a no-nonsense conservative, Max Rafferty, to be Superintendent of Public Instruction, and under his leadership our public schools were the world’s best. We also had some great representatives such as Glen Lipscomb and James Utt who never cast a liberal vote.