Free Republic

The quartet were missing the warmth of Los Angeles, but turned that into a gold-certified classic.By the spring of 1966, the Mamas and the Papas were big news in the United States. They’d gone Top 5 with “California Dreamin’’’, released the previous December 8, and were climbing fast with the follow-up, ‘Monday, Monday.’ That was on its way to a three-week stint at No.1 in the US when, on the chart for April 28, the vocal quartet appeared on a British chart for the first time. “California Dreamin’’’ made a tentative first showing in the Top 50 that week at...

Mamas & Papas member Doherty dies at 66 Denny Doherty, one-quarter of the 1960s folk-rock group the Mamas and the Papas, known for their soaring harmony on hits like "California Dreamin'" and "Monday, Monday," died Friday at 66. His sister Frances Arnold said the singer-songwriter died at his home in Mississauga, a city just west of Toronto, after a short illness. He had suffered kidney problems following surgery last month and had been put on dialysis, Arnold said. The group burst on the national scene in 1966 with the top 10 smash "California Dreamin'." The Mamas and the Papas broke...

MISSISSAUGA, Ont. - Denny Doherty, one-quarter of the 1960s folk-rock group the Mamas and the Papas, known for their soaring harmony on hits like "California Dreamin'" and "Monday, Monday," died Friday at 66. His sister Frances Arnold said the singer-songwriter died at his home in Mississauga, a city just west of Toronto, after a short illness. The group burst on the national scene in 1966 with the top 10 smash "California Dreamin'." The Mamas and the Papas broke new ground by having women and men in one group at a time when most singing groups were unisex. John Phillips, the...

MISSISSAUGA, Ont. -- Denny Doherty, the Canadian member of the Mamas and the Papas folk group, has died. He was 66. A family member says the singer-songwriter in the popular '60s group died earlier today at his home in Mississauga after a short illness. The Halifax-born Doherty led the group onto the charts with hits including "Monday, Monday," "California Dreamin," "Dream a Little Dream of Me" and "Dedicated to the One I Love." He started his music career in Montreal in 1960 as the co-founder of the Colonials, which later became the Halifax Three. In the mid-'60s, Time magazine called...