68. If you can believe your eyes and ears - The Mamas and the Papas

The Mamas and the Papas were founded in 1965, with husband and wife John and Michelle Phillips the driving force behind the band, alongside members Denny Doherty and Cass Elliott. The band were originally a folk group, as this was John Phillips preference, but the other three members managed to move him away from this genre into contemporary pop. This album was their debut, and was released in February 1966, and was the band's only number one album in the US.

The opening track, Monday Monday was a hit reaching number one in the US charts, and advertises the harmonies the group can produce. A wide range of instrumentation is used, including strings and a harpsichord, which adds depth to the song. Straight Shooter is extremely catchy, with slightly ambiguous lyrics. Again, there are beautiful harmonies, and with a country influenced feel. You can almost picture a square dance taking place in the recording studio. Go where you wanna go was the other single off the album, and summarises the hippy, free love ethos better than pretty much any other song from the era, even though it slightly fore-shadowed the hippy peak. California Dreamin' is the track everyone will know off this album, and with good reason. Warm, fuzzy, catchy, and with great use of the tambourine, this was always going to stand out on the album. It's a classic singalong track, with superb backing vocals. But you knew this already. Hey Girl has a great bass line which saves this song, from a slightly straightforward number. The album closer, The In Crowd has a  powerful, for once dominating, lead vocal performance that helps it to stand out. Some interesting melodic changes, alongside a delightfully messy hammond organ, ensure a positive, more interesting finale.

Overall, some songs sound a lot more dated than others. And not in a nostalgic, hazy way, but in a, frankly, boring way. Got a Feeling and Call my Name, and the abject Spanish Harlem, which I struggled to listen to after the first couple of goes, are all guilty of this. The songs are not hugely varied, yet manage to seem very hit or miss. I can't me regularly revisiting this collection, but I will enjoy the odd blast of the stand out tracks. 

Chloe's rating: 6
Chloe's favourite track: 7. California Dreamin'
Olly's rating: 6
Olly's favourite track: 7. California Dreamin'

Next week is 787. Alien Lanes by Guided by Voices - a band where I couldn't even tell you which genre they belonged to.