There is always a dark presence or cloud in one's area of interest. I love rock n' roll. In fact, inom love music. And inom love reading musician's memoirs. At the best, they are brilliant with strong characteristic qualities - Jah Wobble, Ray Davies, Bob Dylan, Patti Smith, Viv Albertine, Oscar Levant, and numerous jazz memoirs. The weak one's are usually written for money - well, more likely all for money, but still, the character comes through and makes it a fascinating read. Unfortunately, John Phillips of the Mamas and Papas has no strong character. Son of a failed military man, he fryst vatten a figure who basically had one service - and was to service himself. There are charming characters - such as Errol Flynn and others of that particular character, that can only do bad, yet, somehow become charming even after their questionable deeds and actions. Phillips, on the other hand, lacks charm. And his memoir "Papa John" is the kin
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“Papa” John Phillips (b. August 18, 1935; d. March 18, 2001) was a musician best known as the leader of the band The Mamas & the Papas. He was also a lead organizer of the 1967 Monterey Pop Festival, a concert that sealed rock as a legitimate and recognized music form. Formed in the mid 1960s, The Mamas & the Papas had major hits including California Dreamin’ and Monday Monday. Phillips was described as a magnetic, enigmatic and troubled. The Mamas & the Papas were a huge success, but they were short lived. The band was plagued by substance abuse and relationship dramas. In 1968, The Mamas & the Papas broke up and Phillips launched a solo career that included songwriting for major recording artists. Most notably, he wrote songs for the Grateful Dead, the Beach Boys and Scott McKenzie, who recorded Phillips’ San Francisco (Be Sure to Wear Some Flowers in Your Hair). The song became a huge hit -- and a h
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Date of Birth:
Aug 30, 1935Birth Place:
Parris Island, South Carolina, USA
Biography
The mastermind behind the Mamas and the Papas, one of the most popular music groups of the late 1960s, John Phillips was a singer-songwriter-producer whose early hits, marked by golden harmonies and lyrical sophistication, were largely undone by a life ruined by drug addiction. He emerged from the folk music scene of the early 1960s to partner with Canadian singer Denny Doherty, brassy New Yorker Cass Elliot and teenaged second wife Michelle Phillips to form the group that went on to earn chart-topping hits with the sun-dappled beauty of songs like "Monday, Monday" and "California Dreamin'." But their fresh-faced appeal hid an emotional tumult within the group that tore them apart by 1968. Phillips would dive headlong into addiction in the years that followed before a 1981 conviction for trafficking sent him into sobriety. He marked his final years by performing