Reviews (page 13 of 14)
Don't remember much about this other than California Dreamin'
Stämsång, annars låg verkshöjd.
Not really my style.
Mamas & The Papas are ALL about the HARD PAN. It was so striking on "Monday, Monday" that I had to research. According to reddit this is the answer: "John Phillips kept bouncing the mixes down to another track each time he’d overdub harmonies. Its the same reason the first Crosby Stills Nash album isn’t a sonic marvel. Bounce downs made the sound weaker and also limited mixing options, which is why the backing tracks are often confined to one channel only." 1950/1960s was also apparently the early days of stereo mixing and professionalizing audio engineers. In early days they could only pan 100% L or R. I know this is incredibly snobby but if I could get my hands on the mono recording it'd be a 3.5 but this stereo recording hurts my head. If I ran the Mama & Papas estate I'd make this my top priority to get my mono recordings to replace this trash.
Very forgettable. Not don't understand why it made the list. Two decent/good songs in 'Monday, Monday' and 'California Dreaming'. Wasn't shit. Just wasn't good either.
It's fine to take your daughter to the fairground or buy her some shoes every now and then, but maybe leave it at that.
like i guess. good background noise
Playschool music. Pom pom pom pom. California Dreamin is nice.
I listened to this ages ago and forgot to rate it; a second listen doesn't help it. Thankfully, it was quite short
Love California Dreaming, but the rest is twee and bland. The vocal separation to different channels is understandable for the time, but it really sucks. It's well sung I suppose, but the material and musical arrangements are nothing special. I'm going with 2 stars, as I didn't hate it, there were one or two good tracks, but I'm never going to listen to this again if I can help it, and the remaining 10 tracks were just an instantly forgettable blur of saccharine nonsense. Some of it felt like it would belong on a parody album, which I think I would have given a higher score to, maybe a 3.
The album has its moments, but it doesn’t quite live up to its iconic reputation. While "Monday, Monday" and "California Dreamin’" are undeniably catchy, much of the album feels repetitive and lacks the same spark. It’s fine as a piece of 60s nostalgia, but it doesn’t hold up as a must-listen today.
Не понравилась такая музыка.
I kind of get sick of the sort of folk bubblegum pop from the 60s. It's just super lame. I mean I guess I see the appeal of it as something that's easy to listen to and won't challenge you at all but that's not really something I enjoy much. This being hailed as one of the best albums ever recorded is so strange to me - it sounds like countless other albums from the mid 60s. I was glad when it was over. 2/5
Monday, Monday: Very interesting, accurate since I am listening to this on a Monday, kinda folk music, actually kinda cool
A lot like ABBA, who I also don't really like. Too upbeat and groovy for my tastes, and I don't mean groovy like "has a groove" I mean it like 60s.
I guess I always assumed all The Mamas and the Papas songs would be as good as California Dreamin' but I had never really listened to much else. Well unfortunately the rest of this album anyway didn't do much for me. But oddly enough for the first time in my life did I accidentally hear "and I pretend to pray" instead of "and I began to pray" and apparently it was originally supposed to be "pretend" but Mama Cass sang the wrong lyric. I'm not sure how I heard "pretend" but it's strange that I did and then read about the lyric switch.
California folk rock.
If it were for pure nostalgia, I'd give this a five. But apart from the two standouts and the singers' performance this is an overall average album, with some covers that are close to terrible. Unfortunately, this kind of music soon became carrier for all kinds of memorable advertisements, which makes it hard to listen to without spontaneous imagining of toothbrushes. Has ages pretty badly.
Niin pehmoista menoa, että huomaa kyseessä olevan ns. vanhan albumin. Ei kiinnostellut mikään kappaleista.
Mjjaa
First off……what a horrible album cover. Could they have at least cropped out the toilet?? And the facial expressions certainly tell a story…..only Cass looks happy. And John looks pissed off at the world. The three classic songs aside…..much of this album sounds like bad elevator music. Ick.
Trist skiva som går i slowmotion. Inte ens California Dreamin är speciellt bra. 60- talet är inte speciellt bra. De orkar inte ens få till peppiga Yeah. Det låter som de tycker det är lika tråkigt att sjunga musiken som det är att lyssna på den. Det räcker nu!
Unmemorable, beatles soundalike
This is just one of a million different lame mid-sixties folk groups that happened to hit it big by tie dyeing their beatnik wear and hiring the Wrecking Crew to play super dumbed down easy listening electrified folk rock behind them. This is just slightly less lame Sonny & Cher. The only counterpoint to that is the fact that "California Dreamin'" and "Monday, Monday" are undeniably great songs.
Okay I get it this album is 58 years old, the songs are well crafted, but I prefer the Ramones cover of Do You Wanna Dance. Overall it fine, but a little too poppy for me.
“California Dreamin’” is a great song, the rest of the album doesn’t do much for me. Super saccharine stuff, way too many orchestral flourishes for me.
Bullshit
Not its fault, but it's very dated/old fashioned. No real concept of the album being one cohesive unit.
2,5/5
Started out ok but ended up liking it a bit less close the the end. Besides the big hit, 2 more songs were saved.
Only added two songs to my Playlist.
Didn't really listen that intently but boring, 2.1.
I think instead of these four, Mama Cass should make her own kind of music!
This album is really boring im sorry
I was familiar with this album and have played California Dreaming on repeat! But other than Got a Feelin’ I can’t say I like the album, even as much as I enjoy the band’s style of music and harmonizing. It is really redundant and gets old rather quickly.
90% do álbum é música de fundo pra viver a vida, os outros 10% são músicas ok, mas que você ouve e depois já esquece. Melhor Música: Spanish Harlem, You Baby. Pior Música: N/A 2.0/5
Very Fallout vibes. This is how I imagine most music before The Beatles! Some cute songs, Monday and California dreaming
Thankfully short. Hard to believe this was considered hip at the time.
let’s copy the beetles and beach boys at the same time
3 really good, recognizable, timeless songs. The rest sound okay, but haven't really aged as well as the hits.
It's okay, but seems a little generic; I'd rather listen to Buffalo Springfield. "California Dreamin'" is a stone-cold banger, though - enough that I may listen to the rest of the album again.
I wanted to get eviscerated by soft spoken harmonies but this thing is just kinda dinky. Has its moments. 2/5
This ranged from corny to just ok for me. It’s not bad but it’s not great. Two notes, the Ramones version of Fo You Wanna Dance is infinitely better than the one on here. And I can’t hear California Dreamin’ without thinking of The Dead Milkmen and the sketch from the Kelsey Grammer Sketch show (https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=1v9cRhT8Gno&list=FLUEiFsihiBtiiqTbVRZMiWw&index=2&pp=gAQB)
Very wholesome and very classic, it feels like a hallmark of a simpler time. I didn't dislike it, but I also genuinely don't have much esteem for it.
California Dreamin' is a great song. Other than that forgettable at best. Also, is Spanish Harlem a song about grooming?
Vocal Harmonies are really good the big songs are still around for a reason Just not my style.
Good vocal harmonies. This didn't do much for me besides that.
Ok
Outside of two good songs, this really grates on you after awhile. I could only make it about 3/4 of the way through the album before I had to just turn it off. It's too much of the same same a capella over and over and over again.. sometimes purely a cappella with no music. Not great, and only saved 1 star because of two stand out songs.
I see that M&Ps are kind of a bridge between the pop vocal groups and the late 60s rock movement. To me, aside from California Dreaming, which is an amazing tune, this is all out dated and boring now to me. I understand John Phillips wrote many of the tunes, and their harmonies are great, but it is a very limited sound.
Never listened to this whole album, but have heard Monday Monday and California Dreamin of course. I like those two songs but the remainder of the songs on the album were meh to me.
Very of its time. California Dreamin' is so beyond over-played that I don't enjoy it anymore. I hadn't heard of most of these, and enjoyed a handful (Go Where You Wanna Go, The "In" Crowd) but the songs are mostly forgettable to me. Listened through twice, and didn't really recognize anything on the second roll through. Not a terrible album, just nothing special.
Love the album cover. Love California Dreamin. Hate the apostrophes. That’s about all there is to say about these Mammas and Pappas.
I remember loving 'California Dreamin' as a teen and looking up other music by the Mamas & the Papas & even then being disappointed it was a bunch of upbeat, Monkees sounding pop-folk that didn't come even close to how good that single is. I didn't change my mind today.
Boring
2/10
They sound happy
California Dreamin' is wonderful, and Monday, Monday is decent, but after that it all feels too much like something written for Austin Powers.
Pretty good album with a few iconic songs on it. I had never heard "Spanish Harlem" before and it's pretty good. I'm sure I will listen to this again at some point but it isn't something that I would go out of my way to hear.
California Dreamin, classic. Pretty inoffensive record overall, sounds like background music for a movie set in this era. Not too memorable otherwise.
California Dreamin -riktig Steamer Intressant att de gjort ett ikoniskt ”sound”, bara inte ett jag gillar så mycket
While there’s a handful of excellent songs filled with 60’s pop harmonies, the majority of this is bland hippy pop that feels like it lasts an eternity. It certainly has at least two songs I could tolerate being in 1001 Songs list, but so does Cass Elliot in her short solo career, and those are even more essential, yet a Mama Cass album is nowhere to be found on this list. Suspicious, isn’t it… Yeah, this album is not essential. And not very good. You know what songs to add to a playlist. Keep it at that and move on.
Very dated and uninteresting
feels like something ive already listened to but worse
2.5
That was the goofy 60s. CA Dreamin’ and Monday Monday are OK songs (remember them well from back in the day) and have listenable harmonies. Every other day, every other day I’m listening to something else. (2.4*s)
I get that this was the 60's but this album is too singy-songy for me, it sounds a bit hokey overall. They have some nice harmonies but they sound too much like the Beach Boys and other groups of this time to really stand out on the list. There's one great song (obv "CA Dreamin") and a few other decents but it's not enough to carry the rest. "Straight Shooter" should be named "Straight Ripoff," I've never heard it before but somehow I have (because it's def a copy of some other band's song). Minus points for the typos and the toilet on the cover. Bye boring white people.
Anneliese Brown
2.08
\"Straight Shooter\" is a bop but the rest of this album blends into one big cheery samesong.
Not really my kind of music, aside from a couple of songs. Good voices though.
Not for me
As I've stated previously, pop music of this era can tend to grate on me, particularly of the earlier psychedelic period as I don't think some of it has aged very well. The Mommas and the Pappas and almost any group adjacent or connected to them all tend to fall in this heap. Though, I was hoping to be a little surprised by this, and granted I was caught off guard a little, as a few of these songs, either directly or inadvertently, seemed to be templates for much later acts of baroque indie pop rock which emerged about 15 years ago or slightly earlier. The song 'Do You Wanna Dance' remarkably sounds like the blueprint for Jens Lekman's 'Maple Leaves'. So going through this and spotting those elements was fun, but this album is fairly bland and safe.
2 pretty boring only good song is California dreaming. I feel like this what what parents of hippies wanted their kids to listen to
I don’t vibe with it
Contemporary mid 60's album, lush melodies and vocal layers in all shapes, forms and keys. Really quick listen and most of the songs are similar in structure. Dare I call this album generic? The mamas and the papas get tremendous acclaim for their contributions to pop music and while I agree at some times, I mean the beatles we're kicking ass in 1966 too.
Gear: Focal Clear (ZMFed) Artwork: ich mag meinen Augen nicht trauen - was für ein Griff ins Klo für ein Gruppenfoto Mix: antike Stereo-Späße Musik: trippy-flop Hippie-Pop Wertung: 🚽🚽(🚽)/5 (inkl. +1 für "California Dreamin'")
Every time I liked a song the next song was terrible. But at least I liked some songs, it's more than I hoped for
bad and the in-group made me cringe in real life but I didnt mind it too much
Meh! Good harmonies
good vibe and california dreamin is a classic but kinda get bad mojo from allegations 2.5/5 NNN
Sounds like the Beatles, but worse
better for insomnia than a good kicking to the head...
I am a fan... Ben was obsessed with California dreamin this time last year and I get to why, it's catchy as hell. I could never be arsed to listen to the rest of the album and I suppose I can say I'm glad I now have. It hasn't changed my life admittedly, and the album covers confuses me so much. I do really like straight shooter, I call your name, do you wanna dance and somebody groovy, however they have not been added into liked songs. The album probs won't go in my library and I won't be too upset if I never have to listen to it again- maybe bar California dreamin just for the feels😍😍 And apparently John had an incestuous relationship with his daughter later on- that's put a dampener on things💀💀
Mleh
Pop radio ready, pop choir here and there; other than the covers, there's pretty much just one song here, David Gray-like. Three versions of that sound were big hits. Half a century later, it's still kind of a yawn.
There’s some individual songs I like, but not really an album I’d listen to all the way through
This album really didn't stand out to me. I'm sure it's amazing for it's time, but not for me.
Boy, this just did not work for me. I tried to get in the right mindset, thinking... "oh these harmonies are good. Oh, the fellow playing the organ has skills..." Nah, never cared a lick about what these people thought about Mondays or California.
Bit hippy happy for me California dreamin’
So-so, very dated and not wearing well
Cute, doesn't grab me
Sure some of their hits are great but Ive never been a fan.
I remembered many of these songs from my childhood. They did not age well. I’ll admit their voices harmonize well. However, their original songs were all pretty whiny about how miserable their life and loves are, and their covers of songs like “Do You Want to Dance,” and “Spanish Harlem” are downright lethargic. Muzak would do a better job. I could listen to a song or two again, but not more without falling asleep.
California Dreamin' - best thing on this album. Thought the rest of the album would be great. Nope. Pedestrian in places, leaning too heavily on Beatles and Beach Boy influences. The harmonies are obvioulsy technically perfect but it doesn't make the best of the women's voices, especially Cass's. Where the Phillips and Doherty's voices are forefronted you get that dead-behind-the-eyes-stalker-nice-boy boyfriend sound which I guess was popular of the time, but not for me. Phillips questioned whether Cass should join the band as he thought her voice might be wrong and her weight would kill their branding. Ironic, that she was the only one to carry on with a decent solo career.
Fun album - folksy with songs we all know.
No longer contemporary and not very inspiring except for the two three well-known songs.
I think this album showcases the greatness of The Beatles more than listening to one of their own records does. This album came out in 66' and in my opinion, more or less sounds similar to a lot of the sounds going on in some of the earliest Beatles works. But the thing is, those records came out a few years earlier, and by 1966, the Beatles had released Revolver, and Rubber Soul the year before that. Just compare a song like Taxman, Eleanor Rigby, or Got to Get You Into My Life, to any of the songs on this record. They sound way more modern and varied than anything on this first Mama Papa record. I know people hear The Beatles and they don't hear anything innovative. This is what I'd point them to to compare to. What would you rather listen to in 66'?
California Dreaming is a banger, rest of the album is boring
hoe lief en poppy het ook mag klinken, wanneer de 34 minuten aanvoelen als een uur (is het album nou nog niet afgelopen??? Nog een nummer????) dan kan het geen goede score opleveren.
Couple good tracks, but this is just so pedestrian.
Monday Monday and California Dreaming are great songs but I didn't care for the rest of them. I did not know that this is the original Do You Wanna Dance. I like the Ramones version better. This band is groovy but there are many flavors of groovy. This groovy is a little too vanilla for me or something.
Could only recognize california dreaming. The rest is just white noise
Some nice harmonies and orchestral arrangements, but this is a miss for me. One revelation: Jens Lekman sampled “Do you wanna dance” in his song “Maple Leaves”.
It's got that really dated 60's sound that's hard to get past
needs more doo wop
Didn't really like it :)
I had high expectations and the harmonies are gorgeous, the two huge hits are evergreen, but overall it has dated and is just another 60s pop album, albeit by talented arrangers and singers.
Sounds like every 60s album ever
There was a song or two that I liked, but overall I found this album really repetitive and boring- which isn't good because I don't really like their sound to begin with.
Not like I remembered. Definitely could smell the Haight Asbury heroin scene now, not back then though.
this had their bangers so there’s that. could i write poetry to this? n
I thought I actually liked The Mamas & The Papas, but boy I did not. Just some real hippy dippy bullshit. Mama Cass has a good voice though.
This doesn’t do a whole lot for me outside of California Dreamin. The harmonies are lovely, of course, but I find the songs to be pretty trite and cover of Spanish Harlem is pretty whitewashed.
1960s albums often fall into one of two categories, trying to be the Beatles or sound like a music for a distance time before the Beatles (and the music that influenced them) existed. If You Can Believe Your Eyes and Ears in the latter. California Dreamin’ is great, one of the most famous songs of all time. The rest sounds like it could be from WW2. Even Monday, Monday isn’t good. 4.3/10
Surprised how little I liked this record. Found it the instrumentation annoying and the whole thing just kind of bland. "Straight Shooter" sounds like someone just tried to copy "Day Tripper" by "The Beatles". Honestly the only song i really liked is the really excellent "California Dreaming", just listen to that and skip the rest.
Viel Country Rumgeheule Wundert mich nicht; dass man nur "Monday Monday" und "California Dreaming" davon kennt
Sappy, basic. May have been creative for its day but not interesting now
cowboy music for boring people
Wow, this one is very typical of the era it was made in. Listening to it, I can imagine what it was like to live through the 60's. Baby boomers in their youth, booming economy, relative peace. At the same time, there was so much civil unrest, with the Vietman war raging, high profile deaths and assassinations, I can understand why something so bubbly, cheery, and harmonizing would be appealing to listen to.
Volop variatie! Van naar zeurende muziek als “Got A Feeling” naar gedateerde muziek als “Do you wanna dance” naar ‘Lalala Yeah’ in “Somebody Groovy” naar zoetsappige muziek als “You Baby”. En dan komt er op het einde ineens een geinig nummer. Doet mij wat aan Amy Winehouse denken. Dat helpt het album naar de 1,5 ster.
Sommige muziek is tijdloos, andere muziek is gedateerd. Soms komt dat door de opnametechniek (hier klinkt alles ook weer enorm hol, alsof ze in een lege kerk staan), soms door de vorm van de liedjes (tergend traag, achtergrondkoortjes die op de voorgrond staan, wat lullige instrumenten). Dit heeft dat allemaal. De evergreens houden het nog enigszins staande, maar het overgrote deel is echt simpelweg te oud en heeft de tand des tijds niet doorstaan. Te oud, te gedateerd, te saai.
2/5
California dreamin' was not good enough to redeem my interest in the rest of the album.
Tveir bangerar, restin frekar ómerkileg.
Just because it's old doesn't mean it's good. This thing is barely holding together sonically. The mixing is offensive. The stereo split to hard left and right is disgusting. (Turns out there is a mono version that immediately doesn't drive me nuts, though it does peak and hiss like crazy.) This has so many Beatles moments (not a good thing) and the Spanish Harlem cover doesn't really improve on the original. California Dreaming is just shy of 3 minutes, and while great, doesn't justify the syrupy sickly nature of the rest of the album.
Grooovay
Speciaal tot maandag gewacht om dit album te reviewen. Monday, Monday hit net ff anders als het daadwerkelijk maandag is! Verder is het redelijk prima muziek. Niet echt nummers die eruit springen ofzo, alleen California Dreamin, natuurlijk... Spanish Harlem is ook wel een fijn klassiekertje. Verder trekt dit me toch niet heel erg, niet alsof ik hier nu echt geweldig enthousiast van word eerlijk gezegd. FAVO: California Dreamin, Spanish Harlem
Not necessarily a fan as comes to be a little monotonous.
Mamas and papas Good album title and cover. I was kinda disappointed. I like the harmonies but the lead vocals are very underwhelming. Monday Monday is good. Straight shooter had some fun 60s pop rock moments. “ Got a feeling” is weird and kind of off putting. California dreaming is cool. Extra points for having a flute solo.. Some filler on here like I I wanna dance and somebody groovy. I’ve only heard the Aretha Franklin version of Spanish Harlem which is 1000x better. 2.5
Always hated this band and this album. Can’t quite bring myself to give it a one but thoroughly disliked every second of it
I was thinking that this might be the whitest album we have listened to and then Spanish Harlem came on. WTH. So odd. The whole album is like listening to a choir performance
Monday Monday and California Dreamin are bangers 1000% but for the rest of this album, its the definition of the 60s music. Not a full on Beatles clone but if I wanted to listen to this type of music I would listen to the Monkees Greatest hits.
I only knew California dreamin' from this album. I really like that song but all in all the album didn't impress me.
It was better than that last Willie Nelson album. This seems like an album that was likely innovative at the time, but now it’s just kind of whatever. Fine background music but not worth listening to again.
In my formative years in the 00’s, this is exactly what I thought all music from the 60’s sounded like
Your typical 60’s hippy music. Some good stuff on there but nothing mind blowing
I think I'll feel bad for giving 2 star reviews because in many cases such as this case, I don't think the music is bad at all; but it's just not for me. Monday, Monday and California Dreamin' are the highlights for me. The rest all sounds mostly like the same '60s pop-rock optimistic, inoffensive type of tune. Not bad, but doesn't feel like it's something special.
Quite boring
It’s okay. I’m not really a fan of hippie dippy shit, but California Dreamin’ is one hell of a song.
Not really my jam but I enjoyed the experience
Nothing else holds up to California Dreaming
Doesn't do anything for me
3. Song - süß, in Playlist 5. - recht uninteressant bisher, wenig Abwechslung 9. - kennt man doch von irgendwo, hebt sich etwas ab vom Rest 10. - auch das Blues-Klavier macht das jetzt nicht mehr schmissiger California Dreaming bester Song hier, fands insgesamt recht langweilig
Halfway through. Very ok. Nothing good other than a few tracks and the obvious special one. Really paints the hippie generation as annoying and whiny as fuck. Really just a fad relic of the 60s without any particular staying power lyrically or musically. Only track that really slaps is California Dreamin. Everything else save for maybe Go Where you wanna go is forgettable at best If anything it’s the perfect metaphor for the hippie generation: idealistic, heart more or less in a good place, but ineffective, escapist, and doesn’t really accomplish what it thinks it’s doing.
Other than Straight Shooter (which was a good Beatles rip off) and California Dreamin (which is a class song in its own right) that was a pretty dull set of poor Beatles/Beach Boys rip offs. Disappointing given how great CD is, the only song I knew going into it. 1.5*
A few decent songs. Shame about the abuse
There are a few good tracks on this record, you know the ones, but the rest are so desperately lame that they suck the pleasure out of even them.
California Dreaming levyn huippuhetki, muuten tuntuu että oon kuullut levyn jo aika monta kertaa tällä listalla. 2.5/5, menköön nyt alaspäin.
It's a sort of version of the Beatles but with nicer harmonies. Just as interesting, though. Ie not much.
fav: straight shooter
Only a couple songs I’m jazzed about
crap from an ass
every single song sounds like songs id make up if i was really pissed at eddie rockets over a bad experience or something and was in a conversation with someone being like "cant stand that place and their doo wap wap baaaaaaa ass music". i understand why this is on here. pop music was only 20 years old and electricity wasn't invented so you had to take what you get, but i think it's borderline cruel for the writers of the 1001 albums book so inadvertently subject me to this for 33 whole minutes of my life (im in my prime, i cant really afford to go that long without doing something enriching). truly dont understand what sets them apart from beach boys enough to still have a place in the Conversation besides california dreamin being a good song. sorry for being mean i havent eaten today yet
Not really my thing, some good tracks though
"California Dreamin'" plus 11 of the most generic 60s pop songs known to man. I don't recall anything from this album and I listened to it 3 hours ago. Who cares. 2/5
Sentimental to me, cuz my Mom played it a lot while I was growing up.
Meh. Liked the first few tracks but as i started to learn more about the group from various websites, I can’t say I really enjoyed this album. I definitely will give this album another chance at some point, but This is definitely a time separating the art from the artist doesn’t work
This was like Beach Boys light, or Motown songs that needed more production. There were catchy songs here, but very boring sounds.
Stereo mix is like from the early days of 3d movies where they'd put in pointy fingers etc. just to show off the technology. I was begging for a mono mix halfway through Monday Monday. This is really dated sounding - compare with Aretha from the same era, which sounds fresh. Do yourself a favor and go and listen to Aretha's version of Spanish Harlem (🔥) and compare it with this insipid version.
yksi hyvä biisi tässä jos olisin ensi kertaa kuunnellut mutta heh viideskymmenes kerta joten nollla hyvää biisiä heh mammat ja papat...pystyn uskomaan silmiäni sekä korviani? hehmäistä kommenttia... menkää vessanpyttyyn vieressä, koska PASKA ALBUMI heh pyttyesque california dreamin
Okayish. IMO too hippie. Honestly kinda boring.
Vind California Dreamin’ echt een banger van een nummer maar vind nog steeds al die mensen een beetje eng en de rest van de nummers zo zo..
mid af
Although a staple of that mid-60s LA pop sound, I always felt like The Mamas & The Papas were a singles band. Never put together a solid record but have some amazing singles.
One standout track in "California Dreamin'", which was the most unique amongst the tracklist. But aside from that one, not much I'd listen to again
Estuvo bien, tiene una buena canción y una tremenda. Supongo que eso justifica su ingreso en la lista, pero no para mi.
Nothing offends except the stereo sound and the ubiquitous tunes 😂
So, I understand their importance to the development of pop in the sixties, but wow is it just so very set in a time. There are 3 great pop songs on here and a bunch of medium covers.
Outside of the two big hits, this is really just unremarkable 60’s folk music. The songs aren’t really that memorable except for ‘The In Crowd’. ‘The In Crowd’ sucks. Not very good, but at least better than The Incredible String Band.
Boooring. Too slow. It feels like one song played over and over again.
Besides the singles it's incredibly forgettable.
Couple of classic hits on this album like "Monday Monday" and "California Dreamin'" for a 60s folksy album. Not my style having not been raised on that era of music but I can appreciate the style.
Never really been able to get into the Mamas & Papas. I know most of these songs already and they are ok individually I guess, but hearing them all together was mostly a chore. I wouldn't choose to listen to this again.
Got slightly better on the backend of the album but was ultimately pretty forgettable and generic
pants
BL: Mamas and the Papas known for “California Dreamin’”, nothing else. Will see what I think. AL: Thought this album was chronically ok. The Hammond esque organ was very cool but instrumentally pretty uninspired. Not amazed these guys are only remembered for one ir two hits. FT: “California dreamin’”, “ Spanish Harlem”, “somebody groovy” 2/5
meh 2/5
If my mama and papa were this boring I'd have ran away from home long ago. California Dreaming is solid tho.
Best Song: California Dreaming. Undoubtedly I picked this one because I've heard it used in a hundred movies. Worst Song: You Baby. The definition of saccharine. Gross. Overall: Exactly what you'd expect. 60s drivel with a nauseously "happy" style that never lets up. Music for cults.
Not terrible, but I just don't like this style of music.
Some decent compositions and performances here. A few classic songs in the mix too! Overall not a project I think I'd ever revisit but I'm glad I spent time with it.
it was okay, didn’t enjoy too much. 1-2 songs were good
Recht langweilig und eintönig, sehr den beatles ähnlich (die aber natürlich nicht langweilig und eintönig sind). Hat mir persönlich nicht mega gefallen
Meh
Pretty clunky and in your face melodies. Their hits, including California Dreamin’ here, are good, at least.
became too much
Slow, bubblegum like, too many stretched words to make syllables fit
Impressive harmonizing vocals but not an album I would select.” I call your name” is all over the place with different song styles from doowop and ending with a 20’s-30’s vibe.
It has some hits and isn't bad to hear.
Sounds like your usual 60s folk/pop music, nothing memorable about it for me
Pretty bad. Even California Dreaming gets on my nerves when I hear it. 4/10
Listened Before? N I knew the hits from this one. I don't mind California Dreamin' but the rest of it I just feel is a bit too 60s poppy. I didn't enjoy it a whole lot. It wasn't offensive or obtrusive but I just don't really jive with it. Added to Library? N Songs added to playlist: California Dreamin'
Couple of greats, rest are sleepy
I got bored.
A situational album, if doing something else in the background it's nice but actively listening it's not great
2.5 Turns out I can, in fact, believe my eyes and ears - this is a very run-of-the-mill slice of the era. The harmonies are nice I guess, but the music otherwise isn’t particularly notable. California Dreamin’ is of course an exception - while not the most creative song lyrically or musically, there’s something beautifully haunting in the vocal harmonies and resolve, which creates an interesting juxtaposition with the supposed light subject matter. Anyway, that’s probably the most I could say about any song on this record. This is the third cover of Do You Wanna Dance I’ve heard after The Beach Boys’ and Ramones’ versions, and I can confidently say it’s the worst of the three. Go Where You Wanna Go was probably my personal favorite outside of Cali Dreamin’, though conversely, the song Spanish Harlem came off feeling a bit patronizing to me (I know it’s a cover but still). A net “okay” all-around.
Ok. Not my cup of tea though. But I do love the song “Do you wanna Dance.” Especially The Beach Boys version. 2.5/5
One amazing tune, some other nice things. Wouldn’t revisit.
Vocally impressive but pretty boring to me
Meh, fine but dull
Liked the big singles from the album but overall thought it was just fine.
its the california dreamin' band with their album, california dreamin' + 11 bonus tracks.
All the hits, but that's it. Classics that never go out of style but I'll stick to them rather than explore their deep cuts.
Most of it is pretty inconsequential, although of course California Dreaming is part of the canon. Towards the end though I did like Somebody Groovy and The In Crowd, both of which had great drumming (and drum sound for the time) and roll along nicely. There are much better versions of the latter mind.
Monday, Monday was a promising opening track and California Dreamin remains as epic as ever. No other songs particularly stood out. Considering 1966 also saw the release of Revolver and Pet Sounds, the album probably sounded dated even back then.
Two stars for the nostalgia, but the album/sound didn't hold together for me like I thought it would.
I am partly convinced this album was only included for California Dreamin' and I'm okay with that. Other than that song this was a very long 30-something minutes. Favorite: California Dreamin'
Zus en zo
very folksy but not enough heart fa me. i liked 3 or 4 pieces from the whole project. 1 i feel i knew b4 all this
Not my style, and I tried but just no.
i like got a feelin’ and california dreamin’, not too much to my taste
Meh
Meh
"California Dreamin'" is recognizable and really good. Otherwise, most tracks were unremarkable, simplistic, and kind of boring. Great vocals.
Beyond the two smash hits this is pretty thin stuff, very standard for mid-sixties LPs that were merely means to extract more money from fans. Five cover versions in 12 tracks...
Robert Dimery really needs some kind of award for fitting 10,000 albums from the mid-late 60s into a 1,001 albums list. Fuck's sake. Ok, I like the idea of these vocal harmonies, but the hippie folk pop context is just fucking blaaaand. No wonder it seemingly disappeared overnight at some point a few years after this - everyone was just as sick of it in 1970 as I am doing this challenge in 2022. Also: a 34 minute album with 4 covers on it. BIN. 2/5.
A couple of classics, but California dreaming was the only really good song. The male lead has a lovely voice. Think the rest were involved because of drugs and shagging? The tinny production/recording did them no favors. No going to come back to this.
Keine akustische Vollkatastrophe, bloß belanglos.
It's your typical 60's pop album. Really nothing special. There was much more quality around at that time. California Dreaming is still a great song though, but rises above the rest of the album.
Stand out songs: Straight Shooter
well, its okay. But I'll probably wont listen to it again intentionally
The stereo mix sounded weird on my AirPods. It was far too stretched - almost like listening to two different albums simultaneously. The album is strongest with the cover versions. Spanish Harlem and The In Crowd stand out. An interesting album from a historical perspective, but it doesn't speak to me in 2022.
2 good songs
Some familiarity and a sound of its era but it's nothing outstanding, just fine background stuff.
A bit disappointing, to be quite honest. I knew nothing other than California Dreamin' (which is spectacular), and the rest of the album couldn't live up to it. It's perfectly acceptable folksy pop music, but it doesn't offer much more than that outside of a track or two. They don't make the most of the girls' voices (which are stronger than the guys). The very last track is great because of this, it's much more powerful and has some proper oomph. Also, the out of place apostrophes on the album cover annoy me. 2/5.
California Dreamin' is great but all of the covers are pretty bad, especially 'I Call Your Name'.
Couple of crackers
3 or maybe a 2. Nothing really sticks out.
Very 60s. Couldn't stand listening to this
Didn't massively grab me, but California Dreamin' is always a joy. Fav new track: Straight Shooter
The hits are the hits, California Dreaming by far the best track. Everything else more mellow folk with Beach Boy harmony.
I like the album cover and I thought this would have some "classic" value. In the end I was disappointed that only "California Dreamin'" is a great song on this album and the other songs are mediocre at most.
great harmonies - but I will try the mono mix as the stereo version was mixed in cinemascope with most things WAY over to one side or the other and not much in the middle.
It was fine. Nothing incredible outside a few songs (e.g. California Dreamin’). The rest kind of just sounds like so many other artists at the time. 4/10
Meh
Sounds a bit dated. A couple of cover fillers that don't stand up.
Not a huge fan of the California pop scene. Not a bad album, just not my thing.
Sounds to me like Beatles-meets-Monkees here and there, could definitely use more of the former as the slow, shambling one-note ballads could use some more lyrical and instrumental variation to move things along.
Really really really really not my kind of thing. However, California Dreaming is a classic, but this is just so not my thing. 2/5
Barely qualifies as an album. The two classic singles and the rousing vocal by Cass on 'The In Crowd' merely serve to emphasise the paucity of the other anaemic covers and the third rate fillers.
Singles and 60’s comps about coverbit for me ... like Bobby’s California Dreaming more ...
It's interesting to listen to this knowing that in my teens or early 20's I would have fucking hated this. Too happy, too peachy, too warm, lot of dated cliches. But that's not to say that I love it. I can just simply listen to it and it's generally unoffensive. But what occurred to me was that even more so I have the ability to enjoy this because I'm totally lost on the cultural context of this album. Not that I'm reaching for it either, this is the fruits of the internet age and also having only been born like 26 years after this album was released. That's how things are recontextualized and are reborn right? Nothing wrong in that. It's more emotionally relatable than the last album but it still doesn't stir anything in me. Not to keep harping on the context of the album, but I also haven't heard enough music from this time period to understand if this transcended or mundanely regurgitated the musical trends of the time. Again, I admit ignorance. Forgive me music gods, for I have sinned. I listen to black metal and experimental hip hop mostly so cut me some damn slack. It's pleasant. There. I said something positive. Fuck you. Ok, California Dreaming I understand why it's such a huge single. The melody is pretty nice. I especially love the descending group vocals on the minor key, that's my shit. Bring on the sadness and nostalgia. Jeez I'm such a miserable fuck. I love how the melody ascends from the "all the leaves are brown" section of the chorus into the 2nd half of the motif. Very dramatic. Spanish Harlem sounds like the sequel to Little Drummer Boy. There's some nice, brown atmosphere here. I have no idea how to explain it. It sounds like old coffee stains on old yellow napkins that have sat in an abandoned diner for 40 years. I can smell it too. Are we all just dopamine exhausted and really sweet and calm music like this doesn't do anything for us? I feel like in order to attach myself at all to this album on an emotional level I'd need to date some vapid wish it was the 70's Nashville transplant white girl and suffer through her taste in music until she left me for a much more handsome, masculine, cowboy looking motherfucker that works at a bar of some bougie hotel downtown, and when nobody's looking I throw on this album and silently weep for the days we used to screw on the 2nd floor of the tall skinny she used to rent with her Lifeway coworkers.
Can’t deal with the California free love vibe.
Dated. More than pleasant by pretty samey most of the way, enlivened by the singles.
That albumcover is awkward af, as is the band's name. Background-listening American Folk. Very uninspiring, as that style often tends to be. Pleasant at first, but got boring real quick. California Dreamin' is still pretty nice, I also liked You Baby. Nothing else caught/held my attention though.
2/5 No song strung any chord. Expected more from the album that has "California Dreaming"
Ameriikan Abba. Hitit hitteinä, mutta kokonaisuutena jäi vähän piippuun. Mikäs se on Kaliforniassa avoautolla ajellessa kuunnella tällaista kepeää popittelua. Saa tulla koittamaan Suomeen, toimiiko lonkeron värisessä maaliskuussa.
Este es un disco sin mucho chiste pero tiene California Dreaming, unas de las canciones MÁS CHINGONAS DE LA HISTORIA, OBRA MAESTRA, HITO, CIMA DE LA CULTURA HUMANA. ¡¡¡AAAAAH!!! QUÉ GANAS DE VIVIR Y MORIR VIVIENDO TU VIDA, PALMERAS, CALIFORNIA, SOL Y UNA TRISTEZA INSONDABLE. Pero bueno, Spanish Harlem está chida también. Su versión de Do You Wanna Dance awanta, Me encanta la portada porque Michelle Phillips me está viendo a los ojos. Es un sueño esa mujer. Grande crush de mi pubertad.
Not really doing anything for me.
Levyllä oli pari ikivihreää hittibiisiä, mutta jotenkin tunnelma jäi kuitenkin laimeaksi. Jäi fiilis, tällainen kevyt persoonaton rallattelu on aika kuultu jo. Varmaan ollut aikanaan kova juttu, mutta nyt ei puhutellut.
Gets old quickly. California Dreamin' is a classic though
3.5
Album has that flower power hippie vibe. Didn't expect much but ended up liking "Spanish Harlem" and "Somebody Groovy".
60s shit. Don't love it. Don't hate it. Isn't this the guy who had a sexual relationship with his daughter?
Meh. Pretty boring.
Just not the one for me, it felt like a lot of it blended together and sounded too similar, especially the B-Side! "California Dreaming" was the obvious best imo. "Go Where You Wanna Go" was also pretty good!
I did listen to this.. mostly on my walk with Penny. It’s the record with California Dreaming. This sort of soft rock 70s stuff is typically my jam. Idk
Stupid hippy bullshit. sucked!
Meni vähän ohi koko levy, mutta eipä ainakan vienyt mukanaan.
Not my cup of tea
Kivoja stemmoja ja kaunista musaa, mut ei ihan uppoo
It’s fine - cool for a Sunday morning
The world's most overplayed 'this is the 60s, look the 60s are happening' needledrop. More jangly sunshine pap from the most over-represented era of pop music. They're not even the best Beatles rip off band in LA in mid 60s. Sacharine, bloated arrangements. Annoying mixing/stereo effects. Flute. The harmonies are nice though.
Like a mix of psalms and lullaby's written by a 12 year old who fell in love for the first time.
Not my cup of tea at all.
..
California Dreamin and an assortment of half assed tunes from a band of weirdos
Creepy hippies
Besides the california dreaming hit not much to listen to
195 / 1089. I loathe "Monday, Monday." (Three of the four members agreed with that assessment.) And for very good reasons, I despise John Phillips and seriously dispute his "reputation" as a songwriter. Guy Webster should have flushed the negative of the cover image down that toilet. And whoever typeset the damn album cover with two incorrect possessives should have been immediately fired. While there are certainly lovely harmonies sprinkled through the 12 tracks, those tracks are some of the most gag inducing music the 1960s had to offer (hence my animus for "Monday, Monday"). The group was just chasing trends left and right better exemplified by their contemporaries. I'd give this a 1/10, except for the fact that "California Dreamin'" is indelibly and beautifully linked to Wong Kar-wai's Chungking Express, one of the best films of the 1990s. So I'm giving it a 2/10.
Remember when the Brady Bunch went to Hawaii and Bobby found an evil idol? What a crazy thing to happen. Greg crashes surfing, Bobby almost killed by a painting, and Peter is nearly bitten by a spider. Then Bobby gets rid of the thing only for Jan to bring it back. Then the crazed archaeologist tries to kill them. After that they have a big party, but like the crazy part was that the trip was all expenses paid, and they even brought their maid. That had to cost a small fortune.
PLZ DONT RECOMMED TRASH OK
This is just not for me.
I liked this, realized I kinda like 60s.
1/5 not my cup of tea, refuse to elaborate more.
Definitivamente un estilo musical que no es para mí
Shockingly disappointing, even outside the non-musical reasons this is problematic. Just not good.
This did not hit for me. Several of their songs have made it into contemporary culture and most are fine, but damn I hate California Dreaming so much. It ends up in modern media in the most vapid ways possible. The lyrics were also not my favorite. I'd bet you could assemble the entire album's lyrics by combining various Live, Laugh, Love-type posters from your nearest suburban neighborhood. I barely got through it, unfortunately.
like boring not my favorite. good background music
Non stereo voice/instrument hurts my ADHD brain, got 1 1/2 songs finished. Bit of an unfair rating but it is what it is in that state
Obnoxious, didn't even get as far as California Dreamin.
It's the mixed sex Beach Boys. Monday, Monday is already annoying the hell out of me. This whole album sounds like the soundtrack to Scooby Doo. It's like they kept the harmony and lost any edge the early Beatles had. California Dreamin' is the hit and it is not even close. Monday, Monday might as well not exist. Spanish Harlem is a terrible cover. Aretha is the queen of this song. The original Ben E. King version is vastly superior as well.
respectfully.. fysiek draining om met koptelefoon te luisteren door de mix en kreeg bijna hoofdpijn door sommige vocals. definitely een ‘luister van een luidspreker’ album maar i didnt like it
i wholeheartedly give this record minimal stars, which is 1, which i believe to be one too many. with the exception of "California Dreaming" i'd like to unhear this.
Boring as heck
I have to give this one a low score purely due to the mix being so bad. Virtually every single song has one of the tracks playing 100% in one ear, and another track playing 100% in the other ear. It didn't sound cohesive at all; in Monday, Monday if I turned the volume up loud enough to make out the guitar in my right ear, the vocals in the left ear were painful to listen to. Lowering the volume so my left ear stopped bleeding made it so I could barely hear the guitar in my right ear. It probably isn't fair and it might be a pleasant experience if I was in a room with speakers, but listening to this one all the way through with headphones made me want to vomit. Stereo mixing probably wasn't mature when this was produced...I'm glad that folks figured out if you want to record in stereo you shouldn't pan the tracks THAT hard...
bit "nicey nice" isn't it?
No thanks, I don't want to spend time with this twee garbage. Utter nonsense. Even California Dreaming really pissed me off.
I did not know the Ramones' Do You Wanna Dance was a cover and now I do and I'm biased but that cover was way better than whatever this was.
Just can’t really enjoy listening to the mamas and papas since I read their Wikipedia page
Schlock. Laurence Welk in hippie clothes.
That stereo-thing is maybe a bit to much...
Kind of generic and boring. The guitar in Straight Shooter is good, but it's just kind of mid-level pop. 1/5 stars.
This began grating on me from the word go. Other than country, this type of 60's twaddle is second in my personal pecking order of music which I'd be demanding financial compensation to ever be subjected to. Needless to say, I passed up the opportunity to continue listening at around the halfway point. Life is too fucking short. Plus, after conducting some brief research, I learned of the disturbing lore associated with the members of this band, which makes the album cover all the more uncomfortable to look at.
So incredibly boring and I can’t believe this was ever popular. (Weren’t they the best selling American band from the sixties?) California Dreamin’ is famous but not incredible and not enough ballast to save this sinking ship
Dieser rechts/links Split macht mich über Kopfhörer fertig. Jeder Text hier gibt mir übelste frauenschläger-vibes - da sind die Beatles wesentlich besser gealtert (Revolver kam im gleichen Jahr raus, was macht dann dieses Gedudel auf einer muss-man-gehört-haben Liste?)
9/1001 :: The Mamas & The Papas - If You Can Believe Your Eyes and Ears Heard before? ❌ Would I revisit? ❌ Rating: Light 3 Fav Tracks: Somebody Groovy, California Dreamin’ Aside from Monday, Monday, California Dreamin’ and their cover of In Crowd I had never heard this album before. The Mamas and the Papas are a product for of the time. Feels like there are no original ideas here and it’s just a 60s (or at times 50s) pop album. The music is not offensive and I understand its place in time. These songs are a good backdrop for a movie that takes place in the 60s. Overall it’s fine, but unless I’m missing something it’s pretty uninteresting and I won’t be returning.
The band has a strong technical ability, but their songs are so schmaltzy and syrupy that I just can't stand it.
They weren’t saying anything.