All the leaves are brown . . .

" . . . and the sky is grey . . ."

Today marks the 50^th anniversary of The Mamas and the Papas hitting the charts for the first time with "California Dreamin'." (Fifty years ago! Where has the time gone?) I wasn’t quite two years old when this event happened and, in fact, only really got into the music of The Mamas and the Papas after the death of (Mama) Cass Elliot in 1974.

As I recall, after Cass passed away on July 29, 1974, radio stations paid tribute to her by playing the songs she’d sung with The Mamas and the Papas and as a solo artist. I imagine I probably heard it on WLS out of Chicago, because that was the station my brothers and I listened to most at that time. That tribute led to the discovery that my brothers and I had a two-album collection of the songs of The Mamas and the Papas – 20 Golden Hits, released on ABC/Dunhill in 1973. A fan was born.

Appearing in that collection were: "California Dreamin'," "Dedicated to the One I Love," "I Call Your Name," "Twelve-Thirty (Young Girls Are Coming to the Canyon)," "Creeque Alley," "Dancing in the Street," "For the Love of Ivy," "Go Where You Wanna Go," "My Girl," "Look Through My Window," "Monday, Monday," "Words of Love," "Twist and Shout," "I Saw Her Again Last Night," "Dream a Little Dream of Me," "People Like Us," "You Baby," "Got a Feelin'," "Trip, Stumble & Fall," and "Straight Shooter."

Even today, it’s a pretty definitive collection, lacking only "Glad to Be Unhappy," "Safe in My Garden," "Spanish Harlem," "Sing for Your Supper," "Midnight Voyage," and "Once Was a Time I Thought" to be the ultimate collection for me – not that I’d NOT listen to any of their other recordings . . .. And Cass Elliot released several solo albums before her death, albums that had songs such as "Move in a Little Closer, Baby," "Easy Come, Easy Go," "Baby, I'm Yours," and my favorite version of "I'll Be Seeing You."

Sadly, John Phillips, Denny Doherty, and Cass Elliot are no longer with us, and Mama Michele Phillips is known today more for her acting than for her music. But if you listen to the classic rock stations, you can still hear "California Dreamin'," "Monday, Monday," and "Dream a Little Dream of Me."

It's a rainy, dreary day today . . . I think I'll do some "California Dreamin'."