When folk groups The Mugwumps and the New Journeymen broke up, Denny Doherty, and fellow husband and wife musicians John and Michelle Phillips were free to form a new group. With the addition of Cass Elliot, they moved to the Virgin Islands and performed as Magic Circle. They soon ran out of money, and had to gamble enough to make their way back to New York.

After that questionable start, they become The Mamas & the Papas, and signed with Dunhill Records. Their 1965 release of California Dreaming reached #4 on the US charts, and the band was on a roll. Other successful singles followed; Monday, Monday, I Saw Her Again, Creeque Alley and Dream a Little Dream of Me all graced the radio waves between 1965 and 1968. (I chose Sing For Your Supper, simply because I remember that my Dad liked it at the time.)

But the band was volatile, and had problems. When it was discovered that Michelle Phillips and Denny Doherty were having an affair, she was kicked out of the band and replaced. Denny took to drinking and Cass Elliot tried to quit after being insulted at a party by John. The band broke up twice, the second time for good.

Where are they all now? 'Mama' Cass continued with a successful solo career, but tragically died in 1974 from a heart attack (and not, by the way, from choking on a ham sandwich; a nasty rumour started at the time). John Phillips' daughter, Mackenzie (from his first wife), became an actress known for her small bit in American Graffiti, and the role of Julie in the TV show One Day at a Time. His other daughter (with Michelle) was named Chynna, and she formed her own band with two daughters of the Beach Boys' Brian Wilson. They called themselves Wilson Phillips. Who have I missed? Oh, yes - Michelle Phillips went on to a successful acting career after being kicked out of The Mamas and the Papas.

So, nobody exactly starved...

Connections: Here's the Wilson sister's famous Dad, Brian Wilson.