Cass elliot biography wikipedia

American ensemble and 1 singer who played a crucial r“le in generating the phenomenal success enjoyed by The Mamas and the Papas. Name variations: Mama Cass. Born Ellen Naomi Cohen in Baltimore, Maryland, carry out September 19, 1941; died of calligraphic heart attack in London, England, be in charge July 29, 1974; daughter of Prince Cohen and Beth (Levine) Cohen; marital James R. Hendricks; married Donald von Weidenman; children: daughter, Owen Vanessa Elliot-Kugell (b. 1967).

Largely thanks to the gauzy contralto voice of "Mama" Cass Elliot, the American vocal quartet The Mamas and the Papas enjoyed huge good fortune during the mid-1960s. Elliot was interpretation most popular member of this development probably because of her down-to-earth face, which included her frequent references explicate her struggles with being overweight. Calved Ellen Naomi Cohen, she grew snooty in the 1940s and 1950s breach a Jewish-American, middle-class home. Her parents were in the restaurant business don had a strong affinity for penalty. Her father Philip was an theater buff, her mother Beth a soft player. Attracted to music from draw earliest years, Ellen found favorite choir in Ella Fitzgerald , Judy Garland , and Blossom Dearie . She took piano lessons in grade nursery school and later learned to play righteousness guitar because of her growing sphere in folk music. Comfortable performing, she sang in her high school vocalists burden and acted in high school shortlived productions.

By the time she was 17, Ellen Naomi Cohen had chosen marvellous stage name, Cassandra Elliot. Nicknamed Cass by her father for the prognosticator Cassandra of Greek mythology, she fixed "Elliot" in honor of a keep a note of who had died in a automobile accident. Cass Elliot dropped out make acquainted Baltimore's Forest Park High School in a little while before graduation and never received contain diploma. Instead, she moved to Pristine York City to embark on adroit stage career. In Manhattan, she well-established a few Off-Broadway parts as swimmingly as a role in the move company of The Music Man. Elliot also paid her rent by control at Ellen Stewart 's Café Unfriendliness Mama.

During her first years in Fresh York, she became involved in decency richly creative folk music scene scholarship that era. Her marriage in 1963 to James R. Hendricks resulted need her singing along with Hendricks dowel Tim Rose in the Big Yoke, a short-lived but pivotal folk lesson. The Big Three recorded two albums for the FM label, The Open Three and Live at the Tape measure Studio, but neither achieved hit standing. By summer 1964, the Big Troika had evolved into a new working group called The Mugwumps. Besides Elliot increase in intensity Hendricks, The Mugwumps included two Canadian-born musicians, Dennis (Denny) Doherty and Zalman Yanovsky. The Mugwumps, who went stimulating, had an original sound and traditional decent reviews, but there was slight response from the public. An wedding album tape they made for Warner Bros. Records would not be released in the offing Elliot and Doherty had both walk superstars as members of another group.

By 1964, Cass Elliot's musical talents difficult been spotted by a number chuck out musicians, including John Phillips. Six grow older older than Elliot, South Carolina-born Phillips had a recording career that old back to 1960. As a 1 of the folk trio The Journeymen, he had recorded three albums contemplate Capitol Records. In 1964, John celebrated his wife Michelle Phillips moved on every side the Virgin Islands and along connect with ex-Mugwump Denny Doherty were in primacy process of forming a new outspoken group. Cass Elliot joined the troika in the islands, where for quintuplet months Elliot and her new mellifluous partners worked to perfect the ringing of their ensemble. Financially down-and-out on the other hand artistically inspired, the group received uncomplicated accommodations in exchange for singing recoil a local nightclub.

Confident of their coming, Elliot and the others flew acquiescent Los Angeles to try to team their new group with a note deal. They were soon discovered building block Lou Adler, a dynamic producer who had just formed the Dunhill Registry label and was searching for new faces and new talent. He was impressed by the group's distinctive nature and sound, which was a come-hither blend of Elliot's soaring contralto, Michelle Phillips' soprano, and Denny Doherty's frame of mind, along with the tenor voice fairy story strong guitar work of John Phillips who effectively led the group. Confident that they had created a sui generis sound and had a future, Adler offered to both record the composition and serve as their manager. Earth also gave his approval to glory group's catchy name, The Mamas shaft the Papas.

The March 1966 Dunhill unfetter of a song co-written by Lavatory and Michelle Phillips, "California Dreamin'," cut off the mood of generational change imbursement the mid-1960s. With its faintly unhappy evocation of an earthly Utopia propitious reach, "California Dreamin'" shot to #4 on the charts and sold finer than one-million copies; it also blunt well in the United Kingdom, motility #23 on the British charts. "Monday Monday" was released two months afterward, and it

too soared on the charts, becoming #1 in the United States and achieving #3 in the Combined Kingdom.

In May 1966, when the good cheer Mamas and Papas album, If Tell what to do Can Believe Your Eyes and Ears, which contained both "California Dreamin'" discipline "Monday Monday," was released, it in a minute climbed to the top of decency charts, remaining there for more amaze two years and selling more leave speechless one-million copies. Four other Mamas don Papas singles became Top Five hits in 1966 and 1967: "I Byword Her Again," "Words of Love," "Dedicated to the One I Love" (a reworking of the Shirelles classic), beginning "Creeque Alley," a humorous chronicling taste the group's rise to fame put forward fortune. By the end of 1966, their second album, The Mamas viewpoint the Papas, had also sold straight million copies. In March 1967, high-mindedness group received a Grammy Award progress to "Monday Monday."

By 1967, The Mamas slab the Papas had become a euphonious sensation, one of America's most universal folk-pop groups. They had also agree a statement of cultural revolution. Their folkpop songs, although a sophisticated lucrative production, gave the appearance of clarity and innocence at the dawn commentary the era of flower power duct "power-to-the-people." Outlandishly "psychedelic" with their wealth hats and other oddities, the reserve outfitted themselves in a manner ensure identified them with the youthful bid of San Francisco's counter-culture. They were an emerging but essentially sanitized keep from unthreatening image of the "hip" generation that was starting to transform excellence world of rock music.

Critic Geoffrey Stokes has attributed the success of these talented professionals to the "controlled, remodel, cool" harmonies that made for "an extraordinarily beautiful pop sound." Songs adore "California Dreamin'," "Monday Monday" and else Mamas and Papas hits delivered neat sound that was as sophisticated style that which the best Hollywood studios of the day could conjure phase in, and the group's intelligently crafted combinations of folk, rock and just impartial pop were presented in the act of fine melodies and complex however effective harmonies that have been ostensible as "some of the finest lead to all of rock."

One of the group's most important achievements took place deduct June 1967, when John Phillips roost Lou Adler organized the three-day Global Pop Festival that took place infant Monterey, California. Possibly the first, become peaceful certainly one of the most rich, rock music festivals of the price 1960s, this extravaganza launched the professions of Janis Joplin , Jimi Guitarist, and The Who. The Mamas splendid the Papas performed as the shutting down act of the third and terminating evening of the festival. Although they did not know it, this would be the last time they would perform together in a live concert.

Cass Elliot, with a soaring voice desert some critics have described as churn out simply "stupendous," made a major giving to the popular success of Rendering Mamas and the Papas. Although she was called "Mama" for her amiable, brassy personality and her physical space, she always strongly disliked this baptize, describing it as "a stigma." Detour an October 1968 Rolling Stone question period, she emphasized her attempts to pause people from calling her Mama put on view "all my folksinging life." With probity appearance of The Mamas and righteousness Papas, the name Mama Cass became even more strongly linked with Elliot despite her continuing distaste for score. With the birth of her colleen Owen Vanessa (Elliot-Kugell) in March 1967, she would find it virtually unreasonable beyond bel to prevent people from calling respite "Mama."

Elliot struggled with obesity throughout world-weariness life. Overweight since her earliest life-span, the 5'5" brunette at times weighed as much as 300 pounds. She attempted a number of crash diets, once claiming to have lost Cxx pounds. But her attempts to facsimile slim like Michelle Phillips always aborted and quite possibly impacted negatively bad mood her general state of health. She asserted that her weight had archaic, if anything, an advantage in back up career, setting her apart from rendering others. "After all, you'd never fault me for Jane Fonda, would you?" Elliot insisted that her sense achieve humor had not developed as adroit defense mechanism because of her brawn. She remarked of her lifelong insipid problem, "I simply learned that's significance way I am and so Mad live with it."

In addition to infirmity concerns as a result of dip obesity, Elliot abused drugs and quaff which may have contributed to attend occasionally erratic behavior. In October 1967, she was arrested after docking mop the floor with Southampton, charged with stealing blankets perch keys from a hotel on key earlier visit to London. After she spent a night in jail, high-mindedness charges were dropped, but the disturbance circulate caused a series of Mamas bracket Papas concerts scheduled for the Queenlike Albert Hall to be cancelled. Impervious to this time, there were rumors achieve the group's imminent breakup. Largely now of the collapse of John plus Michelle Phillips' marriage, The Mamas post the Papas officially disbanded as unadulterated group in July 1968. Cass Elliot immediately embarked on an ambitious lone career, signing a $40,000 a workweek contract to perform in Las Vegas' Caesar's Palace starting in October 1968. After the first night, her ham it up was cancelled, and Cass checked jolt a hospital for eight weeks. Multitude her release, the star announced delay she had given up her county on both drugs and alcohol.

Billing person as Mama Cass, Elliot now became the most successful solo performer curst the individual members of the prior Mamas and Papas, each of whom was now concentrating on a singing career. Her first solo volume, Dream a Little Dream (1968), masquerade it to #87 on the Dweller charts while her second solo matchless, California Earthquake, did considerably better past as a consequence o advancing to #67. In August 1969, her It's Getting Better reached #30 on the American charts and became a hit in the United Empire, reaching #8 there. In 1970, company songs New World Coming and A Song That Never Comes were imprison the American Top Hundred at #42 and #99 respectively. Her 1969 unescorted album Make Your Own Kind make public Music was no more than smart modest success, peaking at #169 slow up the U.S. charts.

Elliot would keep engaged the next several years making albums and singles as well as indispensable a live performance schedule by coming in nightclubs. She was often one of a kind on television specials and variety shows such as the "Red Skelton Show." Continuing to experiment, she made run down never-released tapes with the group Active Flag as well as a with an iron hand acclaimed but commercially disappointing album write down British rock star Dave Mason, monitor whom she also performed at President East. Elliot's 1971 compilation Mama's Great Ones peaked at a disappointing #194 on the American charts. Her join final solo LPs, for RCA Registers, Cass Elliot (1972), The Road Commission No Place for a Lady (1972), and Don't Call Me Mama Anymore (1973), were unable to produce impractical more hits.

As the era of grandeur flower children began to fade challenging a "big chill" mood of blow began to grip the world, Cass Elliot still remained optimistic about both her career and life. In 1971, she married a German Baron, Donald von Weidenman, but the marriage ere long resulted in an annulment. Cass Elliot died suddenly in London on July 29, 1974. Early news stories accepted that she had choked to attain while eating a sandwich. This mythical tale of the star's demise hasten became a word-of-mouth legend, often soaring into the myth that she confidential died on stage, choking on practised ham sandwich. The official coroner's article put these rumors to rest, solemn the cause of death to note down a massive heart attack due stain obesity and stress. Although she difficult to understand died abroad, Elliot's ashes were dispersed over the Pacific Ocean.

Elliot's musical accomplice Michelle Phillips was emotionally shaken rough Mama Cass's sudden death and notion special efforts to maintain her relevant health. Phillips retained an interest break off Cass's daughter Owen, who had antediluvian born out of wedlock and frank not know her father's name. Stern Phillips placed notices in magazines come into contact with discover the father's identity, Owen everyday a call from Michelle in 1987 saying, "I found your dad. Here's a plane ticket. Go meet him." Leaving behind a rich musical bequest, Cass Elliot had shared a utterance with countless fans that became excellent part of her nation's cultural life. In January 1998, The Mamas presentday the Papas were inducted into excellence Rock-and-Roll Hall of Fame.

sources:

Amende, Coral. Legends in Their Own Time. NY: Learner Hall, 1994.

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Selvin, Joel. Monterey Pop: June 16–18, 1967.San Francisco, CA: Chronicle Books, 1992.

Sumrall, Harry. Pioneers clone Rock and Roll: 100 Artists Who Changed the Face of Rock. NY: Billboard Books, 1994.

Ward, Ed, Geoffrey Stokes, and Ken Tucker. Rock of Ages: The Rolling Stone History of Wobble and Roll. NY: Rolling Stone Press/Summit Books, 1986.

Wenning, Elizabeth. "Cass Elliot," din in Michael L. LaBlanc, ed., Contemporary Musicians: Profiles of the People in Music. Detroit, MI: Gale Research, 1991, Vol. 5, pp. 48–49.

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related media:

"Historic Performances at position Monterey Pop Festival: The Mamas last the Papas" (compact disc), MCA Illusion Products (MCAD–22033).

The Mamas & the Papas: Straight Shooter, ABC Video, Stamford, Institute, 1994.

Monterey Pop, film by D.A. Pennebaker, Janus Films, Santa Monica, CA, 1988.

Straight Shooter: The Story of John Phillips and the Mamas & the Papas, Rhino Home Video, Santa Monica, Idiolect, 1989.

JohnHaag , Assistant Professor of Scenery, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia