Denny Doherty of the Mamas and Papas

We boomers have seen many of our generation leave us way too early.  Today another Canadian singer has passed over.  You will remember Denny Doherty as the lead male singer for the popular 60’s group, The Mamas and the Papas.  Doherty was born in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and died today at the age of 66.

Four young singers came together in a bar called Duffy’s in Creeque Alley in St. Thomas; after that history was in the making. But first, the trio, John, Michelle and Denny returned to New York, and then decided to follow Cass Elliot to Californiaand become a singing group known as “The Mamas and Papas”.

The Mama and Papas was an icon of a generation. Young people today who were not even born in at the time are familiar with songs such as: California Dreamin released in 1965 and Monday, Monday in 1966. Unfortunately, after marital infidelity (John and Michelle were married), the firing of Cass Elliot, who was replaced with the singer Jill Gibson, years of drug and alcohol abuse, the group disbanded in 1968. Each of the band members went on to pursue solo careers.

My boyfriend was in Englandwhere Cass Elliot died in 1974. It is an urban legend that she died eating a ham sandwich.  The coroner’s report revealed she had died of a heart attack at the age of 33.

 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cass_Elliot#Urban_legends

The Mamas and The Papas were inducted in the Rock & Rock Hall of Fame in 1986.

“Denny Doherty started his singing debut in Halifax, Nova Scotiawith a group called the Hepsters at 15 years old. He was working in a pawn shop at the time.  In 1959 he formed his first folk trio, The Colonials, and after changing their name to The HalifaxThree, signed a recording contract in New York. After recording two albums, the trio broke up, and Denny linked with Cass Elliot as a member of her group, The Big Three, which later became The Mugwumps, the first folk-rock group. Cass and Denny later joined John and Michelle Phillips of The New Journeymen to become The Mamas and The Papas. In 1965 the group relocated to Los Angeles.”  

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0230559/bio

Denny was the lead in Man on the Moon on Broadway in 1975.  He returned to Canadain 1978 and hosted the “Denny Sho.”  He had several other credits to his name and in was inducted into the CanadianMusic Hallof Fame in 1996.  He has done off Broadway as recently as 2003.  He was married for 23 years to Jeannette Doherty until her death. He has a daughter Jennifer by his first wife Joan Woodward, and two children Emberly and John by his second.  He was living in Mississauga, near Torontoat the time of his death. According to several media sources, his illness was short. He had kidney problems after surgery in December and was on dialysis.