If You Can Believe Your Eyes and Ears
| If You Can Believe Your Eyes and Ears | ||||
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| Studio album by The Mamas & the Papas | ||||
| Released | March 1966 | |||
| Recorded | 1965—1966 | |||
| Genre | Pop rock, folk rock, psychedelic pop | |||
| Length | 33:42 | |||
| Label | Dunhill | |||
| Producer | Lou Adler | |||
| The Mamas & the Papas chronology | ||||
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If You Can Believe Your Eyes and Ears is the 1966 debut album by The Mamas & the Papas (spelled "The Mama's and the Papa's" on the cover). In 2003, the album was ranked number 127[1] on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.
This album is included in its entirety on All the Leaves are Brown, a retrospective compilation of the band's first four albums and various singles.
Contents |
[edit] Reception
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [2] |
| Rolling Stone | [3] |
"[A] genuinely new sound"[2] represents the general reception given to the album by both the public and the critics.
[edit] Album covers
If You Can Believe Your Eyes and Ears is one of the first albums to have several different covers. The first cover (shown at the right) featured the group in a bathroom sitting in a bathtub with a toilet in the corner. The album with this cover was pulled from stores after the toilet was declared indecent. The remaining covers featuring the toilet have since become collector's items. A second album cover was then released with a scroll over the toilet listing the presence of "California Dreamin'" on the album. Two more songs were later added to the scroll/box over the toilet. Still later, a Gold Record Award blurb was added (in black) to the left of the group. Finally, a later album cover was released with a closely cropped shot of the band surrounded by a black border that removed any hint that the picture was taken in a bathroom.
[edit] Original track listing
Side One:
- "Monday, Monday" (John Phillips) – 3:28
- "Straight Shooter" (John Phillips) – 2:58
- "Got a Feelin'" (John Phillips, Denny Doherty) – 2:53
- "I Call Your Name" (John Lennon, Paul McCartney) – 2:38
- "Do You Wanna Dance" (Bobby Freeman) – 3:00
- "Go Where You Wanna Go" (John Phillips) – 2:29
Side Two:
- "California Dreamin'" (John Phillips, Michelle Phillips) – 2:42
- "Spanish Harlem" (Jerry Leiber, Phil Spector) – 3:22
- "Somebody Groovy" (John Phillips) - 3:16
- "Hey Girl" (Phillips, Phillips) – 2:30
- "You Baby"(Steve Barri, P. F. Sloan) – 2:22
- "The "In" Crowd" (Billy Page) – 3:12
[edit] Personnel
- Denny Doherty – vocals
- Cass Elliot – vocals
- John Phillips – vocals and guitar
- Michelle Phillips – vocals
- P.F. Sloan - guitars and vocals
- Larry Knechtel - keyboards and bass
- Hal Blaine - drums
- Joe Osborn - bass
- Peter Pilafian - electric violin
- Lou Adler - producer
- Bones Howe - engineer
[edit] Chart positions
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1966 | Billboard Pop Albums (Billboard 200)[4] | 1 |
[edit] References
- ^ Levy, Joe; Steven Van Zandt (2006) [2005]. "127 | If You Can Believe Your Eyes and Ears - The Mamas and the Papas". Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time (3rd ed.). London: Turnaround. ISBN 1932958614. OCLC 70672814. http://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/500-greatest-albums-of-all-time-19691231/if-you-can-believe-your-eyes-and-ears-the-mamas-and-the-papas-19691231. Retrieved 27 May 2005.
- ^ a b Eder, Bruce. If You Can Believe Your Eyes and Ears at Allmusic. Retrieved 13 April 2006.
- ^ Sheffield, Rob (April 15, 1999). "Rolling Stone Library: The Mamas & The Papas If You Can Believe Your Eyes & Ears > Review". Rolling Stone (810): p. 111. Archived from the original on 20 June 2008. http://web.archive.org/web/20080620034840/http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/themamasthepapas/albums/album/243864/review/5944350/if_you_can_believe_your_eyes__ears. Retrieved 12 January 2007.
- ^ If You Can Believe Your Eyes and Ears - The Mamas & the Papas > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums at Allmusic. Retrieved 23 April 2008.
[edit] External links
- If You Can Believe Your Eyes and Ears at Myspace (streamed copy where licensed)
- About the album's cover
| Preceded by Ballads of The Green Berets by SSgt. Barry Sadler |
Billboard 200 number-one album May 21–27, 1966 |
Succeeded by What Now My Love by Herb Alpert and His Tijuana Brass |
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