From 1968: Safe In My Garden

In May of 1968, The Mamas and the Papas released their fourth album, The Papas and The Mamas.  

Recorded entirely in the insular setting of John and Michelle Phillips' hillside mansion, the record was a real diversion from earlier Mamas and Papas efforts.  While the harmonies were still lush and beautiful, there is a weariness throughout this album, and the songs reflect it: "Too Late," "Rooms," "Mansions," and this tune, "Safe In My Garden."

John Phillips says in his excellent 1986 autobiography, Papa John, that "Safe In My Garden" was about being let down by fame, about being disenchanted by what one finds when they reach the top of the heap, that "having it all" can mean nothing and everything.  

Phillips said, "In other words, it was about me."

Grasshopper: Michelle Phillips

Michelle Phillips

1966

"Got A Feelin'" is one of the many songs inspired by Michelle.  This song was penned by her husband, John, about her affair with Denny Doherty.  It is one of my favorites because it is one of my Mom's favorites, and it features Michelle's delicate, lyrical soprano prominently.

A Song So Perfect, It Actually Makes Me Cry

Sit back, spark one up, and blow your mind. The Byrds from 1965...it doesn't get much better than this.

This song was the flip side to the massive hit "Turn! Turn! Turn!" It is also rumored to have been inspired by songwriter Gene Clark's intense infatuation with Michelle Phillips, with whom he would later have a passionate, albeit short lived, love affair. The story is that Clark saw Michelle across a smoky room at the Whisky A Go Go. A lifelong victim of anxiety and shyness, Clark was much too timid to approach her. So, instead, he went home and wrote this song about the woman he just saw.

Now being recognized as the pop masterpiece that it is, truly worthy of being a single in its own right, "She Don't Care About Time" is now included in all pressings of the "Turn! Turn! Turn!" CD as a bonus track.

From 1977: Behold, My Idol, The Extraordinary Michelle Phillips

Songs that were inspired by Michelle:

California Dreamin'

Go Where You Wanna Go

Straight Shooter

Twelve Thirty (Young Girls Are Coming To The Canyon)

I Saw Her Again

Look Through My Window

Monday Monday

Grasshopper

String Man

Beautiful Girl (The Lovin' Spoonful)

She Don't Care About Time (The Byrds)

Hello, I Love You (The Doors)

Soul Kitchen (The Doors)

She's Like A Rainbow (The Rolling Stones)