''If You Can Believe Your Eyes and Ears'' is the debut album by

the Mamas and the Papas The Mamas & the Papas were a folk rock vocal group formed in Los Angeles, California, which recorded and performed from 1965 to 1968. The group was a defining force in the music scene of the counterculture of the 1960s. The group consisted of A ...

(written as ), released in 1966. The stereo mix of the album is included in its entirety on '' All the Leaves are Brown'' (2001), a two-CD retrospective compilation of the band's first four albums and various singles, as well as on ''The Mamas & the Papas Complete Anthology'' (2004), a four-CD

box set A box set or (its original name) boxed set is a set of items (for example, a compilation of books, musical recordings, films or television programs) traditionally packaged in a box and offered for sale as a single unit. Music Artists and bands ...

released in the UK. The mono mix of the album was remastered and reissued on vinyl by

Sundazed Records Sundazed Music is an American independent record label based in Coxsackie, New York. It specializes in obscure and rare recordings from the 1950s to the 1970s. In 2000, Sundazed had a staff of 15 and two mixing studios, including a vintage audio ...

in 2010, and on CD the following year. It is the band's only album to reach number one on the ''Billboard'' 200. In 2003, ''If You Can Believe Your Eyes and Ears'' was ranked number 127 on ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...

'' magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time, with its rank rising to number 112 in the 2012 revision.

Cover art

Five versions of the album cover were produced: * No. 1: The original cover (shown at upper right) features the group in a bathroom, sitting in a bathtub with a toilet in the corner. These were pulled from stores after the toilet was judged indecent; they have since become valuable on the collector's market, with one copy selling at auction for $300. * No. 2: Most of the toilet bowl is covered with a scroll listing the presence of "California Dreamin'" on the album. * No. 3: Two additional songs from the album are shown on the scroll: "Monday, Monday" and "I Call Your Name". * No. 4: Same as No. 3 but with a gold record award blurb added (in black) to the left of the group. * No. 5: Black cover with a closely cropped shot of the group that hid the fact that the picture was taken in a bathroom. The cover art was produced and shot by photographer Guy Webster. The cover shows the artist as "The Mama's and the Papa's", a grammatical error that has not been corrected on any of the album's reissues.

Reception

The album received a positive retrospective review in ''

'', in which critic

Rob Sheffield Robert James Sheffield (born February 2, 1966) is an American music journalist and author. He is a long time contributing editor at ''Rolling Stone'', writing about music, TV, and pop culture. Previously, he was a contributing editor at '' Ble ...

remarked "The Mamas and the Papas celebrated all the sin and sleaze of Sixties L.A. with folksy harmonies, acoustic guitars, and songs that told inquiring minds way more than they wanted to know. And on their January 1966 debut, ''If You Can Believe Your Eyes and Ears'', they somehow made it all sound groovy." He described the album as a dark look at L.A. culture that sounds accessible and optimistic thanks in large part to

Lou Adler Lester Louis Adler (born December 13, 1933) is an American record and film producer and the co-owner of the Roxy Theatre in West Hollywood, California. Adler has produced and developed a number of iconic musical artists, including The Grass R ...

's production. Bruce Eder wrote for

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Music ...

that the album "embraced folk-rock, pop/rock, pop, and soul, and also reflected the kind of care that acts like the Beatles were putting into their records at the time." He added that it had a stronger polish than the group's other albums, in part because it predated the personal conflicts that tainted their later works. The album was included in Robert Dimery's ''

1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die ''1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die'' is a musical reference book first published in 2005 by Universe Publishing. Part of the ''1001 Before You Die'' series, it compiles writings and information on albums chosen by a panel of music critics ...

''.

Track listing

Personnel

* Denny Doherty – vocals *

Cass Elliot Ellen Naomi Cohen (September 19, 1941 – July 29, 1974), known professionally as Mama Cass and later on as Cass Elliot, was an American singer and voice actress. She was a member of the singing group the Mamas & the Papas. After the group brok ...

– vocals * John Phillips – vocals, guitar *

Michelle Phillips Michelle may refer to: People *Michelle (name), a given name and surname, the feminine form of Michael * Michelle Courtens, Dutch singer, performing as "Michelle" * Michelle (German singer) * Michelle (Scottish singer) (born 1980), Scottish ...

– vocals *

P.F. Sloan Philip Gary "Flip" Sloan (born Philip Gary Schlein; September 18, 1945 – November 15, 2015), known professionally as P. F. Sloan, was an American singer and songwriter. During the mid-1960s, he wrote, performed, and produced many ''Billboar ...

– guitars, additional vocals *

Larry Knechtel Lawrence William Knechtel (August 4, 1940 – August 20, 2009) was an American keyboard player and bassist who was a member of the Wrecking Crew, a collection of Los Angeles-based session musicians who worked with such renowned artists as Simon & ...

- keyboards *

Hal Blaine Hal Blaine (born Harold Simon Belsky; February 5, 1929 – March 11, 2019) was an American drummer and session musician, thought to be among the most recorded studio drummers in the music industry, claiming over 35,000 sessions and 6,000 singles. ...

– drums, percussion *

Joe Osborn Joseph Osborn (August 28, 1937 – December 14, 2018Bud Shank Clifford Everett "Bud" Shank Jr. (May 27, 1926 – April 2, 2009) was an American alto saxophonist and flautist. He rose to prominence in the early 1950s playing lead alto and flute in Stan Kenton's Innovations in Modern Music Orchestra and thro ...

– flute solo on "California Dreamin'" *Peter Pilafian –

electric violin An electric violin is a violin equipped with an electronic output of its sound. The term most properly refers to an instrument intentionally made to be electrified with built-in pickups, usually with a solid body. It can also refer to a violin fi ...

;Technical *

– producer * Bones Howe –

engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who Invention, invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considerin ...

* Guy Webster – photography

Chart positions

References

External links

''If You Can Believe Your Eyes and Ears''
at Myspace (streamed copy where licensed) {{Authority control The Mamas and the Papas albums 1966 debut albums Albums produced by Lou Adler Albums recorded at United Western Recorders Dunhill Records albums Obscenity controversies in music