California dreamin meaning song. At the time they penned the lyrics newlyweds john and michelle phillips were residing in new york city. However the best known version is by the mamas and the papas who sang backup on the original version and released it as a single in 1965. Song meaning there are many meanings behind this seemingly simple song.
Sloan who responsible for the track and its his guitar you hear at the beginning of the song not john phillips. California dreamin was barry mcguires song and it was pf. Sloan who responsible for the track and its his guitar you hear at the beginning of the song not john phillips.
1 decade ago in the 1960s california dreaming by the mamas and papas served as a metaphor for a restless and idealistic generation of young people flocking to california. The song became a signpost of the c. Wherever they are it is cold and bleak and they are dreaming about the warmth of the california climate.
General commentthe song was written in 1963 by john and michelle phillips while they were living in new york inspired by michelles home sickness for california. California dreamin is a song written by john phillips and michelle phillips and was first recorded by barry mcguire. The true story of the mamas and the papas the music the madness the magic that was by michelle phillips the first half of this was very good indeed and i was thinking that it would continue in that vein.
Thats what i get from this song. California dreamin is considered one of the classic songs in american history indeed a track that verily helped define an era. The song is about the lifestyles one faces while in the music industry.
At the time the phillipses were members of the folk group the new journeymen which evolved into the mamas and the papas. The song was not immediately hit as michelle reminisces that it took the song to be played on a radio station in boston to become a nationwide hit. And for the most part it premise is pretty easy to understand.
The lyrics of the song express the narrators longing for the warmth of los angeles during a cold winter in new york city. The first is a general sense of wanting to be where it is warm. People dream of going to la hollywood thus the name of the song california dreaming.
It is essentially a dreamy love ballad to california and its warmer climate while also being a snide complaint towards new yorks greyness and winter days. At the break in the song they used a harmonica similar to the eve of destruction but john didnt like it and went down the hall and found bud shank. The song is no.