Sebastian was born in New York City and grew up in Italy and Greenwich Village. His father, John Sebastian (ne Pugliese), was a noted classical harmonica player and his mother, Jane, was a radio script writer. His godmother was Vivian Vance ("Ethel Mertz" of I Love Lucy), who was a close friend of his mother. His godfather and first babysitter was children's book illustrator Garth Williams, a friend of his father.
Sebastian was joined by Zal Yanovsky, Steve Boone, and Joe Butler in the Spoonful, which was named after "The Coffee Blues," a Mississippi John Hurt song. The Lovin' Spoonful, which blended folk-rock and pop with elements of blues, country, and jug band music, became part of the American response to the British Invasion, and was noted for such hits as "Do You Believe in Magic", "Summer in the City", "Daydream", "Did You Ever Have to Make Up Your Mind?", "You Didn't Have to Be So Nice", "Darling Be Home Soon", "Jug Band Music", "Rain on the Roof", "Nashville Cats", and "Six O'Clock". The band, however, began to implode after a 1967 marijuana bust in San Francisco involving Yanovsky, a Canadian citizen. Facing deportation, he revealed the name of his dealer to police, which caused a fan backlash and added to the internal tension already created by the band members' diverging interests. Neither Sebastian nor Butler was involved in the matter, both being away from San Francisco at the time. Yanovsky subsequently left the band and was replaced by Jerry Yester, after which the band's musical style veered away from its previous eclectic blend and became more pop-oriented. Sebastian left the Lovin' Spoonful in 1968 and did not play with any later versions of the band, except for a brief reunion with the other three original members to appear in Paul Simon's 1980 film One-Trick Pony, and again for a single performance at their Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony in 2000.
What is the Lovin Spoonful?
a Mississippi John Hurt song. The Lovin' Spoonful, The Lovin' Spoonful, which blended folk-rock and pop with elements of blues, country, and jug band music, became part of the American response to the British Invasion, The Lovin' Spoonful, which blended folk-rock and pop with elements of blues, country, and jug band music, became part of the American response to the British Invasion, which blended folk-rock and pop with elements of blues, country, and jug band music, The Lovin' Spoonful, which blended folk-rock and pop with elements of blues, country, and jug band music,
The Lovin' Spoonful, which blended folk-rock and pop with elements of blues, country, and jug band music,