Music of Washington, D.C. and Max Ochs. Another important folk venue in Georgetown in 1961 was The Shadows. A band called "the Mugwumps" formed, eventually splitting up. Two of the members, John Sebastian and Zal Yanovsky, became The Lovin' Spoonful, and the other two, Denny Doherty and Cass Elliott, formed The Mamas & the Papas. Later, in Georgetown, then-folk singer John Denver, Taffy Nivert and Bill Danoff wrote a song called "Take Me Home, Country Roads", which launched Denver's career as one of the most popular singers in the country. Other popular folk singers include Mary Chapin Carpenter; the duo Cathy Fink & Marcy
The Papas & The Mamas being one example. All the material was new upon release with the exception of "Twelve Thirty", which had been released as a single in August 1967 as "Twelve Thirty (Young Girls Are Coming to the Canyon)". The song "Meditation Mama" featured the first lead vocal ever on a Mamas and the Papas track by John Phillips. All four members of the band contribute lead as well as backing vocals on this album. The vocals for "For the Love of Ivy" reportedly took one month to record. Although it was the first album from the group not to peak in the