The Associated Press is reporting that Denny Doherty, a founding member of The Mamas & The Papas has died in Mississauga, Ontario at the age of 66. Doherty rose to fame as the one quarter of The Mamas And The Papas, the pop vocal group that helped define the sound of American music in the 1960s with hits like "California Dreamin'," "Monday Monday," and the autobiographical "Creeque Alley."
Doherty's vocal contributions were a key to the band's success, but his personal life played a role in its undoing. The revelation of his affair with bandmate Michelle Phillips, wife of fellow bandmate John Phillips, led to her forcible departure from the band in 1966. It was temporary, and the band continued to enjoy some hits, but the reunion didn't last.
In later years, Doherty recorded a solo album, toured with John Phillips (who died in 2001), worked on a Broadway show based on the Mamas & The Papas story, and provided voices for the children's program Theodore Tugboat.