"[1] After Cass Elliot left the group temporarily in 1967, she returned in 1968 to complete their fourth album, The Papas & The Mamas.
The song marks a departure for the group, as their signature folk-rock sound gives way to world-weary lyrics.
Songwriter John Phillips, in the two years prior, had seen the group achieve great highs (six singles in the American Top 5 charts, a Grammy award, and enormous wealth and popularity) and extraordinary lows (Michelle Phillips' affairs with bandmate Denny Doherty and The Byrds' Gene Clark, Cass's departure, John's burgeoning drug addiction and added responsibility of becoming a father for the third time), and now outside the group, 1968 was a myriad protests, police brutality, and a world-weariness about the 1960s, in particular the Sunset Strip Riots.
"[2] Well known for their singers' harmonies, this is an especially beautiful example of how the Mamas and Papas blended their voices by "layering vocal lines over and under each other that almost breaks your heart.
The Family Four recorded the song as a B-side for the single Kör långsamt (Cab Driver), released in November 1968.