"Monday, Monday" is a 1966 song written by John Phillips and recorded by the Mamas & the Papas, with backing music by members of the Wrecking Crew for their 1966 album If You Can Believe Your Eyes and Ears. Denny Doherty was the lead vocalist. It was the group's only #1 hit on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100.
Phillips said that he wrote the song quickly, in about 20 minutes. However, after he initially presented it to the group during the late 1965 recording sessions for their debut album, he was met with strong resistance from band members Cass Elliot and Michelle Phillips, who hated it and called the song's subject matter 'pretentious'. Eventually, producer Lou Adler stepped in and took John's side, which resulted in its inclusion on the album and later release as a single. In the lyrics, the singer dislikes Mondays because the person he loved left him on that day: "Oh Monday mornin', you gave me no warnin' of what was to be."<REF>Bing.com "Lyrics - Monday, Monday" Retrieved July 12, 2024.</REF> Singer Denny Doherty later recalled "I liked the opening background vocals, the 'bah-da-da-da-da-dum,'...I thought that was cool. But nobody likes Monday, so I thought it was just a song about the working man. Nothing about it stood out to me. It was a dumb f***inâ song about a day of the week. By the time the rehearsals were over for the vocals, I thought, 'Thank god thatâÂÂs over!'"
The song includes a pregnant pause before the coda, which modulates up a semitone. Succeeding "Good Lovin'" by the Young Rascals in the number one position, the event marked the first time in the history of the Billboard Hot 100 two songs with pregnant pauses were consecutive number one hits.
On March 2, 1967, the Mamas & the Papas won a Grammy Award for the song, in the category Best Contemporary (R&R) Group Performance, Vocal Or Instrumental. In 2008, the song was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.
The song was performed at the Monterey International Pop Festival in 1967. The performance was filmed for the movie of the festival, but not included in the final print.