This Precious Time – Barry McGuire

A real lost artifact, Barry McGuire's second album actually has quite a bit of historical significance. After his mega-hit, "Eve of Destruction," McGuire was set to do a follow-up album, complete with some excellent P.F. Sloan songs. During the early sessions, the Mamas & the Papas had just come into town. Being old friends of McGuire's from the folkie days (Barry was the lead voice on "Green, Green," by the New Christy Minstrels), he invited the group to audition for producer Lou Adler. The rest is history, and this record is essentially the Mamas audition, as they sing backgrounds on virtually all of the record. It's magnificent, too. Hits such as "Do You Believe in Magic," "Yesterday," and others work perfectly with McGuire's gravely lead voice and the Mamas & Papas sweet harmonies. McGuire even cut "California Dreamin'," and it's the exact same track as the famous Mamas version, sans Denny Doherty's lead vocal and Bud Shank's flute solo. If you're looking to find the real roots of the Mamas & the Papas, here it is. Unfortunately, Dunhill apparently wanted little to do with Barry McGuire after the backlash of "Eve of Destruction," and his career and this record presided in ignominy. Too bad, because there is a lot of excellent music here. ~ Matthew Greenwald, All Music Guide