♫ I Saw Her Again ♫

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When I played ♫ Dedicated To The One I Love ♫ a couple of nights ago, I mentioned that in my search for a Mamas & Papas song that I hadn’t already played here, I found not one, but two songs that fit that bill.  This one, I Saw Her Again, is the other one!

An interesting, and kind of sad story behind the origins of this song.  Turns out that John Phillips wife and fellow band member, Michelle, had been having an affair with the other ‘Papa’, Denny Doherty.  This affair, combined with an affair between Michelle Phillips and Gene Clark of The Byrds, resulted in the brief expulsion of Michelle from the group for about two months.  Denny Doherty is given credit for co-writing the song, but some say that the song was John’s retribution against Doherty for the affair.

The group broke up in 1967, and John & Michelle divorced two years later.  Tragically, Mama Cass, who was doing well with her solo singing career, died in her sleep of a heart attack at the age of only 32.

This is one of the most popular of the Mamas & the Papas songs, reaching #1 in Canada, #5 in the U.S., and #11 in the UK.

I Saw Her Again
The Mamas & the Papas

I saw her again last night
And you know that I shouldn’t
To string her along’s just not right
If I couldn’t I wouldn’t
But what can I do, I’m lonely too
And it makes me feel so good to know
You’ll never leave me

I’m in way over my head
Now she thinks that I love her
Because that’s what I said
Though I never think of her
But what can I do, I’m lonely too
And it makes me feel so good to know
You’ll never leave me

Every time I see that girl
You know I want to lay down and die
But I really need that girl
Don’t know why I’m livin’ a lie
It makes me want to cry

I saw her again last night
And you know that I shouldn’t
To string her along’s just not right
If I couldn’t I wouldn’t
But what can I do, I’m lonely too
And it makes me feel so good to know
You’ll never leave me

But what can I do, I’m lonely too
And it makes me feel so good to know
You’ll never leave me

Every time I see that girl
You know I want to lay down and die
But I really need that girl
Don’t know why I’m livin’ a lie
It makes me want to cry

I saw her again last night
And you know that I shouldn’t
To string her along’s just not right
If I couldn’t I wouldn’t

I’m in way over my head
Now she thinks that I love her
Because that’s what I said

Source: LyricFind
Songwriters: John Edmund Andrew Phillips
I Saw Her Again lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group

19 thoughts on “♫ I Saw Her Again ♫”

  3. Jill, there body of work is robust. This is a great song, but not their best, in my view. I was aware of the personnel issues, as more than a few bands had to deal with similar issues – Jefferson Airplane, Fleetwood Mac, eg. Keith

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  5. Yeah, this is the one I thought you would play, but the other two were just as deserving. Like I think if you ever play Johnny Rivers again you should play Poor Side of Town, or Secret Agent Man. I could be wrong, but I think those were actually originals by him.
    The Mamas and Papas had a very sad existence, band-wise, and if Mackenzie Philips is being truthful (why would she not be?), John was probably at the centre of it.
    But they made beautiful music together, and this song is one of the best. (It seems to me Denny would have been the main witer, it sounds like a confession of sorts.)

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    • “Poor Side of Town” is my favourite of his, and I played it just last July, but will no doubt redux it sometime next year! I have read some of the accusations against John … deeply disturbing.

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  6. I’ve never thought of this as one of their best, it just feels awkward in its composition. I guess that fits the story behind it, though – and kudos to him for not calling her a slapper!

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