Mama Was a Rock and Roll Singer, Papa Used to Write All Her Songs

Album information

The album was released in 1973 and reached #132 on the Billboard album chart. The title track was the only single from the album to enter the US charts, reaching #77 (in a much shorter form) on the Billboard Hot 100.

The album is largely a collection of cover songs which include songs like "I Can See Clearly Now" (originally by Johnny Nash), "Brother Love's Traveling Salvation Show" (Neil Diamond), and "Listen to the Music" (The Doobie Brothers).

The only song written by Bono is the title track; it clocks in at over nine minutes on the album version, and was edited down to under four minutes for the single.

Track listing

1. "It Never Rains in Southern California" (Albert Hammond, Mike Hazlewood) – 3:49
2. "I Believe in You" (Dennis Pregnolato, Michel Rubini, Don Dunne) – 2:59
3. "I Can See Clearly Now" (Johnny Nash) – 3:38
4. "Rhythm of Your Heart Beat" (Tony Macaulay, Geoff Stephens) – 3:32
5. "Mama Was a Rock and Roll Singer" (Sonny Bono) – 9:37

1. "By Love I Mean" (Hal David, William Jacobs, M. A. Trujillo) – 4:24
2. "Brother Love's Traveling Salvation Show" (Neil Diamond) – 3:16
3. "You Know Darn Well" (Tony Macaulay) – 3:20
4. "The Greatest Show on Earth" (Bob Stone) – 3:50
5. "Listen to the Music" (Tom Johnston) – 3:53

Personnel

Production