I grew up listening to the Monkees music & watching their show. They could act silly but they actually were decent musicians & singers. They had many hits such as "Last Train To Clarksville", "Valleri", "Pleasant Valley Sunday", "Steppin' Stone" etc. Two of their big hits "I'm A Believer" & "A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You" were written by Neil Diamond. Davy Jones was considered a teenage heart throb. Sadly he died in 2012 & later Peter Tork in 2019. Michael Nesmith passed away last year. Only 1 member is remaining now Micky Dolenz.
The Monkees took "Daydream Believer" to the top of the US charts in 1967. They were kind of a joke, until they weren't. The band was formed for a television comedy series in the mid-sixties that was more or less created to exploit Beatlemania. So kinda cheesy, but kinda not. We used to watch their show in reruns as kids back in the seventies. Many great songwriters were hired to write songs for them, including Neil Diamond and Carole King. John Stewart of The Kingston Trio wrote "Daydream Believer" for them. The Monkees couldn't play their instruments at first, but they learned how so they could go on tour. The concert promoter who scheduled Jimi Hendrix to open for them on his first tour of the US probably did so without ever listening to his music and simply went by the word of mouth that he was the newest sensation coming out of London. Natch Beatlemania! Hendrix left the tour after the musical mismatch became undeniable. When you're ready for more from The Monkees check out some of these classics -- "I'm a Believer", "Last Train to Clarksville", "Pleasant Valley Sunday", "(I'm Not Your) Steppin Stone", "Valleri", "(Theme From) The Monkees", and "Mary, Mary" among many others.
Started out as a television concept. With the popularity of this new rock n' roll thing, there had to be money it! The producers really only wanted four actors who could halfway sing and make jokes. The show was a huge hit. In the studio the guys were allowed to sing, but all the instruments were played by professionals. That didn't sit well, the guys wanted to be a real group! To their credit they stood up for themselves and tried hard to learn instruments. Critics latched onto the original concept and trashed the Monkees for being fake. It may have been true, at first, but they eventually were writing their own songs, playing their own instruments. All the while still fighting the studio for the freedom to be a real band. Honestly, to me, if one has EVER enjoyed one of these "boy bands" that essentially just sing and dance around, how can there be a comparison to the negative about four guys who strove to do it all?
This was awesome! You can add this one under the "Wish I'd Recommended This One" file. Daniel gave you a great recommend here. I've been a Monkees fan for a long time. I love their music and their comical schticks. Excellent interpretation by you, Fay. I loved it all! Here's to your next one. 🙏😊💜
A little girl in my neighborhood had a huge crush on Davey Jones. I was so jealous, and I didn't even like girls yet! Davey Jones is also the reason David Bowie changed his name.
Mickey Dolenz, the one with the tambourine, found it hilarious that Jimi Hendrix once opened for them. He imagined all the Monkees fans waiting for their favourite lovable pop group suddenly seeing Hendrix and his band on stage and hearing this barrage of distorted guitar sounds.
My mothers name is Jean, so I can use the Wake up sleepy Jean lyrics on my mom because it's her name and in fact the song came out when she was young as well.
As a child I watched their show in reruns.a nice comedy. Fye check the movie daydream believer. Their biggest hit was called “I’m a believer”, many other songs were popular like “Last train to Clarksville” “Lookout here comes tomorrow “ “I wanna be free”ect…..👍❣️
