This show still is funny today as it was back in the day.
Review The Monkees (1966)
- Thread starter High Plains Drifter
- Start date
chainsaw_metal1
Member: Rank 8
They certainly made the most of being a manufactured group. I still love the show, and the music. Peter Tork will always be my favorite.
Cool fact I had never learned. According to Behind the Music, "Last Train to Clarksville" was a song about Vietnam. Just makes it that much cooler in my eyes.
Cool fact I had never learned. According to Behind the Music, "Last Train to Clarksville" was a song about Vietnam. Just makes it that much cooler in my eyes.
chainsaw_metal1
Member: Rank 8
They were put together by the studio to do the show. The music - at first - was written for them, the music on the albums was recorded by other musicians (again, at first) and they were chosen from many other young men who auditioned. It was simply a band put together to make a show based around an American version of The Beatles. Doesn't mean I dig them any less.
Fun fact: They were actually sent out on tour as an opening act for Jimi Hendrix. Hendrix hated the whole affair, as the music was all lip synced and pantomimed. Back then, record companies just threw bands together for tours, regardless of audience preferences.
Fun fact: They were actually sent out on tour as an opening act for Jimi Hendrix. Hendrix hated the whole affair, as the music was all lip synced and pantomimed. Back then, record companies just threw bands together for tours, regardless of audience preferences.
Carol
Member: Rank 5
I thought this might be fun for people who haven't come across it - for some reason the original doesn't seem to be on You Tube but this is! Who knew!
It's just the idea that there is currently a generation of parents who have had to try to explain to their little kids who the Monkees were and why they (the parents) are laughing even louder at this than their offspring are.
Doctor Omega
Member: Rank 10
The Monkees were an American rock and pop band originally active between 1966 and 1971, with subsequent reunion albums and tours in the decades that followed. They were formed in Los Angeles in 1965 by Bob Rafelson and Bert Schneider for the American television series The Monkees which aired from 1966 to 1968. The musical acting quartet was composed of Americans Micky Dolenz, Michael Nesmith, and Peter Tork; and British actor and singer Davy Jones. The band's music was initially supervised by producer Don Kirshner, backed by the songwriting duo of Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart.
The four actor-musicians were allowed only limited roles in the recording studio for the first few months of their five-year career as "the Monkees". This was due in part to the amount of time required to film the television series.[1] Nonetheless, Nesmith did compose and produce some songs from the beginning, and Peter Tork contributed limited guitar work on the sessions produced by Nesmith. They eventually fought for the right to collectively supervise all musical output under the band's name. The television show was canceled in 1968, but the band continued to record music through 1971.
A revival of interest in the television show came in 1986, which led to a series of reunion tours and new records. The group reunited and toured several times with varying degrees of success.
Davy Jones died suddenly on February 29, 2012, but the surviving members reunited for a tour in November–December 2012[6][7] and again in 2013 for a 24-date tour.[8] The Monkees continued to tour through their 2016 50th Anniverary, with Dolenz and Tork forming the core of the band and Nesmith continuing to join them occasionally.
Dolenz described the Monkees as initially being "a TV show about an imaginary band… that wanted to be the Beatles that was never successful".[9] Ironically, the actor-musicians became one of the most successful bands of the 1960s. The Monkees have sold more than 50 million records worldwide[10][11] and had international hits, including "Last Train to Clarksville", "Pleasant Valley Sunday", "Daydream Believer", and "I'm a Believer". Newspapers and magazines reported that the Monkees outsold the Beatles and the Rolling Stones combined in 1967, but Nesmith claims in his autobiography Infinite Tuesday that it was a lie that he told an Australian reporter.
The four actor-musicians were allowed only limited roles in the recording studio for the first few months of their five-year career as "the Monkees". This was due in part to the amount of time required to film the television series.[1] Nonetheless, Nesmith did compose and produce some songs from the beginning, and Peter Tork contributed limited guitar work on the sessions produced by Nesmith. They eventually fought for the right to collectively supervise all musical output under the band's name. The television show was canceled in 1968, but the band continued to record music through 1971.
A revival of interest in the television show came in 1986, which led to a series of reunion tours and new records. The group reunited and toured several times with varying degrees of success.
Davy Jones died suddenly on February 29, 2012, but the surviving members reunited for a tour in November–December 2012[6][7] and again in 2013 for a 24-date tour.[8] The Monkees continued to tour through their 2016 50th Anniverary, with Dolenz and Tork forming the core of the band and Nesmith continuing to join them occasionally.
Dolenz described the Monkees as initially being "a TV show about an imaginary band… that wanted to be the Beatles that was never successful".[9] Ironically, the actor-musicians became one of the most successful bands of the 1960s. The Monkees have sold more than 50 million records worldwide[10][11] and had international hits, including "Last Train to Clarksville", "Pleasant Valley Sunday", "Daydream Believer", and "I'm a Believer". Newspapers and magazines reported that the Monkees outsold the Beatles and the Rolling Stones combined in 1967, but Nesmith claims in his autobiography Infinite Tuesday that it was a lie that he told an Australian reporter.
Doctor Omega
Member: Rank 10
Doctor Omega
Member: Rank 10
Head
After The Monkees was canceled in February 1968, Rafelson directed the four Monkees in a feature film, Head. Schneider was executive producer, and the project was co-written and co-produced by Bob Rafelson with a then relatively unknown Jack Nicholson.
The film, conceived and edited in a stream of consciousness style, featured oddball cameo appearances by movie stars Victor Mature, Annette Funicello, a young Teri Garr, boxer Sonny Liston, famous stripper Carol Doda, Green Bay Packer linebacker Ray Nitschke, and musician Frank Zappa. It was filmed at Columbia Pictures' Screen Gems studios and on location in California, Utah, and The Bahamas between February 19 and May 17, 1968 and premiered in New York City on November 6 of that year (the film later debuted in Hollywood on November 20).
The film was not a commercial success, in part because it was the antithesis of The Monkees television show, intended to comprehensively demolish the group's carefully groomed public image. Rafelson and Nicholson's "Ditty Diego-War Chant" (recited at the start of the film by the group), ruthlessly parodies Boyce and Hart's "Monkees Theme". A sparse advertising campaign (with no mention of the Monkees) squelched any chances of the film doing well, and it played in briefly in half-filled movie theaters. In the DVD commentary, Nesmith said that by this time, everyone associated with the Monkees "had gone crazy". They were each using the platform of the Monkees to push their own disparate career goals, to the detriment of the Monkees project. Indeed, Nesmith said, Head was Rafelson and Nicholson's intentional effort to "kill" the Monkees, so that they would no longer be bothered with the matter. Indeed, Rafelson and Schneider severed all ties to the band amid the bitterness that ensued over the commercial failure of Head. At the time, Rafelson told the press, "I grooved on those four in very special ways while at the same time thinking they had absolutely no talent."[53]
Released in October 1968, the single from the album, "The Porpoise Song", is a psychedelic pop song written by Goffin/King, with lead vocals from Micky Dolenz and backing vocals from Davy Jones, and it reached number 62 on the Billboard charts.[54]
The soundtrack album to the movie, Head, reached No. 45 on the Billboard charts.[55] Jack Nicholson assembled the film's soundtrack album, weaving dialogue and sound effects from the film in between the songs from the film. The six (plus "Ditty Diego") Monkees songs on the album range from psychedelic pop to straight ahead rockers to Broadway rock to eastern-influenced pop to a folk-rock ballad. Although the Monkees performed "Circle Sky" live in the film, the studio version is chosen for the soundtrack album. The live version would later be released on various compilations, including Rhino's Missing Links series of Monkees albums. The soundtrack album also includes a song from the film's composer, Ken Thorne. The album had a mylar cover, to give it a mirror-like appearance, so that the person looking at the cover would see his own head, a play on the album title Head. Peter Tork said, "That was something special ... [Jack] Nicholson coordinated the record, made it up from the soundtrack. He made it different from the movie. There's a line in the movie where [Frank] Zappa says, 'That's pretty white.' Then there's another line in the movie that was not juxtaposed in the movie, but Nicholson put them together in the [soundtrack album], when Mike says, 'And the same thing goes for Christmas.' ... that's funny, ... very different from the movie ...that was very important and wonderful that he assembled the record differently from the movie. ... It was a different artistic experience." [56] The soundtrack album is a cult favorite among the Monkees' fans.
Over the intervening years Head has developed a cult following for its innovative style and anarchic humor. Members of the Monkees, Nesmith in particular, cite the soundtrack album as one of the crowning achievements of the band.
After The Monkees was canceled in February 1968, Rafelson directed the four Monkees in a feature film, Head. Schneider was executive producer, and the project was co-written and co-produced by Bob Rafelson with a then relatively unknown Jack Nicholson.
The film, conceived and edited in a stream of consciousness style, featured oddball cameo appearances by movie stars Victor Mature, Annette Funicello, a young Teri Garr, boxer Sonny Liston, famous stripper Carol Doda, Green Bay Packer linebacker Ray Nitschke, and musician Frank Zappa. It was filmed at Columbia Pictures' Screen Gems studios and on location in California, Utah, and The Bahamas between February 19 and May 17, 1968 and premiered in New York City on November 6 of that year (the film later debuted in Hollywood on November 20).
The film was not a commercial success, in part because it was the antithesis of The Monkees television show, intended to comprehensively demolish the group's carefully groomed public image. Rafelson and Nicholson's "Ditty Diego-War Chant" (recited at the start of the film by the group), ruthlessly parodies Boyce and Hart's "Monkees Theme". A sparse advertising campaign (with no mention of the Monkees) squelched any chances of the film doing well, and it played in briefly in half-filled movie theaters. In the DVD commentary, Nesmith said that by this time, everyone associated with the Monkees "had gone crazy". They were each using the platform of the Monkees to push their own disparate career goals, to the detriment of the Monkees project. Indeed, Nesmith said, Head was Rafelson and Nicholson's intentional effort to "kill" the Monkees, so that they would no longer be bothered with the matter. Indeed, Rafelson and Schneider severed all ties to the band amid the bitterness that ensued over the commercial failure of Head. At the time, Rafelson told the press, "I grooved on those four in very special ways while at the same time thinking they had absolutely no talent."[53]
Released in October 1968, the single from the album, "The Porpoise Song", is a psychedelic pop song written by Goffin/King, with lead vocals from Micky Dolenz and backing vocals from Davy Jones, and it reached number 62 on the Billboard charts.[54]
The soundtrack album to the movie, Head, reached No. 45 on the Billboard charts.[55] Jack Nicholson assembled the film's soundtrack album, weaving dialogue and sound effects from the film in between the songs from the film. The six (plus "Ditty Diego") Monkees songs on the album range from psychedelic pop to straight ahead rockers to Broadway rock to eastern-influenced pop to a folk-rock ballad. Although the Monkees performed "Circle Sky" live in the film, the studio version is chosen for the soundtrack album. The live version would later be released on various compilations, including Rhino's Missing Links series of Monkees albums. The soundtrack album also includes a song from the film's composer, Ken Thorne. The album had a mylar cover, to give it a mirror-like appearance, so that the person looking at the cover would see his own head, a play on the album title Head. Peter Tork said, "That was something special ... [Jack] Nicholson coordinated the record, made it up from the soundtrack. He made it different from the movie. There's a line in the movie where [Frank] Zappa says, 'That's pretty white.' Then there's another line in the movie that was not juxtaposed in the movie, but Nicholson put them together in the [soundtrack album], when Mike says, 'And the same thing goes for Christmas.' ... that's funny, ... very different from the movie ...that was very important and wonderful that he assembled the record differently from the movie. ... It was a different artistic experience." [56] The soundtrack album is a cult favorite among the Monkees' fans.
Over the intervening years Head has developed a cult following for its innovative style and anarchic humor. Members of the Monkees, Nesmith in particular, cite the soundtrack album as one of the crowning achievements of the band.
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Doctor Omega
Member: Rank 10
New Monkees
In 1987, a new television series called New Monkees appeared. Four young musicians were placed in a similar series based on the original show, but "updated" for the 1980s. The New Monkees left the air after 13 episodes. (Neither Bob Rafelson nor Bert Schneider were involved in the development or production of the series, although it was produced by "Straybert Productions" headed by Steve Blauner, Rafelson and Schneider's partner in BBS Productions.)
Failure and subsequent revived interest
Originally slated for a 22-episode season, the show earned ratings lower than expected and New Monkees left the air after 14 episodes. The album also did not catch on, and failed to yield a hit record single. The producers hoped that the TV show would serve as promotion for their record, and vice versa, but this did not occur. A lawsuit was filed by the original Monkees for use of the name. However, the case was settled out of court.
Single (45 RPM)
Warner Bros. Records (Released 1987)
Track listing:
- "What I Want" (Side A)
- "Turn It Up" (Side B)
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Doctor Omega
Member: Rank 10
Death of Jones and reunion with Nesmith
The 45th anniversary tour would be the last with Jones, who died of a heart attack at age 66 due to atherosclerosis on February 29, 2012.[81][82] Soon thereafter, rumors began to circulate that Nesmith would reunite with Dolenz and Tork in the wake of Jones' death.[83] This was confirmed on August 8, 2012, when the surviving trio announced a series of U.S. shows for November and December, commencing in Escondido, California and concluding in New York City. The brief tour marked the first time Nesmith performed with the Monkees since 1997, as well as the first without Jones.[6] Jones' memory was honored throughout the shows via recordings and video. During one point, the band went quiet and a recording of Jones singing "I Wanna Be Free" played while footage of him was screening behind the band. For Jones' signature song, "Daydream Believer", Dolenz said that the band had discussed who should sing the song and had concluded that it should be the fans, saying "It doesn't belong to us anymore. It belongs to you."[7]
The Fall 2012 tour was very well received by both fans and critics, resulting in the band scheduling a 24-date summer tour for 2013. Dubbed "A Midsummer’s Night With the Monkees", concerts also featured Nesmith, Dolenz, and Tork. "The reaction to the last tour was euphoric", Dolenz told Rolling Stone magazine. "It was pretty apparent there was a demand for another one."[8] A third tour with Nesmith would follow in 2014.
In 2014, the Monkees were inducted into the Pop Music Hall of Fame at the 2014 Monkees Convention.[84] At the convention the band announced a 2014 tour of the Eastern and Midwestern US.[85][86]
Good Times! and 50th anniversary: 2015-present[edit]
Dolenz and Tork toured as the Monkees in 2015 without Nesmith's participation. Nesmith stated that he was busy with other ventures, although Dolenz said that "He's always invited."[87] In February 2016, Dolenz announced that the Monkees would be releasing a new album, titled Good Times!, as a celebration of their 50th anniversary. Good Times!, produced by Adam Schlesinger of Fountains of Wayne, features contributions by all three surviving members, as well as a posthumous contribution from Jones.[88] The album was released in May 2016 to considerable success, reaching No. 14 on the Billboard 200[89] and generally favorable reviews.
With the release of the album, the band, featuring Dolenz and Tork, commenced their 50th Anniversary Tour. Nesmith did not participate in most of the tour, again citing other commitments. He did, however, make a few appearances throughout the summer of 2016, appearing virtually via Skype to perform "Papa Gene's Blues" at one concert and in person for a four-song encore at another. In September, he replaced Tork on the tour for two dates while Tork attended to a family emergency. After Tork returned to the tour, Nesmith performed with the band for a concert at the Pantages Theatre in Hollywood on September 16, which he stated would likely be his final concert appearance with the Monkees.[90]Dolenz and Tork's tour announced dates to the end of the year, including concerts in Australia and New Zealand.
After the end of the 50th Anniversary Tour, Dolenz, Tork, and Nesmith spent 2017 engaging in solo activities. In 2018, Nesmith toured with a revived version of the First National Band and stated that he was in negotiations with promoters to tour again with Dolenz later in the summer.[91] On February 20, the tour was announced as "The Monkees Present: The Mike and Micky Show", their first tour as a duo. The pair will play Monkees music and promote the tour under the Monkees banner, but Nesmith stated that "there's no pretense there about Micky and I being the Monkees. We're not."
The 45th anniversary tour would be the last with Jones, who died of a heart attack at age 66 due to atherosclerosis on February 29, 2012.[81][82] Soon thereafter, rumors began to circulate that Nesmith would reunite with Dolenz and Tork in the wake of Jones' death.[83] This was confirmed on August 8, 2012, when the surviving trio announced a series of U.S. shows for November and December, commencing in Escondido, California and concluding in New York City. The brief tour marked the first time Nesmith performed with the Monkees since 1997, as well as the first without Jones.[6] Jones' memory was honored throughout the shows via recordings and video. During one point, the band went quiet and a recording of Jones singing "I Wanna Be Free" played while footage of him was screening behind the band. For Jones' signature song, "Daydream Believer", Dolenz said that the band had discussed who should sing the song and had concluded that it should be the fans, saying "It doesn't belong to us anymore. It belongs to you."[7]
The Fall 2012 tour was very well received by both fans and critics, resulting in the band scheduling a 24-date summer tour for 2013. Dubbed "A Midsummer’s Night With the Monkees", concerts also featured Nesmith, Dolenz, and Tork. "The reaction to the last tour was euphoric", Dolenz told Rolling Stone magazine. "It was pretty apparent there was a demand for another one."[8] A third tour with Nesmith would follow in 2014.
In 2014, the Monkees were inducted into the Pop Music Hall of Fame at the 2014 Monkees Convention.[84] At the convention the band announced a 2014 tour of the Eastern and Midwestern US.[85][86]
Good Times! and 50th anniversary: 2015-present[edit]
Dolenz and Tork toured as the Monkees in 2015 without Nesmith's participation. Nesmith stated that he was busy with other ventures, although Dolenz said that "He's always invited."[87] In February 2016, Dolenz announced that the Monkees would be releasing a new album, titled Good Times!, as a celebration of their 50th anniversary. Good Times!, produced by Adam Schlesinger of Fountains of Wayne, features contributions by all three surviving members, as well as a posthumous contribution from Jones.[88] The album was released in May 2016 to considerable success, reaching No. 14 on the Billboard 200[89] and generally favorable reviews.
With the release of the album, the band, featuring Dolenz and Tork, commenced their 50th Anniversary Tour. Nesmith did not participate in most of the tour, again citing other commitments. He did, however, make a few appearances throughout the summer of 2016, appearing virtually via Skype to perform "Papa Gene's Blues" at one concert and in person for a four-song encore at another. In September, he replaced Tork on the tour for two dates while Tork attended to a family emergency. After Tork returned to the tour, Nesmith performed with the band for a concert at the Pantages Theatre in Hollywood on September 16, which he stated would likely be his final concert appearance with the Monkees.[90]Dolenz and Tork's tour announced dates to the end of the year, including concerts in Australia and New Zealand.
After the end of the 50th Anniversary Tour, Dolenz, Tork, and Nesmith spent 2017 engaging in solo activities. In 2018, Nesmith toured with a revived version of the First National Band and stated that he was in negotiations with promoters to tour again with Dolenz later in the summer.[91] On February 20, the tour was announced as "The Monkees Present: The Mike and Micky Show", their first tour as a duo. The pair will play Monkees music and promote the tour under the Monkees banner, but Nesmith stated that "there's no pretense there about Micky and I being the Monkees. We're not."
Doctor Omega
Member: Rank 10
Controversies
Studio recordings controversy
Controversy hit early in 1967 concerning the Monkees' studio abilities. Dolenz told a reporter that the Wrecking Crew provided the backing tracks for the first two Monkees albums, and that his origin as a drummer was simply that a Monkee had to learn to play the drums, and he only knew the guitar.[93] A January 28, 1967 Saturday Evening Post article quoted Nesmith railing against the music creation process. "Do you know how debilitating it is to sit up and have to duplicate somebody else’s records?" he asked. "Tell the world we don’t record our own music."[94] The whistle-blowing on themselves worked to force producer Don Kirshner out of the project, and the band took creative control for its third album.
But the Monkees toured the U.K. in 1967 and found a chilly reception. The front pages of several U.K. and international music papers proclaimed that the group members did not always play their own instruments or sing the backing vocals in the studio. They were derisively dubbed the "Pre-Fab Four", and the London Sunday Mirror called them a "disgrace to the pop world."[95] Jimi Hendrix was their tour-opener that year, and he told Melody Maker magazine, "Oh God, I hate them! Dishwater… You can't knock anybody for making it, but people like the Monkees?"[96] Dealing with the controversy proved challenging on the television series. Episode No. 31 "Monkees at the Movies" first aired April 1967, and Bob Rafelson asked the group about accusations that they did not play their instruments in concert. Nesmith responded, "I'm fixin' to walk out there in front of fifteen thousand people, man! If I don't play my own instrument, I'm in a lot of trouble!"[97] But the "Devil and Peter Tork" episode serves as a parable, as a Kirshner-like producer has Tork sign over his soul to be a success as a musician.[98]
In November 1967, the wave of anti-Monkee sentiment was reaching its peak while they released their fourth album Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn, & Jones Ltd. The liner notes for the 1995 re-release of this album quote Nesmith: "The press went into a full-scale war against us, talking about how 'The Monkees are four guys who have no credits, no credibility whatsoever and have been trying to trick us into believing they are a rock band.' Number 1, not only was this not the case; the reverse was true. Number 2, for the press to report with genuine alarm that the Monkees were not a real rock band was looney tunes! It was one of the great goofball moments of the media, but it stuck."[99] Davy Jones stated in 1969 to Tiger Beat, "I get so angry when musicians say, 'Oh, your music is so bad,' because it's not bad to the kids. Those people who talk about 'doing their own thing' are groups that go and play in the clubs that hold 50 people, while we're playing to 10,000 kids. You know, it hurts me to think that anybody thinks we're phony, because we're not. We're only doing what we think is our own thing."[100]
Rolling Stone reported on October 11, 2011 that Tork still feels that the Monkees do not get the respect that they deserve. "The Monkees' songbook is one of the better songbooks in pop history," he says. "Certainly in the top five in terms of breadth and depth. It was revealed that we didn't play our own instruments on the records much at the very moment when the idealism of early Beatlemania in rock was at its peak. So we became the ultimate betrayers."[101]
Studio recordings controversy
Controversy hit early in 1967 concerning the Monkees' studio abilities. Dolenz told a reporter that the Wrecking Crew provided the backing tracks for the first two Monkees albums, and that his origin as a drummer was simply that a Monkee had to learn to play the drums, and he only knew the guitar.[93] A January 28, 1967 Saturday Evening Post article quoted Nesmith railing against the music creation process. "Do you know how debilitating it is to sit up and have to duplicate somebody else’s records?" he asked. "Tell the world we don’t record our own music."[94] The whistle-blowing on themselves worked to force producer Don Kirshner out of the project, and the band took creative control for its third album.
But the Monkees toured the U.K. in 1967 and found a chilly reception. The front pages of several U.K. and international music papers proclaimed that the group members did not always play their own instruments or sing the backing vocals in the studio. They were derisively dubbed the "Pre-Fab Four", and the London Sunday Mirror called them a "disgrace to the pop world."[95] Jimi Hendrix was their tour-opener that year, and he told Melody Maker magazine, "Oh God, I hate them! Dishwater… You can't knock anybody for making it, but people like the Monkees?"[96] Dealing with the controversy proved challenging on the television series. Episode No. 31 "Monkees at the Movies" first aired April 1967, and Bob Rafelson asked the group about accusations that they did not play their instruments in concert. Nesmith responded, "I'm fixin' to walk out there in front of fifteen thousand people, man! If I don't play my own instrument, I'm in a lot of trouble!"[97] But the "Devil and Peter Tork" episode serves as a parable, as a Kirshner-like producer has Tork sign over his soul to be a success as a musician.[98]
In November 1967, the wave of anti-Monkee sentiment was reaching its peak while they released their fourth album Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn, & Jones Ltd. The liner notes for the 1995 re-release of this album quote Nesmith: "The press went into a full-scale war against us, talking about how 'The Monkees are four guys who have no credits, no credibility whatsoever and have been trying to trick us into believing they are a rock band.' Number 1, not only was this not the case; the reverse was true. Number 2, for the press to report with genuine alarm that the Monkees were not a real rock band was looney tunes! It was one of the great goofball moments of the media, but it stuck."[99] Davy Jones stated in 1969 to Tiger Beat, "I get so angry when musicians say, 'Oh, your music is so bad,' because it's not bad to the kids. Those people who talk about 'doing their own thing' are groups that go and play in the clubs that hold 50 people, while we're playing to 10,000 kids. You know, it hurts me to think that anybody thinks we're phony, because we're not. We're only doing what we think is our own thing."[100]
Rolling Stone reported on October 11, 2011 that Tork still feels that the Monkees do not get the respect that they deserve. "The Monkees' songbook is one of the better songbooks in pop history," he says. "Certainly in the top five in terms of breadth and depth. It was revealed that we didn't play our own instruments on the records much at the very moment when the idealism of early Beatlemania in rock was at its peak. So we became the ultimate betrayers."[101]
Doctor Omega
Member: Rank 10
Meeting the Beatles
Critics of the Monkees observed that they were simply the "Pre-Fab four", a made-for-TV knockoff of the Beatles; however, the members of the Beatles themselves took it in their stride and even hosted a party for the Monkees when they visited England. The party occurred during the time when the Beatles were recording album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band; as such, the party inspired the line in the Monkees' tune "Randy Scouse Git", written by Dolenz, which read, "the four kings of EMI are sitting stately on the floor."
George Harrison praised their self-produced musical attempts, saying, "It's obvious what's happening, there's talent there. They're doing a TV show, it's a difficult chore and I wouldn't be in their shoes for the world. When they get it all sorted out, they might turn out to be the best."[32] (Monkees member Peter Tork was later one of the musicians on Harrison's album Wonderwall Music, playing Paul McCartney's five-string banjo.
Nesmith attended the Beatles session recording for single "A Day in the Life" at Abbey Road Studios; he can be seen in the Beatles' home movies, including one scene where he is talking with John Lennon. During the conversation, Nesmith had reportedly asked Lennon "Do you think we're a cheap imitation of the Beatles, your movies and your records?" to which Lennon assuredly replied, "I think you're the greatest comic talent since the Marx Brothers. I've never missed one of your programs."[32] Nesmith wrote about this encounter on Facebook:
When the Beatles were recording Sgt. Peppers, Phyllis and I spent a few days with John and wife Cynthia Lennon at their home, and one in the studio with "the boys." That's where those pictures of John and I come from—the "Day in the Life" session. The minute I had the wherewithal—cachet and money—I raced to London and looked up John.
During the '60s it seemed to me London was the center of the World and the Beatles were the center of London and the Sgt Pepper session was the center of the Beatles. It was an extraordinary time, I thought, and I wanted to get as close as I could to the heart of it. But like a hurricane the center was not stormy or tumultuous. It was exciting, but it was calm, and to an extent peaceful. The confidence of the art permeated the atmosphere. Serene—and really, really fun. Then I discovered the reason for this. During that time in one of our longer, more reflective, talks I realized that John was not aware of who the Beatles were. Of course he could not be. He was clueless in this regard. He had never seen or experienced them. In the strange paradox of fame, none of the Beatles ever saw the Beatles the way we did. Certainly not the way I did. I loved them beyond my ability to express it. As the years passed and I met more and more exceptional people sitting in the center of their own hurricane I saw they all shared this same sensibility. None of them could actually know the force of their own work.
Dolenz was also in the studio during a Sgt. Pepper session, which he mentioned while broadcasting for radio WCBS-FM in New York (incidentally, he interviewed Ringo Starr on his program). On February 21, 1967, he attended the overdub and mixing session for the Beatles' "Fixing a Hole" at EMI's Abbey Road studio 2.[122]
During the 1970s, during Lennon's infamous "lost weekend", Lennon, Ringo Starr, Micky Dolenz, Harry Nilsson and Keith Moon often hung out together, and were collectively known in the press as "The Hollywood Vampires".[123]
Paul McCartney can be seen in the 2002 concert film Back in the U.S. singing "Hey, Hey, We're The Monkees", the theme from The Monkees television show, while backstage.
The Monkees "Cuddly Toy" and "Daddy's Song" were written by songwriter Harry Nilsson. "Cuddly Toy" would be recorded several months before Nilsson's own debut in October 1967.[44] At the press conference announcing the formation of Apple, the Beatles named Nilsson as both their favorite American artist and as their favorite American group. Derek Taylor, the Beatles' press officer, had introduced them to Nilsson's music.[124]
In 1995, Ringo Starr joined Davy, Peter and Micky to film a Pizza Hut commercial.[125]
Julian Lennon was a fan, stating at the time of Davy Jones' passing, "You did some great work!"
Critics of the Monkees observed that they were simply the "Pre-Fab four", a made-for-TV knockoff of the Beatles; however, the members of the Beatles themselves took it in their stride and even hosted a party for the Monkees when they visited England. The party occurred during the time when the Beatles were recording album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band; as such, the party inspired the line in the Monkees' tune "Randy Scouse Git", written by Dolenz, which read, "the four kings of EMI are sitting stately on the floor."
George Harrison praised their self-produced musical attempts, saying, "It's obvious what's happening, there's talent there. They're doing a TV show, it's a difficult chore and I wouldn't be in their shoes for the world. When they get it all sorted out, they might turn out to be the best."[32] (Monkees member Peter Tork was later one of the musicians on Harrison's album Wonderwall Music, playing Paul McCartney's five-string banjo.
Nesmith attended the Beatles session recording for single "A Day in the Life" at Abbey Road Studios; he can be seen in the Beatles' home movies, including one scene where he is talking with John Lennon. During the conversation, Nesmith had reportedly asked Lennon "Do you think we're a cheap imitation of the Beatles, your movies and your records?" to which Lennon assuredly replied, "I think you're the greatest comic talent since the Marx Brothers. I've never missed one of your programs."[32] Nesmith wrote about this encounter on Facebook:
When the Beatles were recording Sgt. Peppers, Phyllis and I spent a few days with John and wife Cynthia Lennon at their home, and one in the studio with "the boys." That's where those pictures of John and I come from—the "Day in the Life" session. The minute I had the wherewithal—cachet and money—I raced to London and looked up John.
During the '60s it seemed to me London was the center of the World and the Beatles were the center of London and the Sgt Pepper session was the center of the Beatles. It was an extraordinary time, I thought, and I wanted to get as close as I could to the heart of it. But like a hurricane the center was not stormy or tumultuous. It was exciting, but it was calm, and to an extent peaceful. The confidence of the art permeated the atmosphere. Serene—and really, really fun. Then I discovered the reason for this. During that time in one of our longer, more reflective, talks I realized that John was not aware of who the Beatles were. Of course he could not be. He was clueless in this regard. He had never seen or experienced them. In the strange paradox of fame, none of the Beatles ever saw the Beatles the way we did. Certainly not the way I did. I loved them beyond my ability to express it. As the years passed and I met more and more exceptional people sitting in the center of their own hurricane I saw they all shared this same sensibility. None of them could actually know the force of their own work.
Dolenz was also in the studio during a Sgt. Pepper session, which he mentioned while broadcasting for radio WCBS-FM in New York (incidentally, he interviewed Ringo Starr on his program). On February 21, 1967, he attended the overdub and mixing session for the Beatles' "Fixing a Hole" at EMI's Abbey Road studio 2.[122]
During the 1970s, during Lennon's infamous "lost weekend", Lennon, Ringo Starr, Micky Dolenz, Harry Nilsson and Keith Moon often hung out together, and were collectively known in the press as "The Hollywood Vampires".[123]
Paul McCartney can be seen in the 2002 concert film Back in the U.S. singing "Hey, Hey, We're The Monkees", the theme from The Monkees television show, while backstage.
The Monkees "Cuddly Toy" and "Daddy's Song" were written by songwriter Harry Nilsson. "Cuddly Toy" would be recorded several months before Nilsson's own debut in October 1967.[44] At the press conference announcing the formation of Apple, the Beatles named Nilsson as both their favorite American artist and as their favorite American group. Derek Taylor, the Beatles' press officer, had introduced them to Nilsson's music.[124]
In 1995, Ringo Starr joined Davy, Peter and Micky to film a Pizza Hut commercial.[125]
Julian Lennon was a fan, stating at the time of Davy Jones' passing, "You did some great work!"
Doctor Omega
Member: Rank 10
I had no idea that they were a manufactured pop group for many years.
That HEAD soundtrack album sounds crazy, but worth a listen.
I think I have finally forgiven Dolenz for being the producer of METAL MICKEY!!
https://www.imdforums.com/threads/metal-mickey-1980.4359/
That HEAD soundtrack album sounds crazy, but worth a listen.
I think I have finally forgiven Dolenz for being the producer of METAL MICKEY!!
https://www.imdforums.com/threads/metal-mickey-1980.4359/