Davy Jones of the Monkees dies aged 66

Davy Jones of the Monkees sadly died on Wednesday 28 February - after suffering a heart attack.

Although Mickey Dolenz was the star of the show when we saw the Monkees earlier this year at Plymouth Pavilions, Davy was always the most popular with the fans and seemed to be thoroughly enjoying being back on tour with the band (or at least with three quarters of it).

Apart from being one of the two frontmen in a group that rivalled the Beatles for popularity during the Monkees' most successful years (those of a certain age will remember the recurring headlines in the music press during 1966/67 reporting a supposed Oasis/Blur style rivalry); he will always be remembered for his vocal on the perfect pop single: Daydream Believer.

For an interesting piece about Davy, Frank Zappa and the Monkees' movie Head take a look at the Sparks in Electrical Jelly blog. My post about the Monkees' performance at Plymouth Pavilions in May 2011 can be accessed here.

The Monkees at Plymouth Pavilions: I'm a believer

A great gig by the Monkees at Plymouth Pavilions on Monday - Previous tour dates had received lukewarm reviews but in Plymouth the guys were on good form. They adopted the Brian Wilson approach of having a large backing band to actually play the tunes but all three have still got surprisingly strong voices (compared with Brian Wilson, Ian Anderson and others) and delivered pretty much their whole catalogue of hits. plus a chunk of songs from Head, their 1968 movie.

 
Davy looked a little hunched, Micky a bit chunky and Peter a little worn but they showed no signs of the animosity that had been suggested at other gigs. The screen behind showed extracts from their TV shows and, during the Head part after the intermission, a hefty slice of 1968 psychedelia - great stuff.

Micky disappeared behind the drum kits from time to time but when he returned showed all the stage presence of an old trooper. He led the final sequence of hits and the audience loved it. A nostalgic but not maukish evening of great hits. Brilliant.

 

While you're at it, why not try a couple of psychedelic Monkee-related tracks. The first is Psychedelatrip's version of Carole King's 'The Porpoise Song' from Head (some serious phasing here).

The second is Lola Dutronic's version of 'The Porpoise Song' (best on headphones), complete with underwater belly dancing?   Far out, man ...

But if it's nostalgia you're after, try this: The original video for 'I'm a Believer'.

Hey, Hey, we're the Monkees!

The Monkees (well three of them, anyway) are doing a 45 year anniversay tour.









This clip from Jools Holland's Later shows what they were like in 1967 and how they look and sound now.

We're going to see them at the Plymouth Pavilions tomorrow night - Will report back ... Link to report