The Monkees - Live Summer Tour
They enter like a Vegas nostalgia act, but these Monkees don't monkey around.Live Summer Tourcaptures Mickey Dolenz, Davey Jones, and Peter Tork in high spirits, still going strong 35 years after they (along with absentee Michael Nesmith) were assembled as TV's infamous "Prefab Four." They're backed by a solid band, but this performance proves that the Monkees were always a legitimate pop ensemble. Peter plays guitar, keyboards, and banjo with equal facility (his vocals remain charmingly average); Mickey's a decent drummer (and "Goin' Down" is still his vocal dazzler); and Davey drives the little girls (now middle-aged) into a fond teen-idol reverie. Recorded in summer 2001, this hour-long set is surprisingly polished, blending pop rockers ("She Hangs Out") with ballads ("Daydream Believer") and even a bit of Monkees psychedelia ("Randy Scouse Git"). The comedic chemistry is still there, too, making this a lively set capped by "Pleasant Valley Sunday," still the greatest song ever written about the perils of suburbia.--Jeff Shannon