Monkees

The Monkees were a US pop band created in the wake of the Beatles, with their music underpinning a TV show that aped the style of the British group's cinema debut A Hard Day's Night. Michael Nesmith (1942-2021), Peter Tork (1942-2019), MIcky Dolenz (1945- ) and Davy Jones (1945-2012) starred in the TV show from 1966-8, made a number of LPs, some of which have undergone reassimilation since their original releases, and had a string of successful, tuneful hits on both sides of the Atlantic.
They were originally seen as plastic and throwaway and for some time it was widely believed they did not perform on their own recordings. However, Nesmith and Tork both had ability and credibility as musicians, and Dolenz had a keening, vibrant vocal sound that became a distinguishing feature of the group's sound. In the second series of their TV show, they invited a variety of guests, including Frank Zappa and Tim Buckley. Their LP Headquarters (1967) is adventurous and unusual for the time in that it contained no tracks released as singles, while the single Pleasant Valley Sunday was a biting critique of middle-class America. All of this belies their reputation as a manufactured product, and their unsuccessful yet under-rated psychedelic movie Head (1968) is a deliberate attempt to dispel the myths that had surrounded them. 
== Links To Peel ==
Peel played their music occasionally during his time at Radio London, but does not appear to have had any particular liking for the band. One of their early hits, I'm A Believer (1966) The only Monkees single to reach number 1 in the UK charts., was covered in sparse style during a Peel session by Robert Wyatt and was subsequently released as a single, while Nesmith's composition Different Drum was covered by and became a Festive Fifty entry for the Lemonheads. In addition, Last Train To Clarksville was a stage favourite of the Russians.
== Festive Fifty Entries ==
*None
== Sessions ==
*None
== Other Shows Played ==
;Monkees
*01 July 1967: 'Alternate Title (7")' (RCA) An alternately twee and raucous tune originally titled Randy Scouse Git as a reference to the TV series Till Death Do Us Part. (JP: 'Don't forget, if you meet the Monkees, tell them John Peel sent you, and they'll look at you very strangely and ask you to leave the room.')
*02 August 1967: 'Pleasant Valley Sunday (7")' (RCA)
*23 June 1982 (Mark Ellen): Randy Scouse Git
;Michael Nesmith
*06 February 1971: unknown (sourced from David Cavanagh's Good Night & Good Riddance book)
*01 February 1972: Mama Rocker (LP – Tantamount To Treason, Vol. I) RCA Victor SF 8276
*04 February 1972: Bonaparte’s Retreat (LP – Tantamount To Treason, Vol. I) RCA Victor 
*28 July 1972: Keep On (LP – The Hits Keep On Coming) RCA Victor
*04 August 1972: Bonaparte’s Retreat (LP - Tantamount To Treason Vol. 1) RCA
*07 March 1974: Continuing (LP - Pretty Much Your Standard Ranch Stash) RCA Victor
== Covered ==
(The list below was compiled only from the Cover Versions page of this site. Please add more information if known.)
Artist | Track | First Known Play
*Dickies: She 24 January 1979
*Farm: Stepping Stone 10 April 1990
*Ludichrist: Last Train To Clarksville 26 October 1988
*Plastics: Last Train To Clarksville 04 May 1981
*Sid Vicious: Stepping Stone 03 December 1979
*WC Fields Memorial Electric String Band: I'm Not Your Stepping Stone 09 April 1997
*Wedding Present: Pleasant Valley Sunday 01 May 1992
*Robert Wyatt: I'm A Believer (session) 26 September 1974
;Michael Nesmith (writer) 
*Lemonheads: Different Drum (Greenbriar Boys, Linda Rondstadt, etc) 24 May 1990
== See Also ==
*Record Collection: V&A LPs
*Disc & Music Echo: Peel Columns
== External Links ==
*Wikipedia
*Home Page
*Official site
;Footnotes
Category:Artists
Category:Covered