The Monkees

(Translated from my original Italian text by Ornella C. Grannis)

The Monkees were one of the most shameless artistic swindles perpetrated by the record industry of the 60s, but like most other bands of that era, they ended up being influential just the same. Such is the power of money and marketing.

The Monkees were put together exclusively for marketing reasons. In the beginning they neither played nor sang their own material. Don Kirshner, the powerful song publisher of the Brill Building, like many others, had been caught unprepared by Beatlemania. Determined to react, he moved his headquarters to Los Angeles where he contracted young authors, such as Neil Diamond, Tom Boyce and Bobby Hart, and hired the best session men in circulation. Committed to repeat the Beatles phenomenon, he followed the easier path: he selected four photogenic boys, he made his staff write and play catchy and lively songs a la Beatles, and launched a television program along the lines of the Beatles movies, in which the four American teens emulated the surrealistic spirit of their English rivals. The program became a hit almost immediately, and American youth grew up intoxicated by the ditties that served as soundtrack for the adventures of four goofy kids.

Formed in 1965 by Texas-born Mike Nesmith, Micky Dolenz, Peter Tork and Davy Jones, the Monkees debuted on television in the fall of 1966. Their first album, The Monkees (October 1966), had already been recorded. To put it together, at least five great composers of the Brill Building had been employed. From November 1966 to June 1967 (for 31 weeks!) the album charts constantly showed them in first place, in particular their second album, More (January 1967). On that album the four Monkees really appeared only on the cover, but the music was indeed a great imitation of the Merseybeat. The duo Boyce and Hart wrote The Monkee`s Theme (1966), Last Train To Clarksville (1966) and Stepping Stone (1966). Neil Diamond wrote I'm A Believer (1966) and John Stewart wrote Daydream Believer(1967). The Monkees often pretended to sing them, and on few occasions even managed to do so.

After a year of phenomenal success the laboratory creatures revolted against their masters. Mike Nesmith, after having written Different Drum (1967) for Linda Rondstadt, demanded that the Monkees be allowed to write and play their own material. Consequently their third album, Headquarters (May 1967), was released, half written, sung and played by the group, and unfortunately much inferior to the two first two. Pisces Aquarius Capricorn & Jones Ltd (November 1967) includes Pleasant Valley Girl but the rest is as horrendous as the previous one. The group composed country-rock and pop songs that would make even the Beatles blush. The soundtrack of the surreal film Head (December 1968), contains perhaps one of Nesmith's better song, Circle Sky, almost garage rock in style. Head remains by far their most original album, as well as a traumatic testimonial of that time. Mike Nesmith even released the instrumental album Wichita Train Whistle Songs (Dot, 1968), to demonstrate that he was not just a smiling face. But nobody took him seriously and, aside from Listen To The Band (1969), it marked the beginning of the end.

Greatest Hits (Arista, 1969) contains all the hits.

Justus (Rhino, 1996) is an album of revenge: the four Monkees write all the material, they play it, they arrange it, they sing it. It even includes hard-rock (Admiral Mike by Nesmith). Only a distant echo of the old Monkees remains, every so often, in some choruses.