Friday Night Jukebox, Vol. CCLXXXVIII--The Monkees: Daydream Believer

There are probably seven or eight songs by the Monkees that I could have chosen for this week, but as I am wont to do, the one I chose is probably the most tops of the pops tune they ever had (though some might argue differently...)--which is really saying something for a band that had numerous top forty hits.

The Monkees formed in 1966 as a fictional band for a television show, and with a little prodding on their part and a dollop of the almighty dollar, they eventually became a real band (kind of like the story of Pinocchio...).  They were often vilified at first in the music press as nothing more than a prefab band, but as time wore on they have garnered more and more critical praise, and even have a number of folks who believe they belong in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.  Due to creative differences (which seemed to be a problem for the length of their career) they split in 1971.  In 1986, thanks to MTV and Nickelodeon airing reruns of their TV show, they had a massive career revival, which resulted in most of their albums charting again and a new greatest hits package reaching #21 on the Billboard 200.  They would go on to have numerous reunion tours through the years, and are still on the oldies circuit as of this year.  For their career, the Monkees released 13 studio albums (the first four all reached #1), eight live albums, and thirty-one compilations.  They also had 19 single released, with three hitting #1, a #2. and two #3's.  Sadly, original members Davy Jones (heart attack in 2012) and Peter Tork (cancer, 2019) are no longer with us, but Michael Nesmith and Mickey Dolenz soldier on.  For all the critical grief the Monkees took early in their career, many consider their television show to be ahead of its time, they are considered forerunners of the music video format (check out the video for this week's tune below), their film Head is considered a cult classic, and they count the Beatles as well as a number of punk bands among their fans.

Fun Fact:  Bob Rafaelson, one of the creators of the Monkees, used money made from the television show to help finance Easy Rider and later to finance and direct Five Easy Pieces, which in turned helped usher in the New Hollywood movement as well as make Jack Nicholson a star.  So in a roundabout way...

"Daydream Believer" was released in 1967 on the Monkees' album The Birds, The Bees, & The Monkees.  It would eventually reach #1 (with a bullet!) on the Billboard Hot 100, and was the last #1 hit the Monkees had.  

Written by John Stewart (who would have a few hits on his own over the course of a very long career), "Daydream Believer" is a slice of life song, a man going about his day and telling his lady love that as long as they've got each other they've got all they need.  After a quiet piano opening, Davy Jones (who hated the song and thought it had zero chance to be a hit) sings it like a dandy pop song should be sung, and the rest of the band makes the the chorus sugary sweet.   No one is going to confuse "Daydream Believer" with "Like a Rolling Stone," but in the annals of pop music, I'd be hard pressed to name a better pop ditty.  Catchy, sweet, winsome--a daydream believer and a homecoming queen...hell, yeah.

Lyric Sheet:  "Oh, I could hide 'neath the wings/Of the bluebird as she sings/The six o'clock alarm would never ring..."

Enjoy:

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emaycee