Micky Monday

re: MICKY DOLENZ:

Last Friday we gave away three pairs of tickets to see Micky Dolenz live at B.B. King's in New York City to a few lucky Forgotten Hits readers. (Tickets were courtesy of The David Salidor Company, a big supporter of our efforts here in Forgotten Hits!)

Since then we've been receiving some GREAT reviews of the show ... which was filmed, by the way, for an upcoming live DVD and CD release. (More details on that as they become available ... we'll let you know how and where you can get a copy.) 

Micky's also got a brand-new album out called "Remember" ... FH sneak-peeked a couple of tracks from that CD a few weeks back. Dolenz also did a great interview with Scott Shannon on The True Oldies Channel last week.    

And, with the upcoming Monkees reunion tour kicking off in a few weeks (with bandmates Peter Tork and Michael Nesmith onboard) ... and a return to the stage in "Hairspray" ... Micky is ALL over the place again right now ... in what can only be called a very successful media blitz! (WTG, Mick ... I have ALWAYS loved your stuff ... and am SO happy to help spread the word.) 

Here are a few recent concert reviews that we received from our lucky winners ... as well as a few other FH Readers who were at the show.  (And thanks to everybody for sending in so many great pictures ... and video!):  

Kent,

Thank you so much for the tickets to see Micky Dolenz at B.B. King's Friday night. The seats were great and the show was excellent! Micky opened with a low-key version of "I'm A Believer," which at first had me concerned about the show's energy level. But I needn't have worried ... Micky and his excellent band injected plenty of vitality into a wide array of Monkees songs, mostly those sung by him originally, but also including, as a tribute to the late Davy Jones, "Daydream Believer" and "A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You." One of Micky's background singers was his sister Coco, who also joined him for a duet on "Bye Bye Blackbird," the first song the two had every learned, taught to them by their mother when they were kids. Coco also sang Mike Nesmith's "Different Drum," the song that became a hit for Linda Ronstadt after the Monkees' producers refused to let them record it, calling the song "crap." Micky and the band also did a credible version of "Purple Haze" after Micky related the story of how Jimi Hendrix had been enlisted to be the opening act on the Monkees' 1967 tour. Micky's between-song patter brought back some of his and the group's history in a humorous and self-effacing manner. All in all, it was a great evening of entertainment by one of rock 'n' roll's '60s icons. The performance was recorded for a live album and video, so those who weren't able to attend in person will eventually get a chance to experience the show for themselves. (Attached is a photo of Micky on stage.)
-- Randy Price 

Hi Kent!
I just wanted to thank you for the amazing opportunity to see Mickey Dolenz at BB King's last night. The show was fabulous, more so since Mickey was making a live cd and video of this concert (a first for him), so we all really felt that we were participating in an "event". I have seen Mickey perform before, but my husband has not, and he was blown away by his versatility, presence and talent (not to mention his fabulous band and sensational CoCo). I loved that Mickey began and ended his show with "I'm a Believer", and everything in between was a home run. How lucky for me that I was in the right place at the right time!
Thanks again!
Claudia 

Great time - THANK YOU SO MUCH!  
Micky Dolenz live at BB Kings; 10/19/2012  
Let me preface this article / review by admitting my lifelong love of The MONKEES musically and personally. I have always contended that Micky is the most under-rated voice in rock & roll history and should be in the R&R Hall of Fame for his vocals alone.

New York radio personality Jim Kerr intro'd the show and announced it would be recorded for future release as both a CD and DVD.

Micky fronted a 6-piece band with Dave Alexander on keyboards and background vocals. They began the show with I'm a Believer and went right into 1986's That Was Then This Is Now. The band kicked into full throttle with the third song, She, and kept the ball rolling with Words. Micky played tambourine on all of these and didn't really talk to the crowd until the next song - and first ballad of the night - Sometime in the Morning.

He talked about all the great songwriters that contributed songs to the MONKEES catalogue, and surprised the crowd with the delightfully cabaret DW Washburn, composed by Leiber and Stoller.

Micky strapped on the acoustic guitar for Last Train to Clarksville and gave proper credit to the song's writers Boyce & Hart for creating The MONKEES' sound.

Johnny B Goode followed, which he explained was his audition song for the MONKEES.

For Purple Haze Micky recounted the story about seeing Jimi Hendrix and inviting him to open

for The MONKEES tour. It made sense right? Both were theatrical acts. Well, as the often-heard tale goes, all the little girls screamed "We want Davy" throughout Hendrix' set and it wasn't long before Jimi was no longer the opening act. Tonight the band went back to the song and played it completely.

Micky has a new album out and he mentioned it briefly, Remember, and he also talked about his previous release, King For a Day, a collection of songs by Carole King.

Micky introduced his sister Coco and they dueted on the first song their parents taught them to sing a cappela, Bye Bye Blackbird. They segued into an Every Brothers song written by Carole King, Crying in the Rain.

Micky continued to give credit to songwriters but this time pointed out Mike Nesmith's songwriting skills and told the story of the Nez-penned Different Drum, which was passed on by The Monkees producers and became a huge hit for Linda Ronstadt in her first band The Stone Poneys. It was sung by Coco and she didn't just do it justice, she rocked it better than Linda.

From the new CD came Micky's sultry and jazzed up version of the song The MONKEES rejected, Sugar Sugar. It is a unique take on Ron Dante's bubblegum classic with some unexpected changes and even comedic flavor.

It wouldn't be a Micky show without him talking about The Beatles, which paved the way for Randy Scouse Git and his reference to "the kings of EMI." Here we were given a completely novel arrangement of the MONKEES favorite which somehow failed to hit the mark.

It was then that Micky talked about about missing his friend and brother Davy. A few notes of I Wanna Be Free made way for Daydream Believer into A Little Bit Me A Little Bit You.

Micky returned to The Beatles and the time he sat in on an Abbey Road Studios recording session where John Lennon affectionately called him "MonkeyMan." Someone mentioned that they expected him to do The Beatles' Good Morning Good Morning but instead he rocked out on the bluesy and ballsy Oh Darling.

A less than animated Goin Down followed and Coco came back for Jefferson Airplane's White Rabbit. Grace Slick would have been proud.

Stepping Stone was next and Micky played guitar once again. After the song he did some shout-outs to people in the crowd, including his friend, actor Tony Danza.

The set ended with Carole King's still brilliant Pleasant Valley Sunday.

The band returned to encore with Listen to the Band wherein Micky introduced the members of his group. He then gave a spirited version of Spencer Davis' Gimme Some Lovin', explaining he's playing it "because I like it." To close the night, Micky said "I sang the song long before Shrek," and reprised a short I'm a Believer which had a large segment of the audience standing and dancing. He left the stage while the band ended with The MONKEES signature closing number, For Pete's Sake.

If there was any criticism of the show it was that for a proposed live recording, Micky seemed a bit too laid back. More energy from him would have resulted in a more electric crowd but it was a wonderful show nonetheless.

It whet one's appetite for the upcoming Monkees concert dates with Micky / Peter / Mike, and, for diehard fans, the National Davy Jones Memorial MONKEES Convention (with Micky and Peter as Special Guests of Honor) coming March 1-3, 2013 (www.MonkeeConvention.com).

-- Charles Rosenay

MICKY DOLENZ LIVE AT B.B. KING’s - 10-20-12

I’ve seen Micky Dolenz several times in the past few years and have really loved every single show. First: His voice which Rolling Stones, yes, Rolling Stone, called one of the best in rock ‘n roll, never fails to surprise. The Guardian in the U.K. last year compared his voice to a magical mix of Roy Orbison and Freddie Mercury; and, in many ways, he’s never sounded better than today. I’ve always been struck his exemplary choices of song styles; “I’m A Believer” rocks, but his choice of songs like, “D.W. Washburn,” from Smokey’s Joe’s Café (written by Leiber and Stoller), is nothing sort of impeccable. Last night he appeared at B.B. King’s with his band; he’d appeared there before at numerous charity events (i.e., Rockers On Broadway) but, last night was his first as the headliner. Also promised in the show were several numbers from his excellent new album Remember. And, as the icing on the cake, the whole show was being recorded as a live CD / DVD for release.

After a tremendous introduction by Q104.3’s Jim Kerr – a Dolenz confident for many years and arguably one of the nicest guy in radio - Micky joined his band on stage beginning with “That was Then, This Is Now” for what one of his best and strongest shows ever. Wearing a elegant-John Varvatos jacket, hat and tinted-glasses, Dolenz began on a somewhat reserved note, but built strongly and quickly had the crowd behind him in fast fashion. He deftly segued into “She” which the crowd went crazy for. This Boyce/Hart song is always a crowd pleaser and last night, it was rendered as good as ever. A highlight of his show was his take on the famous Archies’ record “Sugar, Sugar,” recreated for his new album; as a saucy and suggestive dance. As he told it from the stage, it could well have been a Monkees song, but the powers-that-be at the time didn’t make it happen, but the song had long continued to fascinate him and as he told this story to the album producer David Harris; Harris then created this wonderful new take on the Ron Dante-song. The crowd went into overdrive. Having listened to the 1969 original, probably too many times (but, hey, who hasn’t) his take was a most welcomed re-configured version. Micky calls Carole King’s “Sometime In The Morning” his “Layla.” It’s a lovely song and he re-creates it lovingly again on the new CD. “Last Train To Clarksville” followed and the few remaining audiences members who weren’t yet into the show came into the fold. “Purple Haze,” “Cryin’ In The Rain,” his sister Coco performing “A Different Drummer” and “White Rabbit” followed to much applause. Then came his tribute to fallen-Monkee Davy Jones, which included “Daydream Believer” and “A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You.” The sudden and unexpected death of Jones is still sinking in and a cold and sobering chill shot through the venue as he performed these songs in proper remembrance; the re-grouped Monkees tour next month, will indeed be a somewhat different affair. Needless to say, it should be some show to see, with Mike Nesmith back in the fold. Then came, perhaps my favorite part of the show, with his take on The Beatles’ “Oh Darling,” and his new take on his song “Randy Scouse Git,” featuring a breathtaking guitar solo from Wayne Avers; who without question is Micky’s secret weapon here. It’s easy to see why he has so ably backed Dolenz for quite some time; his whole band, including Dave Alexander, Rich Dart, Coco, and, David Billings, just stellar. I have to say that this current version of his solo band is the best I’ve yet seen. It was quite an audience too with actor Tony Danza and entourage sitting front and center applauding Micky’s every move; for those who don’t know or recall, Micky’s eldest daughter Ami appeared with Danza in the 1989 movie She’s Out of Control. We also saw Micky’s able assistant Jane Blunkell and PR-mouthpiece David Salidor running about as well. Steve Walter from The Cutting Room was present too. Great night; tremendous show. It was indeed a magical night.  

-- From The Improper's Winchester

 

Another great offer for your Forgotten Hits readers, Kent. Wish I could attend ... maybe Micky will come into the south on this tour -- or a future one.

Did you know that my good friend, and long time Beach Boys / Brian Wilson band leader, Jeffrey Foskett, produced Micky's 2010 album, "King For A Day?"

Jeffrey just completed the well reviewed Beach Boys 50th Anniversary world tour -- and in most reviews I read, was consistently mentioned as one of the main contributors to the show. He's an enormously talented musician and singer ... and has become Brian's 'go to' man on stage. Jeffrey's strong vocals can often be heard on youtube.com clips and other 'live' recordings that have been leaked to the Internet over the past few years.

Have a great weekend.

Fred

Music City, USA

Yep, I love the job Jeff did on Micky's album ... and got a chance to tell him so when he appeared here with Brian Wilson last year. A VERY talented guy who never gets quite all the attention and respect he deserves ... but WE know!!! (Kinda like Micky ... one of the BEST voices in rock and roll ... but always underrated because he was a Monkee on a TV show. I'd put him up against any of the vocalists of the '60's ... and he sounds just as strong ... or stronger ... today.)

I wish we could have seen this show ... sounds like a good one. I've never been to B.B. King's ... maybe we can cash in on a chance to see him next time he's here in Chicago! (Anybody got some tickets for the Monkees Reunion Show at The Chicago Theater coming up???) kk

We got these amazing photos from dis company to share with our readers:

 

And one more from Stuart Hersh ... 

And here's a clip of Micky performing MY favorite track from his new album ... "Sugar Sugar" ... live at B.B. King's Friday Night (courtesy of David Lewis):