Micky Doing Theater

If you were wondering what has happened to former Colgems alumni--and especially former members of the Monkees, Colgems' most successful act--this news flash came over the wire from something called TheImproper Music.

"Micky Dolenz, child television actor and star of a 1960s sit-com about a fictional band called, “The Monkees,” is heading to London’s West End, where he will appear in the hit musical Hairspray, TheImproper has learned.

The musical has had a hugely successful three-year run at the Shaftesbury Theatre. Dolenz will take the part of Wilbur Turnblad, the father of Tracy Turnblad.

Tracy, the show’s protagonist, is a cheerful, rotund high school student whose only desire is to make the cut as a dancer on a 1960s television dance show.

In the hit 2007 movie version, Wilbur, a genial joke-store owner was played by Christopher Walken, and Tracy was played by Nikki Blonsky.

Dolenz, was a child actor in Hollywood, who starred in a 1960s sit-com about a fictional music group called The Monkees.

The show, which played off the fame of The Beatles was a smash success and the cast formed a real-life musical group that scored a number of top hits. Dolenz will be on familiar ground on stage.

He has appeared in productions of "Grease," "Aida," "Pippin’" and "A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum."

Dolenz most recently has been touring in “Teen Idol,” a show featuring hit music from the 1960s with former Herman’s Hermits frontman, Peter Noone and Mark Lindsay, former lead singer for Paul Revere and the Raiders.

He’s also wrapping up a tribute album to legendary singer/songwriter Carole King, entitled King For A Day. The album will be released around the time of his London-debut in February 2010.

In its three-year run, the West End’s version of Hairspray has won more than 40 awards.

In addition to Dolenz, actor Brian Conley will return on the same date as Tracy’s voluptuous mother, Edna. Pop legend Belinda Carlisle, formerly of the Grammy winning, all-girl band, The GoGos has been playing vain villainess Velma Von Tussle.

London has thoroughly embraced the show. The smash-hit recouped its entire £3.5 million investment in a record-breaking 29 weeks. The show opened on 30 Oct. 2007 to universal critical acclaim.

At the 2008 Olivier Awards, the UK equivalent of the Tony Awards, Hairspray won “Best Musical” as well as “Best Actor in a Musical” for Michael Ball, and “Best Actress in a Musical” for LeAnne Jones.

The Broadway version of Hairspray, based on a 1988 movie by John Waters, won eight Tony Awards in 2003, and was adapted to the big screen by New Line Cinema, starring John Travolta in 2007.

Set in 1962 in Baltimore, Md, “pleasantly plump” teenager Tracy pursues stardom as a dancer on a local TV show and rallies against the show’s policy of racial segregation."

Good luck to Micky! He had much success in England in the 1980s as a director, and now he is returning.

We will miss him while he is there.

This Month's Colgems Upload - Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn & Jones Ltd. (stereo LP)

Here is this month's Colgems upload of the Monkees' fourth and most mature LP, "Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn & Jones Ltd." It came out nearly 42 years ago on Nov. 25, 1967 and it was their fourth, and final, No. 1 album on the Billboard Top Albums chart.

The album was originally supposed to be a bit more expansive, and was set to include "Special Announcement," another "Zilch/Band 6"-type filler, and "Goin' Down," the Monkees' James Brown opus that was written by all the band members and Diane Hildebrand. However, the LP was finally pared down to 12 tracks, plus Peter Tork's lone vocal contribution, "Peter Percival Patterson's Pet Pig Porky," which was one of many such vocal meanderings that he recorded, and one of the few that actually was released back then. (He also did several variations on something called "Alvin," but those only came out much, much later.)

The use of the moog synthesizer was prevalent throughout the recording of this LP, and it is credited with being the first rock album to use this instrument. Whether that is true or not, it was certainly the first No. 1 rock album to feature it prominently.

Here is what Wikipedia had to say about it:

"The album is particularly interesting for the pioneering use of the Moog synthesizer, which Micky Dolenz introduced to the group and played in the studio; he owned one of the first twenty ever sold. Pisces is perhaps the first hit rock or pop album to feature the Moog. In any event, Pisces is one of the first few commercially issued recordings in any musical genre to feature the instrument. Micky Dolenz plays the synthesizer on "Daily Nightly" and electronic musician Paul Beaver plays the Moog on "Star Collector."

This album probably marked the zenith of the band's popularity, although more successes were yet to come, through a couple of singles which cemented their legacy as one of the top pop acts of their time.

You can access this album at http://launch.groups.yahoo.com/group/albumania/.

More Monkees next month.

This Month's Colgems Upload: Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn & Jones Ltd. (Mono)

Here is the latest upload of one of the Monkees' mono albums, "Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn & Jones Ltd." The LP was their fourth long player, and also their fourth, and last, number one album.

Some people consider this LP their best LP, but at the very least, it continues the high level of offerings that the band gave their fans beginning with the "Headquarters" LP.

However, this album was a bit different from its predecessor. While the Monkees showed the world that they could basically do it all with "Headquarters"--play their instruments, write the music--here, they basically went back, to an individual approach, where each song was crafted with different musicians.

Although the band played on many of the tracks, the "team" approach from the previous effort was not in evidence here, or certainly not in evidence to the extent that it was on the previous LP.

Here, Michael Nesmith really took the reigns as the band's guiding light. Most of the tracks have his stamp on them, either as a writer, singer, musician, producer, or all four, and the results are surprisingly fresh and vibrant. There is no other Monkees LP that exudes the confidence of this one, and it was clearly evident that Micky, Davy and Peter were running with Mike's notion that they could be a band--but here, they didn't have to use the team approach used in the previous effort to do it.

The tracks basically speak for themselves, led by "Pleasant Valley Sunday," which some claim is the group's finest song. The Carole King/Gerry Goffin tune's message--the boredom of suburbia--resonates, and the punch that Micky gives to the song with his vocals is classic.

Two older retreads--"She Hangs Out" and "Words"--are polished up and given new life on this album, and the Nesmith songs--most prominently "The Door Into Summer," which was contemplated as a possible single--are among the best tunes in his Monkees canon.

And who can forget the slightly psychedelic meanderings of "Daily Nightly" and "Star Collector"? The former certainly predated the future punk movement, while the latter is simply a tour de force between Micky and Paul Beaver, the moog synthesizer pioneer. And yes, this was probably the first pop/rock album to prominently feature the synthesizer, which at the time was something quite unique.

The only missing piece on the album, I believe, is that Peter Tork is pretty much missing in action on the LP. He does do the "Peter Percival Patterson's Pet Pig Porky" to the hilt, and instrumentally, he is on most of the tracks. But for some reason, the giant steps he took as a singer and songwriter on "Headquarters" is pretty much not in evidence here.

Otherwise, this album is pop/rock at its poppiest, and it stands as one of best albums ever released in this genre.

You can access the album at http://launch.groups.yahoo.com/group/albumania/.

This Month's Colgems Upload: Headquarters (Stereo Album)

Here is the Monkees' third album, and third consecutive No. 1 LP. The tracks were taken directly from the vinyl that I have had in my collection for the past 42 years. You can access this album at http://launch.groups.yahoo.com/group/albumania/.

When I uploaded the mono version of this release, I went into a short history of the LP, so I won't do that again. But what I will talk about this time around is the possible reasons why a single was never released from this album in the U.S.

I don't know what the actual reason was, but I think I can come up with a few reasons why no song off this album came out as a 45 in the U.S.

First, I think that the Monkees were riding high at the time with "A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You"--a song which was contemplated for inclusion on the album but was scotched by the band as a result of the Don Kirshner fiasco--and slightly later, "Pleasant Valley Sunday." So, the group had singles on the chart, so there was no need to add another.

Second, I think that the Monkees looked at the what the Beatles had done with "Rubber Soul"--no singles either--and thought they could do the same, which would add to their credibility.

Third, I think Colgems, in its own way, may have wanted to punish the Monkees, blaming them for the Don Kirshner fiasco, and one way to do that was to release the LP without any singles.

Certainly, whatever the reason was, the album had its share of possible singles.

In Europe and elsewhere around the world, "Randy Scouse Git"--known as "Alternate Title" due to its risque title, at least in Europe--was a huge hit across the globe, and it gave credibility to not only the Monkees as a whole, but to Micky Dolenz as a songwriter. This is just what the band had been looking for, and I think Colgems knew this.

Anything on side two of the record--unquestionably the finest side of music the band produced during its short lifespan--would have qualified as a single (less "Zilch" of course). "For Pete's Sake," which was used as the TV show's second season closing theme, was a simply incredible track, and it was partly written by Peter Tork. "Sunny Girlfriend," one of Mike Nesmith's poppiest compositions, would have qualified too.

But the song what would have worked the best was, I think, way too controversial for Colgems liking. "Shades of Gray" would have been a great single, but I think the record company might have been worried about its anti-war sentiment to put it out as a 45.

As it is, it stands as one of the Monkees' greatest songs, on what is probably their best album.

This Month's Colgems Upload: Headquarters (Mono LP)

Here is the Monkees' third album, Headquarters, in glorious mono. You can access the album at http://launch.groups.yahoo.com/group/albumania/.
This was their third consecutive No. 1 album, and it is, perhaps, the most significant piece of vinyl that they put out during their short period as a musical entity.

The story is pretty well known by now. The Pre-Fab Four wanted to be more than just actors in a TV show and singers on their albums. They wanted to have complete and total power over their music, meaning that not only would they pick the tunes, but they would sing and play on them too.

Don Kirshner, who was the svengali engineering the Monkees' early successes, held firm, believing that the best way for the foursome to continue their chart dominance was to follow the same formula of having them sing on their albums, on songs that were chosen for them, with only occasional instrumental participation. He felt that this was the right way to go, with only Michael Nesmith really contributing as an all-around performer, writing, producing, singing and playing on one or two self-penned tracks per album.

Give Nesmith credit. He could have stayed back, accepted the benefits of being the only Monkee to really contribute to their success musically, and all would have been fine and good. Instead, as the leader of the group, he felt that the talents that Peter Tork, Davy Jones and Micky Dolenz brought to the table were extremely viable and important, and he wanted the public to know that the Monkees were a talented unit beyond the TV show.

He got his wish. Kirshner was fired from his position as their musical supervisor, and RCA, Colgems and NBC put their faith in the foursome, and Headquarters is the result.

The Monkees, now a real band, played on each track, with help from several outside musicians. They wrote or co-wrote several of the tracks, and pretty much picked which tracks they wanted included on the disk.

Monkees fans just love this album, and I think, personally, it is probably, at least, their most fun LP to listen to from top to bottom, and it may very well be their best album in total.

Almost every track is a highlight, but incredibly, the tunes written by bandmembers Nesmith, Tork and Dolenz stand head and shoulders above the rest.

"Sunny Girlfriend" and "You Told Me" are Nesmith's poppiest concoctions, ear-friendly flower power odes to that time and place.

Dolenz's "Randy Scouse Git," known around the world as "Alternate Title," reflects his out-of-left-field songwriting talent, as he sings about a party he had attended where the Beatles held court. The song's title is Liverpudlian slang, and it was banned from the radio under this name in Europe and elsewhere, thus the change to the rather strange alternative name.

And Tork ... co-writing "For Pete's Sake" also showed a side of him that probably few knew existed. Used as the Monkees' closing theme during their second season, the song talks in general about freedom, but you kind of get the idea that Tork is also singing (through Dolenz) about his own personal freedom as a musician.

Although Jones didn't write any of the songs, he and Tork both shine on "Shades of Gray," maybe the Monkees' most mature tune to date.

And the Monkees wanted everyone to know how much fun they had creating this LP, and included "Zilch" and "Band 6" to demonstrate this camaraderie that they now enjoyed.

One note: "No Time" was credited to Hank Cicalo, a music engineer who worked tirelessly on the album. In reality, the Monkees wrote this tune, but gave it to Cicalo as a gift. RCA was not happy about this, but they eventually went along with this. Years later, Cicalo said that the inclusion of his name as the writer of the song proved a windfall to him, so much so that he bought a house with the money he earned from this "credit."

The album vaulted to No. 1 without the benefit of a single released culled from the LP. Any of the above-named tunes would have worked, but the band was so hot then that singles released weren't even matching albums that were available--"Pleasant Valley Sunday" finds it way to their next album.

And the LP is the answer to a major trivia question: what album did the Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band supplant as the No. 1 album in America? The answer is Headquarters.

And there was some minor controversy over a "beard" cover that snuck its way out into stores, showing Micky, Peter and Mike with some shaggy growth. Reportedly, that album came out in 1968 or 1969 as a rerelease, and is highly sought by collectors, although it is not that uncommon.

What could the Monkees do to follow this effort up? Find out next month.

Most Sought After Colgems Soundtrack?

Now that I have been doing this blog for a couple of years, I have found that some monthly uploads get a roar of approval, while others come and go with a complete thud.

However, there is one soundtrack that keeps going strong, even though I think few of us have ever seen the movie that it is the soundtrack to.

The Interlude soundtrack is one of the rarest records on the Colgems label. The soundtrack is to a 1968 film starring Oskar Werner and Barbara Ferris, and at least in the U.S., the film seemed to have a somewhat short run, even though it generally garnered pretty good reviews.

It features both classical and movie pop tunes. I didn't think it would be to everyone's taste, but I was wrong.

I get asked about this soundtrack about once a month, mainly from those outside of the U.S., who fondly remember the film.

No, I have yet to see it, but if you want the soundtrack, it has been posted here at one of my sites for many months:

http://movies.groups.yahoo.com/group/Colgems2/

If anyone has any fond memories of the film, please share it with us. I have never seen the movie, but I am getting to the point where I must find this film somewhere to see if, at least for me, the soundtrack merits such attention.

New Upload: The Monkees "More of the Monkees" (stereo album)

Here is this month's upload, the stereo LP version of their multi-million selling "More of the Monkees" album, the second of their four number one LPs.
Again, this version that I have posted came directly from the LP that was released in 1967 and not from any updated CD source.

Although pretty much the same as its mono counterpart, I found many of the mixes here to be a little punchier than what was found in mono, including "Your Auntie Grizelda" and "Look Out (Here Comes Tomorrow)."

However, I personally prefer the mono mix of "I'm a Believer" and '(I'm Not Your) Steppin' Stone," and since those tunes were definitely mixed with radio airplay in mind, it doesn't surprise me one bit that the mono mix is, at least in my mind, far superior than the stereo mix, even if the 45 mix is the one that got the airplay.

Again, the Monkees were at their height of popularity when this came out, but troubled waters loomed ahead. The Monkees wanted more control of their music, and wanted it at all costs, no matter who was put out to dry by their insistence on their own creativity.

This insistence was soon to lead to a bit of chaos, but what came forth was one of their better--if not their best work--during their relatively brief existence.

You can access the "More of the Monkees" stereo album at http://launch.groups.yahoo.com/group/albumania/files/Monkees/

More next month.