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The latest release from 7a Records, Micky Dolenz & The Metropole Orchestra: Out of Nowhere, is now available on both compact disc and as a limited edition 180 gram vinyl picture disc. 7a co-founders Iain Lee and Glenn Gretlund recently posted audio samples on SoundCloud. On April 15, 2017, Micky performed with the American Metropole Orchestra at Rice Auditorium in Salem, Oregon, as part of the Smith Fine Arts Series. The orchestra was led by conductor Keller Coker, and he was assisted by Wayne Avers (Monkees/Dolenz musical director and guitarist). The show was recorded by 7a in order to preserve this unique performance and commemorate it with a special live album release. And now, thanks (as always) to Ben Belmares, you can take a look at the LP version of Out of Nowhere below. Thanks, Ben!   (Click to enlarge)  (Click to enlarge)  
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Last evening, Micky Dolenz headlined the 18th Annual Winter’s Eve at Lincoln Square in Manhattan. Joining him onstage were Coco Dolenz, Wayne Avers, Dave Alexander, John Billings, and Rich Dart. Thanks to Fred Velez for sharing this video with the Live Almanac! Michael Nesmith previously announced that a revamped First National Band would return to the concert stage this January, and now three more shows have been added to the itinerary. Click each poster below for more information and to purchase tickets.
 (Click image above to watch the scene - screenshot courtesy of The Sunshine Factory) Davy Jones guest-starred on Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In on February 10, 1969, in an appearance that had been taped the previous month.  (From the March 1969 issue of Tiger Beat - click image to enlarge) Mike's American flag shirt brings heat, Monkees on Vietnam, and Davy reveals the story behind "Head"11/25/2017 In the January 1969 issue of Tiger Beat, editor Ann Moses brings you the latest about The Monkees:  (Click image to enlarge)  Mike Nesmith performing during The Monkees' tour of Australia in 1968 (Photo by Peter Carrette) In its December 27, 1966 issue, Look magazine published a feature on The Monkees with quotes from each member of the group as well as Raybert co-founder Bert Schneider. The article also includes photos from an October 18, 1966 recording session at RCA Hollywood staged for reporter Betty Rollin. With Michael in the producer's chair flanked by Don Kirshner and Lester Sill, an attempt was made to add Micky, Davy, and Peter's backing vocals to Michael's song, "Mary, Mary," but things quickly unraveled. Andrew Sandoval documented this event in his book, The Monkees: The Day-by-Day Story of the '60s TV Pop Sensation, and audio from it will finally see the light of day on the upcoming super deluxe edition box set for the group's sophomore album, More Of The Monkees: "The Monkees wisecrack their way through a series of rehearsals - labeled 1A-4A and noted on the box as 'no good' - and seven 'real' takes. The antics of Davy and Micky are legitimately funny, but after 20 taped minutes, Nesmith says, "Honest to God, no shit - let's cool it." The overdub session would eventually come to a halt, and no group backing vocals for "Mary, Mary" would be included in the final take of the song.  (Click each image to enlarge)    Above and top right: The October 18, 1966 vocal session for "Mary, Mary" In an August 2016 interview with Rolling Stone, Peter talked about The Monkees' third #1 single, 1967's "Daydream Believer": "This comes from what I called the 'mixed-mode' period. The first one was the Don Kirshner mode where he oversaw the records and everything was under his control. Then we did Headquarters where it was just us. 'Mixed' was us and some pros in the studio. With 'Daydream Believer,' I was on the piano and I came up with this opening lick which I thought was just sparklingly original. When you play it today, everyone thinks of 'Daydream Believer.' "What really makes the song work, I think, is the chord change on 'Jean' in 'Cheer up sleepy Jean.' It goes from a IV chord to a V chord to a III. That's a very unexpected and sweet chord change. It really grabs your attention. Then there's the line, 'What can it mean to a daydream believer and a homecoming queen.' It doesn't go right in your face, but when you think about it you figure it out. You're like, 'Okay, the guy is in a workaday world and he's got his head in the clouds. His girlfriend was a homecoming queen, but they're still scratching.' You don't get all that until you think about it for a long time.
"Davy sings this one, and he was such a talented guy, and a good actor. He was probably the best actor among us. He probably had the best musical mind, too. The best brain and maybe the best heart. "
On November 14, 1967, Colgems Records issued Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn & Jones Ltd.:  The Monkees' last original single on Colgems, "Oh My My," was released in April 1970. The group's fanbase had shrunk considerably by this time, and the song received limited airplay and suffered even worse sales figures. Debuting on the Billboard chart on June 6, 1970 at #99, it peaked at #98 the following week. 
The Troubadour sold out in less than an hour. I am amazed and grateful thanks to all of you.
The Troub has 500 saleable seats and it was at the Troub that I was Hootmaster for the first year I was in LA. I hung out there while working around LA, and it was the place of a very important event in life. I write about it in Infinite Tuesday. I had struggled along as a singer/writer and was wondering if I had made the right choice for my life -- and consequently my wife, then pregnant with Christian. I had returned from a weird trip playing high school assemblies across Texas -- to a crooked manager who stole my money -- so Phyllis was broke and starving and I was too. I went into a kind of meltdown, where everything I thought was up for grabs, and reconsideration. I was also physically sick, with what I will never know, so sick I couldn't get out of bed. Slowly I pulled back together, and by the inspiration of Love, Phyllis for me and me for Phyllis, and a Life force beyond the veil, I lifted up enough to write, to think, and to pray. When I was well enough I went down on a Monday night to the Hoot, met the new hootmaster, and secured a spot on that evening's roster. I played four songs: Different Drum, Papa Jean's Blues, Nine Times Blue, and Propinquity. In IT I describe , in some detail that night, but the gist of it was to experience the elements of a live performance I had not known existed. The audience gave me a rising approval throughout the set, each round of applause louder and more appreciative than the last, until by the end of that short set they were screaming for more -- but I had no more, so I bowed low and walked off stage grateful -- and as a changed man. That show made me sure I was on the right path toward a distant light, gave me and Phyllis hope, led me to the events that followed, and has since guided me in the arts. Those 500 people in those 500 seats, on that night, opened a door for me. 500 seats does not seem like a lot in the scheme of stadium rock, but as a friend said to me yesterday, the same who gave me the news of the rapid sell-out, those are a special 500 seats, the "right 500" seats. ​ I can't wait to see you there and play those four songs one more time and to thank you yet again for what has been given to me. |
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