Blog - Monkees Live Almanac

Happy New Year from the Monkees Live Almanac

12/31/2012

Dogfish beer!

Thanks for all of the kind emails about the site and for continuing to visit. November and December were the biggest months yet for the Live Almanac in regards to number of visits, emails, and contributions. Please continue to stop by!

Feel free to contact me anytime or in the event you wanted to share something with the site.

Michael Nesmith Gretsch

Peter Tork

Micky Dolenz

Davy Jones 1969

Billboard Live update

12/31/2012

Just updated the Billboard Live '96 page. I recently came across an interview Nez gave to the Chicago Tribune in December 1996 which contained a lot of great quotes from him. I incorporated those quotes into the summary, so it has been expanded quite a bit. Check it out!

1987 Rhino Records Monkees poster

12/31/2012

This poster promoted two new releases that year: Missing Links, a collection of previously unreleased Monkees songs, and Live 1967, featuring recordings from the band's 1967 summer tour.

New vinyl: "Selections from the Headquarters Sessions"

12/30/2012

Recently released on red colored vinyl by Rhino Records, Selections from the Headquarters Sessions features the following tracks:

Side 1
1. All of Your Toys (mono)
2. The Girl I Knew Somewhere (mono)
3. Cripple Creek
4. Randy Scouse Git (alternate mix)

Side 2
1. Nine Times Blue (demo)
2. Until It's Time For You to Go (demo)
3. Midnight Train (demo)
4. No Time (second version w/backing vocals)

The original Headquarters Sessions was a 3-CD limited edition set (4,500 copies) released by Rhino back in 2000, which is long out of print and sold out.

Updates to the site

12/30/2012

Hello everyone,

There are some additions to the photo galleries of the following tours: '66 Promotional, 1969, 1986 20th Anniversary, 1987 North American, 1989 US, and 2012.

I've also added the KHJ audio file featured in a blog post from yesterday to the 1966 Promotional Tour page. (You'll see it towards the bottom of the summary.)

Finally, the DJBH tour program is now featured as its own section on the DJBH page.

Andrew Sandoval podcast remembering Davy Jones

12/30/2012

Be sure to check out this podcast recorded by Monkees archivist Andrew Sandoval on his "Come to the Sunshine" program that aired after Davy passed away. It's a very nice tribute to him, and the show also includes some unique alternate mixes ("Time and Time Again" and "French Song" being two of them).

You can listen to more of Andrew's "Come to the Sunshine" episodes and check out the program on Facebook, too.

Nez through the years

12/30/2012

Today is Michael Nesmith's birthday. He was born on this day in 1942.

Michael Nesmith Monkees 1968 Australia

Australia 1968

Nesmith Monkees 1969

With the Gibson in 1969

Mike Nesmith 1970

1970

Michael Nesmith Pacific Arts

'80s Producer

Mike Nesmith Nudie suit

Solo in the '70s

Michael Nesmith 1980s

'80s Businessman

In honor of Davy Jones

12/30/2012

On this day in 1945, Davy Jones was born in Manchester, England.

Davy Jones

Davy Jones Monkees Wembley 1967

Wembley 1967

Davy Jones flower field

Davy Jones maracas

1967

Monkees Hollywood Bowl

Hollywood Bowl soundcheck in 1967

Davy Jones Monkees 1967

Live in '67

Rare early Monkees radio spot for KHJ Radio!

12/29/2012

Los Angeles radio station KHJ staged a promotional event for The Monkees before their television series debuted on September 12, 1966. A contest was held to meet The Monkees. Contest winners rode on a train to the coastal town of Del Mar, California, which had been renamed 'Clarksville' for the day by the town's mayor. Landing on the beach in two helicopters and dressed in their signature double-breasted shirts, the band met approximately 400 winners of KHJ's radio contest. After the event, the group traveled by train with the contest winners back to Los Angeles. On one of the train cars, The Monkees gave their first true live public performance.

This is a rare radio advertisment for the event!

The Monkees in Detroit 1967

12/29/2012

Monkees concert Detroit riot

The Monkees were originally scheduled to perform at Detroit's Olympia Stadium on July 29, 1967 but the show was canceled due to rioting.

In the above picture, you can see The Monkees advertised on the marquee as members of either the U.S. Army or the Michigan National Guard pass the stadium.

The Monkees returned to Detroit and played a rescheduled concert at 3:30pm on August 13, 1967. The footage below surfaced on YouTube in March 2022 and is thought to be from the Detroit concert (though officially unconfirmed):

Monkees in the studio in 1968

12/29/2012

These photos come from the last time all four Monkees would gather in the same recording studio until the sessions for Justus in 1996. The group recorded "Ditty Diego," a parody of the theme song to their television show, for the Head soundtrack in July 1968.

Micky Dolenz recording studio

Monkees Peter Tork studio

Monkees recording studio

Micky and Peter

Monkees recording session

(Photo courtesy of Al Bigley)

Monkees 1968 recording session

Micky and Peter

Peter Tork piano

Peter Tork live in New York City '82

12/29/2012

Peter appeared with his band, The New Monks, at the Bottom Line Club in New York City on March 11, 1982. Head was screened that same evening as a special added attraction.

Peter Tork New Monks

(Photo by Joe Russo)

From my YouTube channel comes a clip that includes coverage of this very performance:

People magazine and Micky remember Davy

12/29/2012

This comes from the year-end issue of People. Thanks to Micky Dolenz Forever for this...

Davy Jones People

Monkees West publication (#1, Spring 1987)

12/28/2012

Monkees West was a mini-magazine published by a variety of people including Gary Strobl (longtime Monkees collector) and Gene Ashman (wardrobe designer on The Monkees television series). There were only two issues ever released. Here is the first from the spring of 1987. It includes a recap of the 1986 Reunion Tour, an interview with rock photographer Henry Diltz, and a spotlight on the "Hitting the High Seas" episode.

The second issue can be found here. For easier reading, click on each image and then click on it again.

Monkees West

Monkees West publication

Davy Jones Monkees 1986

Monkees 1986 Tour recap

1986 Monkees Tour recap

Monkees news 1987

Micky Dolenz Monkees 1986

Monkees 1986

Henry Diltz interview

Henry Diltz interview

Hitting the High Seas Monkees

Monkees Hitting the High Seas

Hitting the High Seas pictures

Peter Tork Monkees 1986

Take a look inside the 1997 U.S. tour program

12/28/2012

The entire 1997 U.S. tour program is now available for viewing on the 1997 U.S. Tour page.

Monkees 1997 tour program

Another limited edition Davy Jones 45...this time from Friday Music

12/26/2012

Friday Music Davy Jones single

If you missed the Rhino limited edition "Girl"/"Rainy Jane" green vinyl single from earlier this year, Friday Music is taking pre-orders on a variation of it, this time with red vinyl.

More information can be found here.

Update on Friday Music Monkees vinyl reissues

12/26/2012

Courtesy of the Michael Nesmith Fan Page on Facebook, we are able to take a look at the recent yellow vinyl reissue of The Monkees Present by Friday Music.

Monkees Present yellow vinyl

The yellow vinyl and cover

Monkees Present yellow vinyl gatefold

Inside the gatefold album

Several other Monkees albums have recently been released on vinyl by Friday Music, including Instant Replay, Changes, Pool It! and Justus.

On a side note, I've read less than stellar reviews of the packaging for both Instant Replay and Justus (grainy photos, etc.) that I've decided to skip these items (though apparently they do sound fine). If Friday Music does it right all around, I'll be interested.

Merry Christmas & Happy Holidays from The Monkees Live Almanac

12/23/2012

Monkees Christmas picture

Davy Jones Monkees Christmas

Monkees Christmas

1967 (Screenshots courtesy of Sunshine Factory)

(Above) Performing "Riu Chiu" in 1967

Monkees Riu Chiu song

(Above) The complete 1967 Monkees "Christmas Show" episode

Monkees Christmas

1967 Ladies Home Journal (Courtesy of Al Bigley)

Monkees Christmas 1986

1986

1968 Australian Tour photos

12/23/2012

Photographer Colin Beard has recently released some photos of The Monkees while on tour in Australia in late 1968. Check them out in the 1968 Australia/Japan photo gallery here.

More on Nesmith tribute album

12/23/2012

Here's an article about the upcoming Michael Nesmith tribute album.