Report and photos from San Francisco comedy festival with Micky Dolenz and Michael Nesmith1/13/2020
SF Sketchfest, a comedy festival currently underway in San Francisco, paid tribute to The Monkees yesterday afternoon as Micky Dolenz and Michael Nesmith participated in a Q & A session led by author Paul Myers:
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 Pete Finney and Michael Nesmith at Lobero Theatre, Santa Barbara, California (Photo by Paul Wellman) And here's some footage from the recent run of concerts by Nez and the First National Band Redux at the Fremont Theater in San Luis Obispo, California, thanks to Lisa Duclo:  (Photo by Henry Diltz)  Nez & FNB silkscreened poster (Image courtesy of Jodi Ritzen)
Singer, songwriter, and pioneer, Michael Nesmith, will visit the GRAMMY Museum for an intimate discussion on his celebrated career and recent work, moderated by Scott Goldman. Following the discussion, Nesmith will perform live. Starting in the Texas folk scene in 1963, Nesmith quickly blossomed into a brilliant tunesmith during his time on the Emmy award-winning The Monkees. His melodic, country-tinged songs were regularly featured on the band’s multi-million selling albums and singles, but he heard a greater creative calling to find his own voice as a record maker. During 1968, Nesmith ventured to Nashville and formed the band the First National Band (pedal steel virtuoso Red Rhodes, bassist John London, and drummer John Ware). After being signed to RCA by A&R man Felton Jarvis, the band released a few critically acclaimed albums, including Magnetic South (1970), followed by Loose Salute (1970) and Nevada Fighter (1971), which spun off the chart hits “Joanne,” “Silver Moon,” “Nevada Fighter” and “I’ve Just Begun To Care (Propinquity).” In January 2018, Michael Nesmith sold out The Troubadour in West Hollywood, performing his First National music for the first time in four decades. Songs like “Different Drum” (a Top 20 hit for Linda Ronstadt & The Stone Poneys), “Some of Shelly’s Blues” (covered by the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band), and The Monkees’ classic, “Papa Gene’s Blues” filled the room with warmth and splendor. Nesmith will once again perform this music and share stories from his recent autobiography, Infinite Tuesday, while on tour in October 2019.
UPDATE 10/2/2019: Here is video of the performance portion from Michael's appearance last night at the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles. The set list included "Different Drum," "Joanne," "Some of Shelly's Blues," "Silver Moon," and "Papa Gene's Blues." Nez was backed by the First National Band Redux.
And earlier today, the Grammy Museum tweeted about Michael's appearance:
Micky Dolenz and Michael Nesmith concluded the most recent leg of "The Mike & Micky Show" with a sold-out performance in Sydney, Australia at the famed Sydney Opera House. Thanks to photographer Bob King for allowing his photos to be shared on the Live Almanac's blog!  (Photo by Bob King)  (Photo by Bob King)  (Photo courtesy of West End Celebration on Facebook)  (Click the image above for more information about West End Celebration) Photos: "The Mike & Micky Show" live at the Palais Theatre, Melbourne, Australia on June 15, 20196/17/2019  (COPYRIGHT: CARBIE WARBIE — Photo used BY PERMISSION — with Carbie Warbie) "With Micky and me, it was love at first sight," says Nez. "We just clicked and we'd always be making silly jokes. We'd joke that one day we'd do the Mike and Micky Show – and here we are."  (Photo by Sherri Hansen) Review of "The Mike & Micky Show" in Brisbane, Australia + Louie Shelton makes guest appearance6/13/2019
Brisbane, Australia (Photo by Linda Groundwater)
"The Mike & Micky Show" has arrived Down Under! Micky and Nez will commence their tour of Australia and New Zealand this Saturday in Christchurch, New Zealand. The duo appeared on Australian news program The Project earlier today:
The Monkees' official Facebook page shared some photos of today's promotional activities in advance of opening night:
Micky and Michael were also guests on The Conversation Hour, a podcast which can be downloaded through the link below:
 (Photo by Sherri Hansen) On May 4, Micky Dolenz and his band (Coco Dolenz, Wayne Avers, Rich Dart, John Billings, and Dave Alexander) performed at Haugh Performing Arts Center in Glendora, California. Thanks to Jason Cunningham for the set list, and to Lisa Golden for the photo! Mary, Mary That Was Then, This Is Now A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You Sometime in the Morning Words Randy Scouse Git Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band The Girl I Knew Somewhere Last Train to Clarksville Johnny B. Goode (Chuck Berry) Purple Haze (Jimi Hendrix) Me & Magdalena (sung by Micky and Coco) Different Drum (Michael Nesmith - sung by Coco while Micky took a break) Take a Giant Step For Pete’s Sake (Dedicated to Peter Tork) Steppin’ Stone Kicks Goin’ Down White Rabbit (Jefferson Airplane - sung by Coco while Micky took a break) Daydream Believer (Dedicated to Davy Jones) Pleasant Valley Sunday Gimme Some Lovin’ (The Spencer Davis Group) I’m a Believer  Dave Alexander, Micky, and John Billings onstage in Glendora, California (Photo by Lisa Golden)  Los Angeles / September 2016 (Photo by Sherri Hansen)  (Photo by Sherri Hansen)  (Photo by Daniel Coston) Monkees photographer extraordinaire Sherri Hansen has shared with the Live Almanac her photos from Micky Dolenz and Michael Nesmith's performance at the Royal Oak Music Theatre in Royal Oak, Michigan on March 12, 2019. As many of you know, Sherri's photos are first-class and they have appeared on this website and many, many other outlets over the last several years. You'll also see pictures of the band in this slideshow - enjoy! Last evening Michael Nesmith, Micky Dolenz, and their band brought "The Mike & Micky Show" to a packed house at The Beacon Theatre in New York City. Thanks a lot to Renny Simno for sharing his photos from the show:     Here's a photograph of the merchandise table at the Beacon. Most of the items that were previously sold during the June 2018 shows are still available:  Thanks also goes to Wis Byron for sharing his video and photos from New York City with the Live Almanac:   The set list:
And here's a sampling of videos from last night's performance in New York City courtesy of Paula Carabell and Otom Izot on YouTube:  (Photo courtesy of Rediffusion)  (Photo courtesy of Cal Strummer)  (Photo by Andrew Sandoval)  Probyn Gregory is the newest member of The Monkees' troupe, joining Micky Dolenz, Michael Nesmith, and the rest of the stellar backing band as a utility player on "The Mike & Micky Show" tour when it resumed earlier this month. Probyn plays guitar, banjo, and trumpet during the current live show. Probyn is a Los Angeles-based composer and musician who for many years has been a member of the Brian Wilson Band. He has performed and recorded with The Wondermints, The Beach Boys, The Eels, Billy Joel, Eric Clapton, and numerous other artists in the L.A. power pop scene over the last three decades. Probyn played guitar on King For A Day, the 2010 album Micky Dolenz released as a tribute to Carole King, and he also appeared on three albums by Monkees archivist and tour producer Andrew Sandoval: Million Dollar Movie, What's It All About, and From Me To You. A day after Peter Tork passed away, The Washington Post published a piece by Probyn that talked about Peter and The Monkees' legacy. In it, he also revealed how he became a Monkees fan as a kid: "My own fascination with the band dates to 1966, when, at age 9, I was hit amidships by the TV show. Like many kids my age, 'Meet the Monkees' was my first album. To me, the Monkees were the zenith — the vibe, the songs, the zany humor, everything about them made me and everyone I knew the target demographic of the era. I ended up following a musical path and have, for the past 20 years, been a part of Beach Boy Brian Wilson’s band." Welcome, Probyn, to the Monkees family! Be sure to catch up with the other members of The Monkees' touring band in this previously published post.  Dan Mapp, Probyn Gregory, Alex Jules, Michael Nesmith, Pete Finney, Circe Link, Donna Dolenz, Micky Dolenz, John Billings, Rich Dart, Wayne Avers, and Christian Nesmith (Photo courtesy of Circe Link) |
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