The new Monkees LP, 'Good Times!' is co-produced by Adam Schlesinger of Fountains of Wayne and features songwriting contributions from the likes of Rivers Cuomo, Noel Gallagher, Paul Weller and Andy Partridge. Best of the bunch, however, is 'Me & Magdalena', a bewitching gem of a pop song, written by Ben Gibbard of Death Cab For Cutie. Micheal Nesmith and Micky Dolenz handle the vocals. Sublime.
When we were far younger than we are now, but old enough to know better and had reached the required level of insobriety after an evening's imbibing, a group of my closest friends and I - collectively known as the Furious Five - would stand in a line outside the pub, arms around each other's shoulders and do the 'Monkee Walk'. This consisted of stepping out straight-legged, right-left-right-left, whilst bellowing 'Here we come....walking down the street....', as per a brief moment from the opening credits of The Monkees TV show, until we all broke down laughing. This would mark the conclusion of the night's festivities and would happen two or three nights a week!
The Furious Five are now scattered around the South East of England, so geography prevents us from performing a memorial 'Monkee Walk' to mark Davy Jones' passing, but I'm sure wherever they were and whatever they were doing yesterday when they heard the sad news, each of my former drinking chums would have taken a moment to remember a time when we were all a little less burdened by life - and were a good deal sillier.
R.I.P. Davy Jones.
Here's a favorite Davy-led Monkees tune featuring Neil Young's dazzling fretwork.
