The Monkees were an American rock band that released music under its original incarnation between 1966 and 1970, with subsequent reunion albums and tours in the decades that followed. Assembled in Los Angeles in 1965 by Robert "Bob" Rafelson and Bert Schneider for the American television series The Monkees, which lasted 2 seasons from 1966-1968, the musical acting quartet was composed of Americans Micky Dolenz, Michael Nesmith, and Peter Tork, and Englishman Davy Jones. The band's music was initially supervised by producer Don Kirshner.
Described by band member Micky Dolenz as initially being "a TV show about an imaginary band that wanted to be The Beatles, that was never successful", the actor-musicians soon became a real band. As Dolenz would later describe it, "The Monkees really becoming a band was like the equivalent of Leonard Nimoy really becoming a Vulcan."
For the first few months of their almost five-year initial career, the four actor-musicians were only allowed limited roles in the recording studio, mainly to allow all four members to sing the songs. This was due in part to the excessive time spent filming the TV series, which in turn limited the amount of time available to the group to rehearse and coalesce as a band. It was very common in the L.A. music scene of the time for session musicians to perform backing tracks for a variety of top 40 bands. Nonetheless, Michael Nesmith did compose and produce some songs from the beginning, and Peter Tork contributed limited guitar work on the Nesmith-produced sessions.
They soon fought for and earned the right to collectively supervise all musical output under the band's name for the vast majority of the band's career. In addition to the singing that they were already doing, this allowed all four members to play instruments, produce songs, and record and release songs written by all four individual members, as they saw fit. They would often return to session musicians due to time constraints and the independently diverse musical visions of each member. The group also undertook several concert tours, allowing an opportunity to perform as a live band as well as appear on the TV series. Although the show was canceled in 1968, the band continued to record music through 1970, releasing their last single under their original incarnation in 1971.
In 1986, their 20th year, the television show and music experienced a revival, which led to a series of reunion tours and new records featuring various incarnations of the band's lineup. In 1997, all four members reunited for a new album, television special, and tour. A smaller-budget tour occurred in 2001. In 2011, for their 45th anniversary, band members Davy Jones, Micky Dolenz and Peter Tork reunited (beginning in Liverpool) for a critically and commercially successful tour that sold out multiple venues. It would be the last tour with Davy Jones, who passed away on February 29, 2012. Micky Dolenz stated that "just before the untimely passing of Davy Jones, all four of the original group were contemplating another reunion."
The Monkees had a number of international hits which are still heard on pop and oldies stations. These include "(Theme From) The Monkees", "Last Train to Clarksville", "I'm a Believer", "(I'm Not Your) Steppin' Stone", "A Little Bit Me, a Little Bit You", "Pleasant Valley Sunday", and "Daydream Believer". In 1967, at the height of "Monkeemania," Their albums and singles have sold over 65 million copies worldwide.
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