Happy Birthday to the Monkees‘ Micky Dolenz, who turns 73 today (March 8th)!!! Micky Dolenz will always be best remembered for singing lead on such group classics as “(Theme From) The Monkees,” “(I’m Not Your) Steppin’ Stone,” “Pleasant Valley Sunday,” along with the Monkees’ first two singles — and chart toppers, “Last Train To Clarksville” and “I’m A Believer.” Over the years, Micky has appeared in such Broadway, regional, and touring casts of Elton John and Tim Rice‘s AIDA, Pippin’, Grease, A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum, and Hairspray. In recent years he’s also performed a solo revue of Monkees classics with his sister Coco.
Micky Dolenz and Mike Nesmith recently announced their first ever tour as a duo, dubbed — “The Monkees Present: The Mike & Micky Show.” The 16-show run kicks off on June 1st at Chandler, Arizona’s Chandler Center for the Arts and winds down over three weeks later on June 25th at Red Bank, New Jersey’s Count Basie Theatre. Peter Tork will not take part in the tour. Instead, he’s focusing on promoting his new album, Relax Your Mind, by his band Peter Tork & Shoe Suede Blues that honors the music of Lead Belly.
Earlier this week, Mike Nesmith posted a message on Facebook on the upcoming duo tour, which reads in part: “The set list doesn’t exist yet. (Micky) and I will sit around and sing try to find out what makes sense with the two of us — maybe the occasional guest. If all goes as planned I think we will put together a fine show. I love singing with Mick. . . As I say I suppose we will play the deep cuts from the Monkees catalog — and songs (Micky) & I have written over the years. . . I’m looking forward to the trip and to seeing Mick appear singing along beside me in the same room. One of my life’s gifts and blessings.”
Last November, Dolenz released his latest album, Micky Dolenz & The Metropole Orchestra: Out Of Nowhere. The album features new takes on such Monkees favorites as “Last Train To Clarksville,” “Sometime In The Morning,” “D.W. Washburn,” “A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You,” “(I’m Not Your) Steppin’ Stone,” “Porpoise Song,” “Randy Scouse Git,” “Daydream Believer,” “Pleasant Valley Sunday,” and “I’m A Believer” — along with covers the Beatles‘ “Hey Bulldog” and Lenny Welch‘s “Since I Fell For You.”
In 2016, the Monkees scored their biggest hit in 48 years with their latest album, Good Times! The set, produced by Adam Schlesinger from Fountains Of Wayne, is the band’s highest charting album since 1968’s The Birds, The Bees, And The Monkees, hitting Number 14 on the Billboard 200 album chart, and debuting at Number Six on Billboard Top Albums chart. Good Times! features songs the group passed over back in the day from such heavyweights as Carole King & Gerry Goffin, Harry Nilsson, and Neil Diamond. The main draw of the new album is the inclusion on newly written songs by such “modern” songsmiths as Weezer‘s Rivers Cuomo, Oasis‘ Noel Gallagher, Paul Weller, Death Cab For Cutie‘s Ben Gibbard, XTC‘s Andy Partridge, and Adam Schlesinger.
