The Monkees assembled to be the stars of an American television series of t… Read Full Bio ↴The Monkees assembled to be the stars of an American television series of the same name, which ran on NBC from 1966 to 1968. The original lineup was: Micky Dolenz (drums, vocals), Michael Nesmith (guitar, vocals), Davy Jones (percussion, vocals) and Peter Tork (bass, keyboards, vocals) . The Monkees were formed in 1965 in Los Angeles, California and initially disbanded in 1970 at the conclusion of their recording contract. At their peak they were competing with The Beatles for the top spot on album charts.

In the years since their original disbanding, the group has reunited in various incarnations, mostly involving Dolenz, Tork and Jones, but not Nesmith. The first reunion began in 1986 and at first featured only Micky Dolenz and Peter Tork. Davy Jones joined the others and a new album was released before they split again in 1989.

The next regrouping took place between 1993 and 1997 and featured a new album that included the particpation of all four members. A further reunion between 2001 and 2002, was followed by another reunion in 2011 to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the television show. This reunion was cut short before 2011 had ended due to scheduling problems with the anniversary tour.

The unexpected death of Davy Jones at the beginning of 2012 prompted the most recent reunion tour, this time featuring Dolenz, Tork and Nesmith.

Created by producers of a TV series to be an American Beatles, the antics of the Monkees band members on the television series were very reminscent of Beatles' antics in films like 'Help' and 'Hard Day's Night'. Indeed, in songs like 'Forget that Girl...', the band and even the lead singer could sound just like the Beatles. With songs provided by Don Kirshner from such writers as Neil Diamond and Carole King, among others, the Monkees were assured of pop success. However, in the beginning, the four group members were hired only as actors to front the band and to provide the vocals whilst studio musicians recorded the backing music. These recordings were provided by Kirshner. Things changed though after the success of the single Last Train to Clarksville, the first hit, leading to demands that the band play live gigs. Having learned to play the music, the band became angry when the second LP was recorded (by Kirshner) by studio musicians, without their knowledge or musical input. They therefore demanded and obtained control of the music.

Nesmith who revealed that the band did not perform on their records was also instrumental in getting Don Kirshner sacked. the next album Headquarters was recorded by The Monkees alone, using hand picked producer Chip Douglas. While not as successful as their first two albums it made it to number one, only to be replaced a week later by The Beatles' Sgt Pepper album. The Monkees eventually settled on a formula of using their own talents as well as those of studio musicians. After two seasons the network and the group could not reach agreement on the format of a third season and the show was canceled even though the ratings were still high. A feature film named Head co-written by The Monkees, Jack Nicholson and Bob Rafelson) followed.

Peter Tork was the first to leave the band, in 1968, during 1969 The TV show went into Saturday morning reruns and the three remaining Monkees recorded two more albums. in 1969 Nesmith departed and began a serious foray into merging country and rock music. He also eventually developed a format that became MTV. By the way his mother invented a product called Liquid Paper, sold it to the Gillette Company for $47 million dollars then died a year later leaving the money to her only son. The remaining two Monkees Dolenz and Jones recorded one last album named Changes in late 1969.

There has, however, been a resurgent interest in The Monkees' music Rhino Records has been instrumental in restoring all their albums, adding bonus tracks, and equipping them with complementary liner notes and stories.

Davy Jones died on February 29, 2012 in Indiantown, Florida.

Peter Tork died on February 21, 2019, at his home in Mansfield, Connecticut.

Michael Nesmith died on December 10, 2021, in Carmel Valley, California.

DISCOGRAPHY (from www.themonkees.net):

The Monkees (1966)
More of The Monkees (1967)
Headquarters (1967)
Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn & Jones, Ltd. (1967)
The Birds, The Bees & The Monkees (1968)
Head (1968)
Instant Replay (1969)
The Monkees Present (1969)
Changes (1970)
Then & Now...The Best of the Monkees (1986)
Pool It! (1987)
Live 1967 (1987)
Justus (1996)
Good Times! (2016)

midnight
The Monkees Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Deep in the bayou en route to LA
The merchandise is changing sides
People are hiding and waiting all day
'Til midnight comes around
That's when it's coming down
And the dreams of a boy
And his shortcut to easy street will die

Back in the city, she's biting her nails
Taking it hard - he's doing it for her
She didn't ask and all he would say
It's what he had to do
To make her dreams come true
But a whisper went 'round on the dark side of town
And anything that could go wrong
Is going wrong right now

Midnight when it all comes down
Only the brave and the fools are around
Midnight when it all comes down
Poor little fool, his bravery won't help him now

Touchdown on the water and into the trees
He's come so far and this is the easy part
Just gotta follow the flashlight he sees
And that's where he gets paid
His fortune will be made
But a house in the country
And an acre of green
Will always be a dream
They never even knew his name

Midnight when it all comes down
Only the brave and the fools are around

Midnight when it all comes down
Poor little fool, his bravery won't help him now

Overall Meaning

The Monkees's song "Midnight" is about a man who is participating in a shady transaction in the bayou. As the city is agonizing over his safety and his partner in the deal is fretting about the outcome, the man is focused on successfully completing the task. He has come too far to fail now. He knows that midnight is the time when everything will be accomplished, either good or bad. His dreams of quick riches will be smashed if things don't go as per his plan. Even though the man's bravery and risk-taking abilities have brought him this far, they won't be enough to save him if anything goes wrong.

On the other hand, the man's counterpart in the city is watching the clock nervously and is worried that something might have happened to him. She is doing it all for him and is biting her nails, hoping for a successful and lucrative outcome. She just wants her dreams to come true, even if it means doing something illegal.

There is an element of danger in the song, as it describes the criminal underworld, deceit, and lawlessness. The midnight setting adds to the sense of adventure and risk-taking, as the man is trying to finish the mission before the clock strikes twelve. Ultimately, it's clear that while the man may have dreams of an easy life, getting involved in this kind of illicit business will only lead to failure and, ultimately, his demise.

Line by Line Meaning

Deep in the bayou en route to LA
In the Louisiana swamp, on the way to Los Angeles

The merchandise is changing sides
Illegal goods are being transferred from one group to another

People are hiding and waiting all day
Those involved in the transaction are concealing themselves and biding their time

'Til midnight comes around
They are waiting until the midnight hour

That's when it's coming down
The exchange or deal is going to take place at that time

And the dreams of a boy
A young man's aspirations

And his shortcut to easy street will die
His chance to attain a comfortable lifestyle will be destroyed

Back in the city, she's biting her nails
In the urban area, a woman is nervously awaiting news

Taking it hard - he's doing it for her
She is upset because he is taking risks for her sake

She didn't ask and all he would say
She did not request this and he would not provide any additional information

It's what he had to do
He felt it was necessary to do this act

To make her dreams come true
To fulfill her aspirations

But a whisper went 'round on the dark side of town
Rumors circulated among the seedy individuals of the city

And anything that could go wrong
Even the slightest problem

Is going wrong right now
Is currently happening

Midnight when it all comes down
The hour when everything will be resolved

Only the brave and the fools are around
The bold and reckless are present during this time

Poor little fool, his bravery won't help him now
The naive individual's courage will not assist him in this dangerous situation

Touchdown on the water and into the trees
He arrives by boat and enters the wooded area

He's come so far and this is the easy part
He has completed most of the journey and this should not be difficult

Just gotta follow the flashlight he sees
He only needs to pursue the guiding light he observes

And that's where he gets paid
The location where he will be compensated

His fortune will be made
He will acquire his wealth

But a house in the country
A residence in a rural area

And an acre of green
And land with flourishing vegetation

Will always be a dream
Will forever remain an unachievable aspiration

They never even knew his name
No one ever recognized or identified him

Lyrics © Ultra Tunes, BMG Rights Management, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: BYRON BURKE, BYRON STINGILY, C. JACKSON, HERB LAWSON, ORBERT DAVIS

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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