December 7, 1993
December 8, 1993
On these days, Micky and Davy got together to record a radio commercial
for Monsanto floor covering products. Soon after this time, Davy announced
that the four Monkees would reunite for a tour. This statement turned out
to be premature.
March/April 1994
Around this time, Peter began work on his first solo album. He invited
Davy to sing backup on the song "Milkshake". However, at the session, Davy
ended up chatting the whole time, and he never got the chance to record his
vocal part!
Summer 1994
Peter continued work on his album, and Micky and Mike joined
in (on separate occasions) on backing vocals.
Both sang on "Milkshake", and Mike also sang on "MGB-GT" which had been performed
by the three Monkees during the '80s (with a live recording being released).
June 1994
At this time, Micky, Davy, and Peter agreed to reunite for a UK tour.
However, by the time all three consented, the time was too short to plan for
a June start date. So, the tour did not happen after all.
Dolenz and Jones Summer 1994 US Tour
July - September 1994
Set List:
"That Was Then, This Is Now"
"A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You"
"She Hangs Out"
"Every Step Of The Way"
"D.W. Washburn"
"(Look Out) Here Comes Tomorrow"
"Sometime In The Morning"
"Last Train To Clarksville"
"It's Nice To Be With You"
"Pleasant Valley Sunday"
"I Wanna Be Free"
"The Brady Bunch Theme"
"Girl"
"(I'll) Love You Forever"
"Too Much Monkey Business"
"Since I Fell For You"
"Valleri"
"Goin' Down"
"(I'm Not Your) Steppin' Stone"
"I'm A Believer"
"Daydream Believer"
After the proposed tour of Micky, Davy, and Peter fell through, Micky proposed this Dolenz and Jones tour. The concert basically combined elements from Davy's and Micky's recent solo tours.
September 1994
Peter Tork album release - Stranger Things Have Happened.
Micky and Mike provided some backing vocals.
Late this month, Micky proposed a tour of himself and Nesmith. However, it never came to fruition, though Nesmith did post an article on alt.music.monkees asking the fans if they would be interested in such a tour or if they would prefer a full Monkees tour in August 1995.
January 5, 1995
On this day, the four Monkees gathered together at the Hollywood Hard
Rock Cafe to accept platinum record awards for their first five albums. Rhino
Records had acquired the entire Monkees cannon from Bob Rafelson and Bert
Schneider (who had successfully sued Columbia Pictures and Arista Records
for the rights) in 1994 and had been reissuing the material. They had also
discovered that The Monkees first five albums were eligible for platinum
certification, resulting in this special ceremony with the whole group.
June 4, 1995
On this day, Micky, Davy, and Peter met in Vancouver to film a Pizza
Hut commercial with Ringo Starr.
Dolenz and Jones Summer 1995 US Tour
June - October 1995
Set List:
"That Was Then, This Is Now"
"A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You"
"She Hangs Out"
"Every Step Of The Way"
"D.W. Washburn"
"(Look Out) Here Comes Tomorrow"
"Sometime In The Morning"
"Last Train To Clarksville"
"It's Nice To Be With You"
"Pleasant Valley Sunday"
"I Wanna Be Free"
"Purple Haze"
"The Brady Bunch Theme"
"Girl"
"(I'll) Love You Forever"
"Too Much Monkey Business"
"Since I Fell For You"
"Valleri"
"Goin' Down"
"(I'm Not Your) Steppin' Stone"
"I'm A Believer"
"Daydream Believer"
Micky and Davy toured together once again.
Late July 1995
At this time, the four Monkees agreed to hire Ward Sylvester as their
manager. Ward had been Davy's pre-Monkees manager, had a large role within
The Monkees, and worked with Nesmith afterwards. At this point, a full reunion
tour was being planned.
October 1995
At this time, Nesmith backed out of the planned reunion tour, citing
upcoming lawsuits as the reason.
November 17, 1995
On this day, Micky, Davy, and Peter guested on the ABC TV show Boy
Meets World, though they did not play themselves.
Recording Sessions for Justus
Late March 1996
Los Angeles
Rehearsals
"Circle Sky", "Last Train To Clarksville", "I'm A Believer", "(I'm Not Your)
Steppin' Stone", "Pleasant Valley Sunday", "Sunny Girlfriend"
At this time, Mike, Micky, and Peter got together in a rehearsal hall in
Los Angeles just to jam. The intention was to play loud together, without
plans to record new material. They played the above-mentioned songs and other
Nesmith Monkees songs. Nesmith was the instigator of this jam session, as
a complimentary remark on the live version of "Circle Sky" by an old girlfriend
of his had spurred him on. The group also began work on a new song, though
they still did not have definite plans to record. Peter did record a demo
of the song a day after the initial jam session.
April 12, 1996
Davy Jones concert at The Flint Center in Cupertino, CA. Peter joined
Davy toward the end.
April 27, 1996
Dolenz and Jones concert at the Sports Palais in Antwerp, Belgium.
Spring 1996
Los Angeles
Rehearsals
"Circle Sky", "Never Enough", "Regional Girl", "Unlucky Stars", "Dyin' Of
A Broken Heart", "You And I", "Oh, What A Night", "It's Not Too Late", "Manchester
Boy", "Admiral Mike"
Soon afterward, the four Monkees met at Micky's house to listen to four demos
of songs he had written for an aborted solo album in the early '90s (listed
above, after "Circle Sky"). The four then continued rehearsing, seeing where
they were as a self-contained musical group. The group worked on Micky's
songs, a new song by Peter, one from Peter's brother Nick, one from Nesmith
("Admiral Mike"), and some from Davy. "You And I", recorded by DJBH was also
rehearsed, as Davy had recently recorded a version of this songs, plus "Oh,
What A Night" and "It's Not Too Late" for an upcoming solo release, Just
For The Record - Volume Four. However, the group decided to record songs
written solely by group members, disqualifying Nick's song and also "Manchester
Boy" which Davy had cowritten (and sang on the audio version of his autobiography).
At some point, Bobby Hart and Dick Eastman proffered "Good World" and "Cryin'
To Me" to Micky and "Ordinary Love" to Davy. It should also be noted that
Chip Douglas had written songs intended for The Monkees, though it is not
known whether these were ever considered.
May 10, 1996
NRG Studios, North Hollywood
"Circle Sky", "Never Enough", "Oh, What A Night", "You And I", "Unlucky Stars",
"Admiral Mike", "Dyin' Of A Broken Heart", "Regional Girl", "Run Away From
Life", "I Believe You", "It's My Life", "It's Not Too Late"
P: The Monkees
This day marked the official start of recording sessions featuring only the
four Monkees. The group continued work on the songs they had previously rehearsed
(which included "Circle Sky" with new lyrics). Also, Micky had written a
new song, "It's My Life". Peter's songs included "Run Away From Life" (sung
by Davy) and "I Believe You". Micky sang Mike's "Admiral Mike". The group
truly operated as a self-contained band, with Mike playing all the guitar
parts, Micky the drums, Peter the bass and keyboards, and Davy the percussion.
This collaboration resulted in the first true group album since the days
of Headquarters and Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn and Jones Ltd.
The result was a very honest and satisfying album, something Monkees fans
had desired for a very long time!
May - Early June 1996
NRG Studios, North Hollywood
"Circle Sky", "Never Enough", "Oh, What A Night", "You And I", "Unlucky Stars",
"Admiral Mike", "Dyin' Of A Broken Heart", "Regional Girl", "Run Away From
Life", "I Believe You", "It's My Life", "It's Not Too Late"
P: The Monkees
Recording sessions continued for the new album. Micky, Mike, and Peter worked
without Davy for a while until Davy had a chance to join the sessions. The
group recorded the basic tracks for the album before Micky, Davy, and Peter
went on tour.
Summer 1996 North American Tour (Dolenz, Jones, Tork)
June - September 1996
Set List:
"That Was Then, This Is Now"
"Last Train To Clarksville"
"(Look Out) Here Comes Tomorrow"
"Your Auntie Grizelda"
"Circle Sky"
"Solfeggieeto"
"Purple Haze"
"Since I Fell For You"
"Daddy's Song"
"Pleasant Valley Sunday"
"A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You"
"She Hangs Out"
"Goin' Down"
"Brady Bunch Theme"
"Girl"
"It's Now"
"What Am I Doing Hangin' 'Round?"
"Randy Scouse Git"
"Shades Of Gray"
"Sea Change"
"Good Looker"
"Daydream Believer"
"Listen To The Band"
"I'm A Believer"
"The Girl I Knew Somewhere"
"Heart And Soul"
"Papa Gene's Blues"
"Hard To Believe"
"I Wanna Be Free"
"(I'll) Love You Forever"
"Rainy Jane"
"Too Much Monkey Business"
"D.W. Washburn"
"It's Nice To Be With You"
"Valleri"
"For Pete's Sake"
"She"
"Long Title: Do I Have To Do This All Over Again"
"Since I Fell For You"
"Every Step Of The Way"
"It's Not Too Late"
"Higher And Higher"
"Mary, Mary"
"No Time"
"(I'm Not Your) Steppin' Stone"
Micky, Davy, and Peter hit the road once again to celebrate their 30th anniversary. Unfortunately, Nesmith could not join the other three, as he had legal problems to deal with and also disliked the prospect of an extensive tour, especially with a backing band providing much of the instrumental work. So, Nesmith took advantage of his time by mixing the band's new album while the other three were on tour. The tour was similar to the Micky and Davy tour of the previous summer with some of Peter's songs added and of course including Peter's instrumental contributions. Micky played rhythm guitar throughout. Peter played guitar and bass, while Davy played tambourine and guitar. Partway through the tour, they added one new song, Davy's "It's Not Too Late".
June 24, 1996
June 25, 1996
June 26, 1996
The Sound Stage, Nashville
"Circle Sky", "Never Enough", "Oh, What A Night", "You And I", "Unlucky Stars",
"Admiral Mike", "Dyin' Of A Broken Heart", "Regional Girl", "Run Away From
Life", "I Believe You", "It's My Life", "It's Not Too Late"
P: The Monkees
As The Monkees without Nesmith were now on tour, the group met in Nashville
on these dates to record the overdubs for the album.
August 5, 1996
August 1996
Westlake Audio, Los Angeles
"Circle Sky", "Never Enough", "Oh, What A Night", "You And I", "Unlucky Stars",
"Admiral Mike", "Dyin' Of A Broken Heart", "Regional Girl", "Run Away From
Life", "I Believe You", "It's My Life", "It's Not Too Late"
While the other three were on tour, Nesmith mixed the album and recorded
more guitar parts, sending his work to the others for approval.
September 8, 1996
Concert in San Diego, CA. This was the last public concert of the
summer.
September 12, 1996
On this very special day, the 30th anniversary of the TV show debut,
all four Monkees along with many people involved in the TV show celebrated
at a restaurant in West Los Angeles, CA.
September 13, 1996
Concert (private, for Amway) in Salt Lake City, UT.
September 20, 1996
Concert (private, for Amway) in Los Angeles, CA.
October 15, 1996
Album release - Justus.
October 21, 1996
Los Angeles
Rehearsals
"(I'm Not Your) Steppin' Stone", "Run Away From Life", "Regional Girl", "You
Just May Be The One", "Admiral Mike", "You And I", "Daydream Believer", "Oh,
What A Night", "Circle Sky", "Pleasant Valley Sunday"
Since September, the group had been planning a promotional concert, primarily
for the media. New York was the city in mind. Later, the concert purpose
was switched to focus on the fans. On this date, rehearsals began.
November 1, 1996
Concert - Vanderburgh Auditorium, Evansville, IN.
Micky, Davy, and Peter played a handful of concerts during the next couple
months, basically add-ons to the summer tour.
November 16, 17, 1996
Los Angeles
Filming - promotional videos.
The location for the promotional concert had been switched to Los Angeles
for financial reasons. The event was now for both the media and the fans and
it was to be held at the new Billboard Live club on Sunset Strip. On these
two days, performances of six songs from the new album were filmed for a
promotional music video.
November 20, 1996
Concert - Billboard Live in Hollywood, CA
Set List:
"Circle Sky"
"Regional Girl"
"You And I"
"(I'm Not Your) Steppin' Stone"
"Run Away From Life;
"Admiral Mike"
"Pleasant Valley Sunday"
For the first time in 28 years, the four Monkees performed in concert on their own. This very special short concert proved that The Monkees were indeed a real band and could hold their own musically. The concert was recorded (audio and video) and placed on the web by Rhino.
November 21, 1996
Concert - Braden Audiorium at Illinois State University at Normal.
November 22, 1996
Concert - Rosemont Theatre in Illinois.
November 23, 1996
Concert - Eagles Ballroom in Milwaukee, WI.
November 29, 1996
Concert - Tropicana Hotel/Casino in Las Vegas, NV.
November 30, 1996
Concert - Tropicana Hotel/Casino in Las Vegas, NV.
December 31, 1996
Concert - Tempe Tostitos Fiesto Bowl Block Party in Arizona.
January 10, 11, 1997
In preparation of their March UK tour, the four Monkees embarked on
a publicity tour in the UK on these two days.
January 17, 1997
Concert - Coral Sky Amphitheatre in West Palm Beach, FL.
January 19, 1997
Concert - Ruth Eckard Hall in Clearwater, FL. These were the last
two dates as a trio.
January 21-28, 1997
Los Angeles
"(Theme From) The Monkees", "For Pete's Sake", "Daydream Believer", "Antarctica",
"Regional Girl", "Last Train To Clarksville"/"Daydream Believer"/(I'm Not
Your) Steppin' Stone"/"I'm A Believer"/"Pleasant Valley Sunday"
P: Peter Tork
Filming - TV special.
ABC had signed The Monkees up for an hourlong TV special to be called Hey,
Hey, It's The Monkees. Nesmith wrote and directed the special; Micky
did the casting; Davy staged the music videos; and Peter supervised the music.
For this special, several new music recordings were made. Unfortunately, the
instrumentation was not provided by The Monkees as a group. Peter and
Mischa Segal programmed synthesizers for all parts except for the guitars.
Fast and slow instrumental versions of the theme plus instrumental versions
of "For Pete's Sake" and "Daydream Believer" were produced for use as background
music. Micky sang a new TV version of the theme song, with the album version's
verse three in place of the original TV version's second verse. During the
special, Davy sings a short parody of "Gonna Build A Mountain", his old solo
spot song. The four sing Bill Martin's "Antarctica", originally heard on
Nesmith's Television Parts in a performance by Martin. Davy also sings
"Dance With Me" in a segment of the special. For TV broadcast reason's, three
lyric changes were in order for "Regional Girl". A medley of five old Monkees
hits was also produced.
February 13, 1997
Rehearsals
The four began rehearsals for their UK tour on this day in Los Angeles.
February 17, 1997
Hey, Hey, It's The Monkees broadcast.
Spring 1997 UK Tour
March 7-20, 1997
Set List:
"Last Train To Clarksville"
"Circle Sky"
"Regional Girl"
"Sunny Girlfriend"
"Mary, Mary"
"You And I"
"Randy Scouse Git"
"Shades Of Gray"
"You Just May Be The One"
"Oh, What A Night"
"I'm A Believer"
"Solfeggietto"
"Laugh Kills Lonesome"
"Rio"
"Lucille"
"Since I Fell For You"
"Daddy's Song"
"For Pete's Sake"
"A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You"
"Goin' Down"
"Your Auntie Grizelda"
"Valleri"
"Listen To The Band"/"Porpoise Song"
"Daydream Believer"
"(I'm Not Your) Steppin' Stone"
"Pleasant Valley Sunday"
All four Monkees finally performed full concerts together again, the first since the Far East Tour of 1968. For the first half of the concert, the four played completely on their own, with each Monkees playing his traditional instumental role. This gave Peter and Micky much opportunity to play their bass and drums, respectively. As in the old days, a solo segment for each member was included. At this point, the backing band came onstage and remained throughout the concert. With the inclusion and influence of Nesmith, the setlist was considerably different, particularly in the Davy selections. The fans who had the opportunity to attend unanimously loved this rare treat of seeing and hearing all four members together.
April 9, 1997
At this time, Nesmith indicated that he might not tour the US, contrary
to what he had stated earlier. It would soon be confirmed that he indeed would
back out of another US tour, much to the dismay of the many US fans who had
been eagerly awaiting the opportunity to see the band as a complete (and
sometimes self-contained) unit.
June 17, 1997
Video release - Justus.
Rhino released a collection of videos of the following Justus songs:
"Regional Girl", "Oh, What A Night", "Admiral Mike", "Run Away From Life",
"You And I", and "Circle Sky". Some of the video (though not audio) footage
came from the group's November performance at Billboard Live. Bits of interviews
and comedy sketches were interspersed among the videos.
Summer/Fall 1997 US Tour
June-December, 1997
Set List:
"Last Train To Clarksville"
"That Was Then, This Is Now"
"A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You"
"The Girl I Knew Somewhere"
"For Pete's Sake"
"Look Out (Here Comes Tomorrow)"
"Regional Girl"
"I Wanna Be Free"
"Mary, Mary"
"I'll Be Back Up On My Feet"
"It's Nice To Be With You"
"Long Title: Do I Have To Do This All Over Again"
"Lucille"
"Since I Fell"
"Oh, What a Night"
"Circle Sky"
"Every Step Of The Way"
"Randy Scouse Git"
"Brady Bunch Theme"
"Girl"
"Words"
"I Believe You"
"Valleri"
"Oh My My"
"I'm A Believer"
"Shades Of Gray"
"Listen To The Band"/"Porpoise Song"
"Heart And Soul"
"(I'm Not Your) Steppin' Stone"
"Daydream Believer"
"Pleasant Valley Sunday"
"She's Movin' In With Rico"
"No Time"
"Higher And Higher"
"Consider Yourself"/"I'd Do Anything"/"Who Will Buy"
The three Monkees once again carried out an extenseive tour without Nesmith. Elements from their UK tour were combined with those of the tour from the previous summer, and some surprises were thrown in as well. The three provided more of the instrumental accompaniment than they previously had, and Dolenz drummed and also played guitar.
Though a few January and February US dates and a March Australia/New Zealand tour were planned, these were cancelled. The Monkees called it quits, and the movie Nesmith was supposedly writing a script for was not pursued. This marked the end of the 1990s existence of The Monkees. While not as hugely popular as the '60s and '80s, this period did include some incredible events including the only album solely created by all four Monkees, a TV special by all four Monkees, and a brief tour by all four Monkees!