I Wanna Be Free - Davy Jones In Memoriam

So....

Another day, another Monkees Blog!
But alas, this one is written out of necessity....a necessity I would rather have done without, for we have just learned of the passing of Davy Jones, aged a mere 66 years old. According to sources, Davy was found dead in his sleep having suffered a massive heart-attack. This now makes the fact that I missed their tour last year frustratingly poignant.

Never the most critically acclaimed of bands, as I've stated many times, Davy often came in for most criticism for possessing a fairly tremulous voice, coupled with the fact that boorish, laddish old rock critics of the time were jealous of Davy's unparalleled popularity amongst the teenage girls of the world.
Yet, like all three of his Monkee cohorts, his voice was singularly unique and stood out amongst the other Pop chanters of the time. It was also his cuteness factor that guaranteed the massive ratings the show needed to remain on air amongst the critical indifference.
It could be argued that in the wilderness years of the 1970s and early 80s, it was Davy, the perennial song and dance man who hated NOT being on stage, and who dragged Micky Dolenz and the very name Monkees onto a stage somewhere, ANYWHERE, that kept The Monkees flame alight when their name was mud.
I managed to see The Monkees live in concert almost exactly 10 years ago in a show in which Davy and Micky had lost none of their youthful vigour and pure showmanship. I was also forced to write to Scottish rag the Daily Record to correct their sloppy music journo Billy Sloane's review that claimed the show was a washout and that the audience were bored, by pointing out that the audience belted out every word and gave them a standing ovation.
Here's a few selections of his best work:





David Jones; teen idol, pure entertainer, daydream believer , one of Rock Music's good guys, and star of one of the top 10 films of all time, 'Head'!

R.I.P Davy, sleep well.

~Gordon~