The Monkees

0:00Frank and Muth, Michigan, Frank, do you know how this town's pronounced actually? No. Frank and Muth, Frank and Muth, have you ever played it before? No. No, first time. It seemed like a good crowd though. Very good crowd. How do you choose your set list for a show like this? Well, most of the stuff is sort of dictated by the fact that I got to play all the hits, of course, which I do. And then, yeah, you know, we swap stuff around over the years, kind of just fountoons that work more or less wherever you are. It also depends on the length of the show. Here they wanted 75 minutes. Sometimes they only want 45 or 50, and then basically it's just the hits. But the other material that I do that's non-monkey material, I tend to, it tends to be songs that

0:47either had some role, played some role in my life. Like I do one of the tunes that was my audition piece for the Monkeys. I don't have to, yeah, I don't have to, yeah, I don't have to, yeah, I don't have to, yeah, and we didn't do it today, but sometimes I do good morning, good morning by the Beatles because I was at the session. Oh, were you really? So I tell the story being at the session at Abbey Road Studios and then I sing the song. Now would you mind telling the story right now? Let's find out. I didn't know that. Well, that's the story. I mean, I was invited to go to the... Were you singing on it or anything? No, no, no, I was just invited by the, by Paul, because I'd met him, and I went to the, I went to a session and that happened to be the session, so I do that song. Cool. So I take a chant like I say, the non-monkey material tends to be stuff that has a story

1:32behind it. Let's play that song right now. Good morning, good morning by the Beatles. This life called his wife and nothing to say, but what a day how's your boyfriend. Nothing to do, it's up to you. I've got nothing to say, but it's okay. Good morning, good morning. Going to work alone, it goes peeling low down, and in the phone you start to roam, and you're in doubt.

2:18Everybody knows there's nothing to do, everything is cold. It's like they're doing everyone to see, it's hot to see, and you're on your own, you're in the street. After a while you start to smile now you feel cool. Then you decide to take the wolf by the old school. Nothing has changed, it's still the same. I've got nothing to say, but it's okay. Have a tea and me the wife.

3:15I'm laughter down here. Watching the sketches start to burn now you're in here. Go to a show, you hope she goes. I've got nothing to say, but it's okay. Talking to you with Mickey Dolan's, you just heard some Beatles, good morning, good morning.

4:18I want to talk about the monkeys. I know at the beginning you didn't play drums, and you learned how to play drums for the monkeys. How did that all, did they just want actors for the band or something like that? No, it was a little more complicated than that. The producers, it was cast a lot like you would cast a musical. I've done some musicals, and I just did Aiedo on Broadway. The audition process was a lot like you would audition for a musical. They didn't want just actors, or they would have hired just actors. You had to be able to play at play guitar, Chuck Berry too. You had to be able to sing. You had to be able to improvise.

5:03There was heavy improvisational skills, and acting, and a variety, a full range of talents. They must have had even at the beginning, it must have had in the back of their minds, and with any luck we would be able to sing and play together. And lo and behold, that is indeed what happened. I was cast as the drummer. I was a guitar player, so I knew enough about music. I had about a year to learn and to practice before we went on the road. But it was unusual. It was a very unusual convergence coming together of all these different forces.

5:48In the final analysis, the monkeys was this television show about this imaginary band that didn't really exist. And to some degree it still doesn't except in the context of that television show. So us going out on the road and actually playing and being a band, I've often equated it to someone like George Clooney starting to perform ER operations. With a years training. But like I say, they didn't just cast actors. They clearly had in mind that we were going to go on the road and play. You mentioned playing guitar and drums as well. What do you pick up on your jam? You usually do. You still write songs too?

6:33Yes, I do. Anything that you know what you're watching? Nothing you would have heard recently. I had one big hit with the monkeys, a song called, Raddie Skauskitt in England about my experiences over there. I do write, funny enough, when I write I write country tunes. I don't know why. There's a lot of country music here. Maybe that's why. Possibly deals with a lot of country music here. No, I listen to standards. I listen to Michael Blubley and Diana Croix. And Beatles. Beatles? I love the Beatles. Let's play another song. What do you want to hear? One of your tunes? Maybe another song? It's up to you. Oh, let's play another Beatles tune. Let's play a day in life. Nobody was really joy.

8:25He was really charming. I just want full time. I have to do. Happy bread. I want to talk about the downloading of music.

11:52Do you download music? Do I? Are you into that world? No, I'm not. I don't tend to listen to music except as that kind of background. And when I do it tends to be classical or standards. I will download and buy music. If I'm researching something or if I'm learning a new tune or if I'm working on a project that I need to have music. But it's more for my work than anything else. Do you think we're going to get rid of albums? It seems to be people just download a song and they get it for themselves and we're not going to have albums or CDs or the artwork and all the stuff that goes into it anymore. Five, fifteen years down the road. I think that's probably true.

12:37I think that the actual physical thing may become a thing of the past or just very special releases stuff like, you know, I heard someone saying that they wanted to bring back the large packaging so that you could have the artwork and some of the ancillary stuff. But I think it would only be probably the big, big groups, big acts that could afford it. Because, yeah, I think it probably is the end of, and I think it goes through probably eventually movies as well and stuff. It'll all be downloaded. But then on the other hand, you'll also, it'll be supplanted because you will still get artwork

13:24and you will still get visual stuff but it also will be on the internet. On the computer and you'll download the photos in front of the mountain. Which you can do now and you'll have your own kind of private collection. As far as selling, I don't know, selling a retail object in Tower Records. I don't know. I think you may be right that night. Yeah, scary. Yeah. So which topics? You mentioned musical before. You got a new musical coming out? Yes, I'm going to be doing a musical, a revival of a show called Pippin, a show that was originally in the 70s and I'm playing King Charlemagne in that. Nice. Yeah. Where's that happening New York? Yeah, it's in the New York area. And you're going to that when? When is that all happening? Next week.

14:09Start, just flat out next week or rehearsal. Yeah, rehearsals. Oh yeah, rehearsals. Just going to throw you on stage. I was playing another song. What do you want to hear? Oh, you know what I'd like to hear? If you have it, I'm another, I was a big fan of Van Morrison and a song that he did. It was the flip side of Gloria. It's called Baby, Please Don't Go. Hello, baby.

15:28Please don't go. Talking to you with Mickey Dolan's.

17:06You got a couple books? Yeah, I do. I have a Rock and Roll Trivia book out. One of the Mickey Dolan's Rock and Roll and Trivia. It's a game, actually, in a book form. And that's out in Bookstores now. And also children's book I wrote called Gacky Two Feet, which is about a little creature lived and lives in the jungle and is the only one of his tribe that walks on two feet. It's just sort of at the early hominids. And it's just basically a story about being different and not worrying about being different because someday that difference could actually be very helpful. Nice. What made you decide to write a children's book? I was asked. A publisher asked me if I wanted to. And I came up with an idea. And lo and behold, there it is. Gacky Two Feet.

17:51Nice. You can go to my website and get the links to all that stuff. MickeyDolens.com. Very nice. Jack Nicholson wrote a movie about the monkeys. I read that somewhere. Yeah, he, we all got together and met Jack. We wanted to make a movie. We all thought he was just wonderful. And we all got together and talked about the kind of movie we wanted to make. And then he wrote the screenplay. Yeah. It did come out. Oh, yeah, it did come out. Cool. It was called Head. Very strange movie. Very strange movie. Got a couple of names. Maybe a quick story or something. We'll start off with John Lennon. Well, I met John way back in the 60s. And I spent quite a bit of time during his lost weekend in Los Angeles. Oh, you were there for that? Oh, yeah. And I'm told I had a great time. You don't remember it either. No. And he was a very interesting man, very intelligent.

18:38And, you know, we did have some great conversations. And I, I met all the guy. I met all the Beatles. And I would say I probably knew Ringo and probably John the best. But most time with them. What about Ringo? Any cool stories with Ringo? Um, do you still keep in contact with us? We just partied. I mean, you know, we never worked together. So we speak, you know, but I see Ringo, you know, actually quite often because we have some same people working and representing us in some areas. And so I do bump into him. Um, but I can say most of it was just partying. Nice. You ever think about joining that all-star band you does?

19:25No, no, I don't think that would probably be appropriate. But I've seen them. They're out now. They're turning their phones. Yeah, I'm going to see them next week with my dad. Okay. Well, go on and say hi for me if you talk to Ringo. Hi. Hope so. He's a great guy. Um, Jimmy Hendricks. Well, Jimmy Hendricks was like, uh, our opening act. Um, I saw him at Monterey Pop Festival. And I thought he'd make a great opening act because he was very theatrical. And the monkeys was very theatrical, obviously. And I guess somebody in his camp thought it was a good idea too. So lo and behold, we went out on the road and he was opening for it. It was strange. I don't know if you saw the whole show. Yeah. I did a bit on the show about him doing purple haze and the kids screaming, we went to monkeys. Kind of, you know, I'm sure it annoyed him.

20:12Um, he was a wonderful talent, you know, very, uh, uh, uh, uh, uh, uh, uh, uh, uh, uh, uh, uh a great talent, you know, very sweet kid. And we had a lot of fun, a party, a lot of often, you know, offstage. And we would get there early actually to watch him play. Because, you know, you could tell that he was somebody who got special. Oh, definitely. Even before anybody knew who he was so… Uh, Brian Wilson? I never, I didn't know Brian that well. He came out of the house a few times, um, uh, because during those years, it was when of hold up in his house, you know, living in the bathroom in the sandbox. I've seen him recently a few times and it's good to see that he's kind of back out on the road and performing.

20:58Yeah. Have you heard the smile out? No. No, I haven't. I heard it's pretty interesting. Yeah, it's cool. Let's play another song, maybe a monkey song. Oh, okay. What's your favorite? Do you still like performing them? You know what? Yeah, I love singing Pleasant Valley Sunday by Kirl King. I'm saying five questions, five quick questions, one more answers.

24:19I taught her CDs. I'm a CD. London or McCartney? McCartney. Alcohol or marijuana? Alcohol. Song you've written you're most proud of. It's my life. One word, the monkeys. First thing you're talking about. I'm not sure I'm the person to ask. I'm probably one of the fans. It's the better person to ask than the monkeys. One word, the monkeys. Funny. Cool. Thank you so much. Really appreciate it. Thank you. One song to close us out. What do you want to hear? Let's think of another one that was a big influence. I don't want to do another beat one.

25:05I mean you could just play Beatles all day long as far as I'm concerned. But something else that you've got to have a big end. Well, you know what, Lenny Welch, since I fell for you. Depart. I can't get you out of my ego.

26:04Since I fell for you. I guess I'll never be the same. Since I fell, well it's too bad. And it's too sad.

26:51Since I fell for you.

27:41Since I fell.