Hey, hey it’s a Monkee, with other ’60s stars

Mickey Dolenz will sing big hits such as “Last Train to Clarksville” and “I’m a Believer” when the “Happy Together Tour” comes to Ruth Eckerd Hall in Clearwater on Friday.

‘HAPPY TOGETHER TOUR’

With Mickey Dolenz, The Turtles with Flo and Eddie, The Buckinghams, The Grass Roots and Gary Puckett and The Union Gap

When: 7:30 p.m. Friday

Where: Ruth Eckerd Hall, 1111 N. McMullen-Booth Road, Clearwater

Tickets: $68 and $42.50; (727) 791-7400 and www.rutheckerdhall.com

By ED CONDRAN | Tribune correspondent

Published: June 14, 2012

Updated: June 14, 2012 – 9:19 AM

Plans were scuttled and tears were shed when Davy Jones died suddenly in February. Mickey Dolenz was taken aback when his longtime colleague and pal passed away in Stuart.

“It was a big surprise,” Dolenz said while calling from his Los Angeles home. “We talked about doing another Monkees tour. It’s tough. He was the youngest Monkee, but you never know what will happen in life. He had some health problems he didn’t tell anyone about. It’s a shame he’s no longer with us. He was a special person. It’s a shame. But you have to move on.”

Dolenz, who is on a bill with fellow ’60s stars such as The Turtles with Flo and Eddie, The Buckinghams and The Grass Roots, that stops Friday at the Ruth Eckerd Hall, is doing just that.

“I’m still going to tour,” Dolenz said. “The show must go on. It’ll be fun going out with some old friends.”

However, Dolenz will be limited to a 30-minute set since he’ll be sharing a stage with so many acts, so expect the hits.

“I’ll be doing the really big ones,” Dolenz said. “ ’Pleasant Valley Sunday,’ ‘Last Train to Clarksville’ and ‘I’m a Believer’ will be the kind of songs you’ll hear me sing. I never get tired of singing those songs, and the crowds still enjoy them. The songs hold up because they were written by some of the greatest writers of all time. Sometimes I just pay tribute to the writers at the show. I’m talking about writers like Carole King and Neil Diamond. It was an extraordinary crew who wrote songs for us.”

Dolenz hopes to return to the area for a solo performance, which will include deep Monkees cuts.

“Those shows are three times as long as what I’m doing on this tour,” Dolenz said. “I can go really deep and just take the time. I’ll be back with that show at some point. People can’t get enough of the Monkee songs.

“More than 50 million Monkee albums have been sold. The songs were well-crafted and the ‘Monkees’ series holds up since it’s a timeless, unpredictable and amusing show. I’m most proud of what John Lennon said about us,” Dolenz said. “He said we were the Marx Brothers of the ’60s, and that is an incredible compliment. We didn’t get bogged down in the issues of the day, and that’s why it’s not dated. When you watch an old episode of the ‘Monkees,’ it’s like watching a cartoon. I still can’t believe that one of us is gone.”

Dolenz and the surviving Monkees, Peter Tork and Michael Nesmith, who avoided band reunions, got together for an informal tribute to Jones in California three-months ago.

“We had to do it,” Dolenz said. “It felt good. I’m looking back at someone who I knew for 45 years. We got along very well. We hit it right off from the beginning. We had similar backgrounds. We were both child stars. Davy was on Broadway, and I worked in television. We had families at the same time. It’s just hard to believe that I won’t be able to talk with him anymore. But I’ll be thinking about him every time I go out and step on that stage.”

via Hey, hey it’s a Monkee, with other ’60s stars | TBO.com.