Review: The Monkees Live – The Mike & Micky Show

Review by Fred Velez

While there have been previously released Live recordings of The Monkees, this new album featuring Michael Nesmith and Micky Dolenz from their recent 2018/2019 tour is the best sounding one. Mike and Micky are in great voice throughout and the backing band are sterling.

Produced by Andrew Sandoval and mixed by Nesmith’s son Christian, the sound is incredible and beautifully arranged on this set. The band is nice and tight, aided by the backing vocals of Micky’s sister Coco Dolenz and Circe Link. When the voices blend you can almost hear the harmonies of the late Davy Jones and Peter Tork in there. While they are dearly missed, the two missing Monkees are well represented by respectful renditions of their songs ‘A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You’, ‘For Pete’s Sake’ and ‘Daydream Believer’. Davy and Peter would have been proud.

The performances of Monkees’ classics like ‘Last Train To Clarksville’, ‘I’m A Believer’, ‘Pleasant Valley Sunday’, ‘Goin’ Down’ and more are kept to their original arrangements adding to the fun of the album. Special gems like the ‘Good Times!’ selections ‘Birth Of An Accidental Hipster’, ‘Me & Magdalena’ and the previous rarity ‘St. Matthew’ are welcomed additions to The Monkees song canon. The songs from the movie ‘Head’, the lovely ‘As We Go Along’ and a ferociously played ‘Circle Sky’ are especially delightful.

There are so many highlights to this album that it’s hard to single out just one. Some that stand out are ‘Auntie’s Municipal Court’, the ‘Good Times! songs, ‘The Girl I Knew Somewhere’, an acoustic ‘Randy Scouse Git’, ‘Sweet Young Thing’ and ‘Tapioca Tundra’. The performance of ‘Listen To The Band’ is particularly sublime. The affection between Nesmith and Dolenz is obvious in their stage chatter during their acoustic performance of ‘Papa Gene’s Blues’.

Because of the current health situation, the 2020 Monkees tour has been postponed for later this Summer. For those who attended the shows in 2018 before Nesmith’s health scare and the resumed 2019 tour, this album is a perfect souvenir for fans who attended these shows. For those waiting for the current tour to resume, this should tide them over till then.

Needles to say, ‘The Monkees Live – The Mike & Micky Show’ should be an essential part of every Monkees fans’ collection. Close your eyes while you’re listening and you’re there.

Fred Velez, 2020.

Fred Velez is the author of the book ‘A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You: The Monkees From A Fan’s Perspective’.