When Micky Dolenz of 1960s pop group The Monkees played Milwaukee’s Riverside Theater back in 2021, he wasn’t alone. On November 6 of that year, Dolenz appeared with fellow Monkee Mike Nesmith for what was billed as The Monkees Farewell Tour. It was a wonderful and emotional show. Dolenz, as always, was a consummate showman. A visibly frail Nesmith, meanwile, gave the night everything he had. At one point, during Monkees deep cut “While I Cry,” he wept. Nesmith died one month later.
Dolenz was back in Milwaukee in 2023 for a tour billed as The Monkees Celebrated By Micky Dolenz. And he was back yet again Wednesday night at The Pabst Theater for a tour billed as Micky Dolenz – 60 Years Of The Monkees. (How many ways can a tour by a former Monkee be renamed?) Nesmith died in 2021. The other members of The Monkees, Davy Jones and Peter Tork, died in 2012 and 2019, respectively. Dolenz, now 81, is the last Monkee standing.
Thankfully, he remains a consummate showman. “Don’t worry, we’re going to play all the hits!” he assured the crowd at the beginning of the show. Those fearing Dolenz would somehow not play “I’m A Believer” or “Daydream Believer” sighed in relief. (Dolenz’ band teased the latter song several times throughout the night.)
And the hits were indeed played. Presented more or less chronologically, the 90-minute set began with debut-album tracks “(Theme From) The Monkees” and “Last Train To Clarksville.” From there it dipped into cuts from More Of The Monkees (“Look Out [Here Comes Tomorrow]”), The Birds, The Bees & The Monkees (“Valleri”), and more. Highlights included the Tork-penned “For Pete’s Sake,” Head track “The Porpoise Song,” and the Ben Gibbard-penned “Me & Magdalena” (from the 2016 comeback album Good Times!) “Daydream Believer” and a surprisingly scorching take on “I’m Not Your Steppin’ Stone” closed out the set proper; “I’m A Believer” closed out the encore. (The night featured an intermission, taking the total show time to nearly two hours.)
There were a handful of fun detours—many of them thanks to Dolenz’ stellar band. Drummer Rich Dart performed Tork novelty songs “Your Auntie Grizelda” and “Peter Percival Patterson’s Pet Pig Porky.” Bassist John Billings handled vocals on several Nesmith-sung tunes, while keyboardist Alex Jules did the same for some songs sung by Jones. Dolenz’ sister Coco performed a nice rendition of “Different Drum” (written by Nesmith but made famous by Linda Ronstadt). During well-worn but appreciated stories about hanging out with The Beatles (John Lennon called Dolenz “Monkee Man”) or tapping a then-unknown Jimi Hendrix for The Monkees’ opening act (Dolenz was embarrassed when The Monkees’ pre-teen fans screamed “Davy! Davy!” during Hendrix’s set), the band launched into snippets of “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” and “Purple Haze.”
Photo: Lisa Gatewood
Of the four Monkees, Dolenz has long seemed to be the one most comfortable with the band’s made-for-TV backstory and nostalgic legacy. Not that that legacy is solely based on nostalgia: Wednesday’s show found Dolenz giving multiple shout-outs to the legendary writers behind some of The Monkees’ biggest hits—folks like Carole King, Neil Diamond, and Harry Nilsson—and beaming with pride when talking about the group’s fully independent record Headquarters. He played a new song, “Terri,” and even appeased fans of ’80s Pool It!-era Monkees (we exist!) with “That Was Then, This Is Now.”
It was a fun, professional, and relatively no-frills evening. (A projection screen showing old photos and clips from The Monkees TV show was the only bit of stagecraft.) The band was great. Dolenz was in fine form for his age. Those hoping for touching tributes to fallen comrades, however, were likely left disappointed. Unlike, say, Paul McCartney, who dutifully dedicates songs to John Lennon and George Harrison during his shows, Dolenz simply soldiered on and played the hits. He mentioned his former bandmates, of course, but if one didn’t know any better it would have seemed like Nez, Jones, and Tork were simply sitting this tour out.
Only once did Dolenz slip, introducing a song that Nesmith “sings,” before correcting himself by saying, “well, sang.” Dolenz is indeed the last Monkee standing. That fact wasn’t exactly made explicit during the show, but it was hard not to think about. Happily, Dolenz is still standing. May he continue to stand and play the hits for many years to come.
Want more Milwaukee Record? Subscribe to our free weekly newsletter and/or support us on Patreon.
RELATED ARTICLES
• Let’s talk about Milwaukee’s connection to the New Monkees