Hey, Hey: 3 Eternal Songs from TV’s Favorite Band, The Monkees

In 1966, the world was introduced to the television show The Monkees. While decades later bands like the Backstreet Boys and NSYNC would be put together for pop fame, the Los Angeles-born group The Monkees beat them to it by some 30 years. Comprised of Micky Dolenz, Davy Jones, Michael Nesmith, and Peter Tork, The Monkees boasted chart-toppers.

Here below, we wanted to explore three songs by the group that have stood the test of time since their broadcast days on NBC. A trio of tunes from the band that continue to put smiles on the faces of listeners. Indeed, these are three eternal songs from TV’s favorite band, The Monkees.

[RELATED: Behind the Band Name: The Monkees]

“Last Train to Clarksville” from The Monkees (1966)

The Monkees’ debut single, this is the track that kicked everything off for the band born out of the popularity of early rock groups like The Beatles and others. The song, which hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, is about a rendezvous between two people in the city of Clarksville, Tennessee. They have one day to meet up and the song is all about getting that chance. Sung by Micky Dolenz, the song resembles The Beatles’ “Ticket to Ride.” On it, Dolenz sings,

Take the last train to Clarksville
And I’ll meet you at the station
You can be here by 4:30
‘Cause I’ve made your reservation

Don’t be slow
Oh, no, no, no
Oh, no, no, no

‘Cause I’m leavin’ in the morning
And I must see you again
We’ll have one more night together
‘Til the morning brings my train

“I’m a Believer” from More of the Monkees (1967)

This song, which hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, has the longest legs of perhaps any track from The Monkees thanks to covers that have been released more recently, including the one by Smash Mouth in the animated movie Shrek. Also sung by Dolenz, the track is about finding true love—the kind that many thought was only in make-believe—and becoming a believer in the possibility. Sings the group’s drummer,

I thought love was only true in fairy tales
Meant for someone else but not for me
Love was out to get me
That’s the way it seemed
Disappointment haunted all my dreams

And then I saw her face
Now I’m a believer
And not a trace
Of doubt in my mind
I’m in love
I’m a believer
I couldn’t leave her if I tried

“Daydream Believer” from The Birds, The Bees & The Monkees (1968)

This piano-driven song crescendos to a sticky chorus that has lasted throughout the ages. Hitting No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, this song has subsisted through time thanks to its astonishingly memorable chorus. Sung by the band’s heartthrob singer Davy Jones, the love song is a part-pop, part-psychedelic-sounding number about suburban life and how there is often little to do. Sings Jones,

Oh, I could hide ‘neath the wings
Of the bluebird as she sings
The six o’clock alarm would never ring
But it rings and I rise
Wipe the sleep out of my eyes
My shavin’ razor’s cold and it stings

Cheer up, Sleepy Jean
Oh, what can it mean
To a daydream believer
And a homecoming queen

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Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images