• @jawa21OP
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    91 month ago

    Thanks for this! I’ve always been aware of The Monkees, and the fact that they hit popularity around the same time that TOS was aired. It is a shame about what happened with The Monkees, though. They eventually really proved themselves musically.

    • Flying SquidM
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      101 month ago

      Have you ever seen Head? It was a movie The Monkees made in the late 60s that was co-written by Jack Nicholson and directed by Bob Rafelson, who also directed Five Easy Pieces. It’s utterly insane and anarchic. Their songs were their own in that film. A lot of people hate it because there’s no plot and nothing makes sense. But that’s why I love it.

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4nT-5DyjX0

      • @jawa21OP
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        71 month ago

        I have seen it! From what I can tell, the chaotic nature was a direct play on the Beetles films. I watch Head every few years or so.

        • Flying SquidM
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          51 month ago

          Definitely. Help! came out three years earlier and had already upped the surreality factor from A Hard Day’s Night. And then everyone started doing LSD…

    • @wjrii@lemmy.world
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      1 month ago

      Even in the early days, they had a strong stable of songwriters, including folks like Carole King and Neil Diamond. They were a manufactured band, to be sure, but they were manufactured from solid parts.