The Monkees: "Daydream Believer And Other Hits" (1998) CD Review

This greatest hits compilation covers the later singles of The Monkees, and includes a previously unreleased track, "You Can't Tie A Mustang Down."

There have been many greatest hits compilations of The Monkees music. What makes this one any different? Well, it includes a previously unreleased track, "You Can't Tie A Mustang Down." And that's an excellent song. Also, for an album containing only ten songs, the choices are a bit odd. They're not the typical choices when it comes to a Monkees compilation - apart, of course, from "Daydream Believer" and "Pleasant Valley Sunday." This compilation covers the later singles released by The Monkees.

"Daydream Believer"

The first song on this album, "Daydream Believer," is certainly the biggest hit included on this album, the only one of the ten tracks to reach number one on the Billboard chart. It's one of their most famous songs. It was included on the LP The Birds, The Bees & The Monkees (1968). It has that weird beginning where they announce that the song is "7-A," and Davy then asks what number it is, and they tell him again, "7-A." And he has the quip about being short. Odd.

"Daydream Believer" was written by John Stewart.

"D.W. Washburn"

"D.W. Washburn" is a playful little song with a cool horn section. It was released as a single, and went to number 19 on the Billboard chart.

"Tapioca Tundra"

"Tapioca Tundra" made it to number 34 on the Billboard chart. It was the flip side to "Valleri." This is the most interesting song on this compilation. It was written by Michael Nesmith and originally included on The Birds, The Bees & The Monkees. Here is a taste of the lyrics: "Silhouettes and figures stay/Close to what he had to say/And one more time the faded dream/Is saddened by the news./It cannot be a part of me/For now it's part of you."

"Words"

"Words" is a wonderful song. It was the flip side of "Pleasant Valley Sunday" and it reached number 11 on the charts. It was also included on the album, Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn & Jones Ltd. Written by Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart, the chorus is, "Words that never were true/Spoken to help nobody but you/Words with lies inside/But small enough to hide/'Til your playin' was through."

"Pleasant Valley Sunday"

"Pleasant Valley Sunday" was a big hit for The Monkees, and is included on most of the greatest hits compilations that have been released over the years. It reached number 3 on the Billboard chart. It was released as a single in July of 1967, and included on Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn & Jones Ltd, which was released in November of that year. The lyrics include, "Another Pleasant Valley Sunday/Here in status symbol land/Mothers complain about how hard life is/And the kids just don't understand."

"Valleri"

"Valleri" is one of the coolest songs The Monkees ever recorded. The guitar part is phenomenal. It was written by Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart, who wrote a lot of The Monkees hits. Davy Jones sings lead on this one, and is in fact the only member The Monkees to appear on this recording. The instruments were all played by studio musicians.

"It's Nice To Be With You"

"It's Nice To Be With You" was released as the flip side to "D.W. Washburn" in June of 1968. It reached only number 51 on the chart. This is a song the Davy Jones sings lead on.

"Good Clean Fun"

"Good Clean Fun" was released as a single in September of 1969 and reached only number 82 on the top 100. It was written by Michael Nesmith and included on the album The Monkees Present, which was released on October, 1969.

"Oh My My..."

"Oh My My..." is the last single released by the group while they were still a group. (In 1971, another single was released, but didn't chart at all.) "Oh My My..." reached only number 98 on the top 100. It was also included on the group's final LP, Changes. Changes was released in 1970, after Michael Nesmith left the band. Peter Tork had left earlier, so Changes was only Micky Dolenz and Davy Jones.

(Note: It's unclear why this CD has the ellipsis in the song title, for the single and the album Changes list the song simply as "Oh My My.")

"You Can't Tie A Mustang Down"

This song is the real reason to own this album. It was previously unreleased. This song was recorded in early 1967. Davy Jones sings lead on it. The lyrics are pretty cool. Davy sings, "Oh, by the way that I hold you/You might think I love you/But I never said I did." And the chorus is, "And remember that you can't tie a mustang down/No, you can't tie a mustang down/You can't keep an ocean in a cup/Whoa, no, you can't tie a mustang down...Or up." This is a fun song.

CD Track List

The following is the track list for The Monkees' "Daydream Believer And Other Hits":

1. Daydream Believer
2. D.W. Washburn
3. Tapioca Tundra
4. Words
5. Pleasant Valley Sunday
6. Valleri
7. It's Nice To Be With You
8. Good Clean Fun
9. Oh My My...
10. You Can't Tie A Mustang Down
    

The Monkees released several other singles in the time covered by this compilation. Missing from this CD are such songs as "Porpoise Song," "Tear Drop City" and "Listen To The Band," all of which charted on the top 100.