Daydream Believer
I was driving back after an interesting day's work in Hull, across the strange flat lands with oddly-named villages such as North Cave and Wilberfoss, with the setting sun a big red circle on the horizon and the black winter trees silhouetted against a still-blue sky.
"And it's been confirmed that Davy Jones of the Monkees has died in Florida", said the DJ on the radio, "and we'll remember him for this."
Daydream Believer. Probably my favourite song.
I associate the Monkees with my last year at primary school. Although the group was manufactured as a shameless answer to the Beatles, they somehow captured the spirit of the 1960s. A kind of zany - and sometimes unfounded - optimism on which, thinking about it, I have based the whole way I live my life.
I've written about Daydream Believer before on this blog. I don't really know what the lyrics mean but I do know that the line "You once thought of me as a white knight on his steed, Now you know how happy I can be" is - for an unfathomable reason that I've never been able to explain - my favourite, most uplifting line in any song ever.
I'm sad that Davy Jones has died relatively young. And I think that once I stop being a Daydream Believer then I'll know I'm getting old.
"And it's been confirmed that Davy Jones of the Monkees has died in Florida", said the DJ on the radio, "and we'll remember him for this."
Daydream Believer. Probably my favourite song.
I associate the Monkees with my last year at primary school. Although the group was manufactured as a shameless answer to the Beatles, they somehow captured the spirit of the 1960s. A kind of zany - and sometimes unfounded - optimism on which, thinking about it, I have based the whole way I live my life.
I've written about Daydream Believer before on this blog. I don't really know what the lyrics mean but I do know that the line "You once thought of me as a white knight on his steed, Now you know how happy I can be" is - for an unfathomable reason that I've never been able to explain - my favourite, most uplifting line in any song ever.
I'm sad that Davy Jones has died relatively young. And I think that once I stop being a Daydream Believer then I'll know I'm getting old.
posted by Daphne at 8:22 pm
8 Comments:
Aaah... indeed, one of the defining songs of the Monkees' repertoire, and my youth! I loved the Monkees. I still do - I often play the 'best of' in the car.
Such a shame he died so young. But it was a good way to go, I suppose, just dying in your sleep.
We only saw them in concert in London last year!
My blog is still down, BTW, but we're working on it. I guess I'll have to reschedule the time limit on my puzzle.
Yep I loved the Monkees for their light hearted pep.... and their music was great too. I'm like you I think Daydream Believer was/ is a classic. RIP Davey
Wasn't really a fan of the Monkees at the time, but Davy Jones' death makes me feel strangely sad. Like you say, the Monkees embodied a lot of the innocent and wacky optimism of the late 60s. And their songs were written by some of the best writers of the period.
Nicely said Daphne. If his loved ones saw this post I am sure they would be quite touched. Daydreaming is a much underrated human activity. We all need to daydream.
Awww, I didn't know he had died. We used to watch the TV show, and, as you say, it was light and bright and crazy and fun.
@Michael, how you can pen the phrase "the innocent and wacky optimism of the late 60s" is beyond me. The late 60s in this country included the Chicago 7, the riots in Chicago at the 1968 Democratic Convention, the election of Richard Nixon...the non-innocent nature of the period is evident for anyone with eyes to see.
Ah yes, I thought of you when the news left this song embedded in my brain for the day.
By the way, hey, we're talking about the late 1960s, Woodstock, going to San Francisco with flowers in your improbably-styled hair and all that. If that's not famously innocent wacky optimism I don't know what is. Now, obviously not everyone was feeling wackily optimistic at the same time. The Chicago 7, Richard Nixon and Vietnam are surely just a few of the reasons for the key adjective: wacky!
Takes me back to the time when a whole family watched the television together - my parents were not fans of pop music but we still all watched it together. I loved the Monkees and love this song - my husband sings it on the rare occassion he sings karaoke - he's a good singer and always turns a few heads when he sings this lovely happy song. Sad that Davy Jones has died so young.
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