Psychedelic! Freak out! Wheee!, March 14, 2002

The story focuses on the famous evolutionist, Charles Darwin (Brian Auger) who takes 4 young men (Micky Dolenz, Davy Jones, Mike Nesmith and Peter Tork) erases their identities and names and takes them through different stages so that they will be able to brainwash the world through commercial exploitation. The Monkees, in an attempt to regain their identities and control over themselves, try to think their way out of captivity. Darwin, alarmed that they will become free, uses hypnotism to break them down physically and they become restored to Darwin's tastes. The Monkees, now ready to make their debut, appear as classic rock'n'rollers at the Paramount Theatre with Fats Domino, Jerry Lee Lewis, Little Richard and Buddy Miles Express playing backup to The Monkees. Darwin, realizing his mistake, sets The Monkees free.

After the failure of their film Head released in 1968, The Monkees went ahead with their television special undaunted by the terrible reviews from critics about the movie. 33 1/3 Revolutions Per Monkee, produced by Jack Good of Shindig, 3.5 Special and Oh Boy! fame, had a lot of time and creativity put into it. The point of the special was to save whatever fans and popularity that they had left and it was virtually snubbed by NBC. By airing it opposite the Academy Awards, the show rated disastrously. Mike Nesmith remembers, "I'd already seen it so I watched the Oscars like everybody else," as told in Glenn A. Baker's book 'Monkeemania.' NBC wasn't taking any chances with this "strange" special that contained psychedelic dancers, music and The Monkees singing and poking fun at their manufactured image.

There weren't any bad reviews for this TV show because no one saw it in 1969 and the critics could care less about The Monkees at that time. It was too far-fetched for the normal public and too uncool for the hippies to watch. The special had a substantial storyline (once it was understood) and some amazing guest stars (such as Brian Auger, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Little Richard). The show also contained songs that expressed their manufactured image ('Wind Up Man'), what each of their backgrounds or favorite type of music was (Micky sang an R&B version of 'I'm a Believer,' Mike sang a country-western tune called 'The Only Thing I Believe is True,' Davy, in fairy tale land sang 'Goldilocks Sometime,' and Peter sang a song about spiritual values called 'Prithee') and marking the end of the group as a quartet ('Listen to the Band'). The highlight of the show was when The Monkees, dressed in '50s like clothes, performed at the Paramount Theatre with the classic rock'n'rollers (Jerry Lee Lewis, Little Richard and Fats Domino) singing such songs as 'Tutti Frutti,' 'Little Darlin',' 'At The Hop' and 'Whole Lotta Shakin.' According to Eric Lefcowitz in his book 'The Monkees Tale, 'This is the peak performance of the Monkees kept on celluloid.'

33 1/3 Revolutions Per Monkee was even praised by Variety on the East Coast by saying, 'It was anything but a conventional norm rock'n'roll and in some respects made 'Laugh-In, which is was pre-empting, seem almost conventional television by comparison.' The special showed The Monkees not as musicians, but as performers and made the public realize that they did have minds and talent of their own.

After viewing this special, it showed me that The Monkees were way ahead of their time. The show was very different from their television series that was shown from 1966-1968. It did not contain the same storyline as "Davy meets girl, Davy falls in love with girl and The Monkees get into a lot of trouble," but it showed that The Monkees matured musically and in their writing abilities. I found the show strange at first, but after watching it a few thousand times (as every Monkees fan should) it began to grow on me. I also found the songs more impressive in this special than in their previous shows and on their albums even though no soundtrack was ever released. 33 1/3 Revolutions Per Monkee "... stands out as one of the greatest lost artifacts of Rock'n'Roll," according to Eric Lefcowitz in his book 'The Monkees Tale.'

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