Maybe it's a weird aside but when Stan introduced him and Aderholt, it occurred to me that the show goes out of their way to avoid glamorizing spies OR FBI agents. Names like Beamon and Aderholt do not suggest a cool, romanticized FBI agent. More like overworked cops.

That was the worst answer.

Knowing the name of Android operating systems isn't actually common knowledge for all.

I've got a package here for Asswipe Johnson!

Many of their songs are right up there with the great pop songs of the era. They're not the best, but we're discussing The Monkees, not the other bands of the time. Given where their history took them, I don't think their manufactured beginnings should be used to dismiss all of their music.

I realize it's more because of the general era of music, but "You Told Me" would fit very well in to the early Beatles' catalog, and "Porpoise Song" sounds just like one from their psychedelic era.

The only problem I have with this list is putting Pleasant Valley Sunday here as a "deep cut." Isn't it one of their more popular songs?

I was going to mention King's demo version. You can find it on Youtube. It's a more folk sounding version but very nice.

The story behind that song is that it was written after the band visited London and were invited to a party by the Beatles, the "kings of EMI." The line came from that sitcom that Mickey saw while staying there.

Nice! More Monkees praise. Even if you hated their music, they make for a hell of an interesting story.

Oh, ok… I'll do it. I got your joke. :)

As far as I had heard, they used a lot of studio musicians later on, but were still at least playing part of the music on those songs. Besides, that shouldn't really be held against them, since even some of The Beatles' most popular songs included people like Billy Preston and Eric Clapton playing instruments.

I agree. That was a huge part of my childhood, too. That's why even at my age, I know all about I Dream of Jeannie or the Munsters, etc, etc. It's the same reason why so much of the Seth McFarlane cartoons are just pop culture references.

One thing that maybe shouldn't have been left out is that Mike was missing from some season 2 episodes because of disputes with the producers. Maybe over contracts, or whatever. And for more fourth-wall breaking action, one of those episodes has the other guys often whining, "I wish Mike was here!"

I read it as, he doesn't hate The Monkees or anything, he just wants to do his own thing.

And the 1990s were the Joe Franken Decade.

I really am happy in recent years to see some new appreciation for the band and the show. Yes, the earliest music wasn't all made by them, but they all really sang, and only in their second album they started doing a lot more playing and writing. I just like the idea that as the story goes, they rebelled against the…

By the way, the FamilyNet channel — one of those weird sort of syndicated rerun channels — currently airs The Monkees. Check your local listings!

Yes, that is often cited as the reason for a '80s resurgence. Don't underestimate the power of that channel back then.

True, but that really was the whole point of those shows, making them more like radio shows. But by the time The Monkees were on, it didn't happen very much. They do it constantly on their show.