"Daydream Believer" by The Monkees

Song#:  2915
Date:  11/01/1986
Debut:  90
Peak:  79
Weeks:  4
Genre:  Pop



Pop Bits:  With Monkeemania back in full swing thanks to MTV airing reruns of The Monkees, it seemed like the right time for a new hits compilation to hit the market. Arista Records stepped up to the plate and came up with Then & Now...The Best of The Monkees. In addition to their hits and key tracks, two of the Monkees, Micky Dolenz and Peter Tork, reunited to record three new tracks including the set's first single "That Was Then, This Is Now." That song surprisingly made the Pop Top 20 (#20). For a follow up, instead of releasing another new track that featured just two of the Monkees, one of their older hits would get a bit of a remix and pushed out instead. The Davy Jones-led "Daydream Believer" was selected for release. While it picked up some airplay and a few sales, the reissue didn't fully catch on and it fell off the chart after a short month. However, the first single and interest in the Monkees helped the album get to #21. By early '87 it would be a platinum seller.

ReduxReview:  This version of the song got spruced up a bit. Mainly, the little studio talk section heard in the original is gone while the drums were adjusted/pumped up to help the track fit in with other 80s pop on the radio. It's fine, but I kind of hate when they mess with old hits. It rarely provides any improvement or makes them more interesting. The original was wonderful, so why mess with that? This one is not too bad since the main thing they toyed with was the drums, but I find them a bit distracting. I prefer the drums they way they had them recorded when the song was first done. Just leave the track alone. Still, it's a great song and they didn't mess it up too much. The original song would rate a 9. This remix gets pushed down to a 6.

ReduxRating:  6/10

Trivia:  This song was The Monkees' third and final #1 hit. Released late in 1967, it would be the first single from their fifth album The Birds, the Bees, & the Monkees. The album would also yield the band's last Top 10, the #3 "Valleri." "Daydream Believer" was written by John Stewart, a former member of the popular folk group The Kingston Trio. Several artist have remade the song, but only country star Anne Murray was able to hit the Pop chart with a version. Her 1979 take on the tune peaked on the Pop chart at #12 in 1980 while reaching #3 at Country.

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