(The Hit Hammer is where I'm reviewing each #1 song on the Billboard Hot 100. Starting from when the chart started in 1958 and eventually working my way to the present. To see my inspiration and more information about this blog, please CLICK HERE)
The Monkees - "Daydream Believer"
Hit Number 1: December 2, 1967
Stay at Number 1: 4 Weeks
The entire meaning of "Daydream Believer" could've been a lot different. One of the lines of the final recording, "Now you know how happy I can be", was intended by songwriter John Stewart to be "Now you know how funky I can be". Now I didn't even know this, but apparently "funky" is another word for "smelly". So RCA Records insisted to Stewart that the line be changed, but Stewart wasn't easily convinced. Stewart thought that one change would change the meaning of the song, and the one line wouldn't make any sense with the song's context. Even though Stewart was right, he eventually agreed to the change, because he knew that the song was big hit potential. Obviously, he was right about that too.
Chip Douglas, the former Turtles member who left to become the Monkees' producer, ran into Stewart while at a party at Hoyt Axton's home. He asked Stewart if he had any material that he thought might work for the Monkees, and that's how the band got their hands on "Daydream Believer". No one thought that the song would become a big hit though, and it had been turned down already by bands like We Five and Spanky and Our Gang. Davy Jones, who sang lead on the track, even admitted that he was "pissed off" during the recording of the song, but that probably had to do with the amount of takes they had to put into the song. It would be worth the hassle. The video above cuts this part out, but most versions of the song for some reason include some spoken dialogue between Jones and Douglas, along with someone else in the studio. Douglas says "7A" before Jones asks "What number is this Chip?". Douglas along with the unidentified voice snap back "7A!" before Jones gives them a smart-ass response of "Okay, don't get all excited, man. It's cause I'm short, I know...", before Peter Tork's piano riff starts playing. Jones was indeed pretty short for a guy, standing only at 5' 3", but I'm not sure what his height had to do with anything. Or why that spoken dialogue was left in there to begin with, or if it was a mistake. Whatever the case, it's kind of funny.
"Daydream Believer" works as the Monkees' own take on psychedelia, even though none of the members wrote the song's lyrics. Stewart described the song as "the third in a trilogy of songs about suburban life". But that's way above my head, and probably most people who listen to the song. I can only speak for myself, so to me, the song is mostly a perfect mixture of meaningless lyrics/rhymes, with a strong, addicting chorus. 1967 has been a year full of strong choruses, but the one in "Daydream Believer" is probably the best. Anytime I hear the familiar "Cheer up sleepy Jean/Oh what can it mean/To a daydream believer/And a homecoming queen", it's nothing but happy vibes. In fact, everything sounds really happy. The piano, the gleaming strings, the horns before the chorus, and even though he claimed to be "pissed" while he sang, Jones sounds a little happy too. How could you not be at least a little happy while listening to "Daydream Believer"? It's like first waking up, and seeing the sun shining through your window.
"Daydream Believer" was the last Monkees #1 hit, so that means this is the last time we will hear from them in this blog. In fact, the Monkees never came that close to #1 again after "Daydream Believer". They did achieve a comeback single in 1986, with all the Monkees besides Michael Nesmith coming together for a reunion with "That Was Then, This Is Now". It became a surprising hit, and it made it to #20. (It's a 7) Stewart, meanwhile, built a pretty nice career for himself, and in 1979, he made it to #5 with the Stevie Nicks collaboration "Gold". (It's an 8. Nicks will appear in this blog as a member of Fleetwood Mac) Even though this is the last we'll hear from the Monkees, cheer up sleepy Jean, because there's still plenty of great music we have yet to cover here.
GRADE: 9/10
JUST MISSED:
The sunshine pop precursor for 70s style music, The Cowsills, had two #2 hits. The first was "The Rain, the Park, and Other Things", which peaked at #2 behind "Daydream Believer". It's a 7.
The next song to peak at #2 behind "Daydream Believer" was Gladys Knight & the Pips' funky, bluesy take on "I Heard It Through the Grapevine", a song that will appear in this blog by someone else. Their version is an 8. (Gladys Knight & the Pips will also appear in this blog with a #1 hit of their own)
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