Where to begin? I was occupied until just after supper when I checked in to social media. It took me several moments to make sense of the first post I saw -- from a dear friend noting she'd lost a friend today. The shock of it all led to tears. While I didn't know this man well, I had met him in passing twice and seen him in person five times. Peter Tork died today. I first encountered him as a pre-teen through the television. Every week our family would gather to watch the sitcom The Monkees. I fell in love with them and the music -- after all this band was 'made' to cater to the younger group when the Beatles were moving into a more sophisticated sound that appealed more to those a few years older. It wasn't until into my late 30s that I saw them perform live (well three of them) on the 30 year reunion tour. I saw a different threesome in 2012. Peter was part of all of those concerts. Without the phenomonon that was The Monkees, I would not have met a large part of my support 'family'. We've been in touch daily for 24 years and have seen each other through life's ups and downs.
Peter was an amazing musician and songwriter. He played bass guitar for the band as well as keyboards and he played a mean banjo. When I saw him in concert in 2012, despite the backup band, he chose to do what would have been on three separate tracks on a recording. He sang harmony while playing the keyboard -- the right hand playing the melody and the left playing the bass notes that he'd usually do by guitar. That was brilliant. His brain embraced music on multiple levels.
I expect some of the sadness has to do with losing someone that I've 'known' for decades and especially from my childhood. Some of that feeling also comes from knowing that many others knew him well and are grieving their loss today. I know he will be missed by many people. He touched so many lives with his music, intellect and sense of humour. It wasn't difficult to see his joy for living.
I chose to share two songs here today, both written by Peter. The first comes from The Monkees third album, Headquarters on which instruments were played by the band and not only session musicians. The lyrics show his early folk roots from Greenwich Village and reflect his kind and gentle soul -- a real flower child. The title pays homage to the folk master Pete Seeger. The second song was recorded on his only solo album (With The Monkees, he was part of 12 studio albums, 6 live albums, 19 singles and 31 compilation albums; plus 3 albums with James Lee Stanley and 4 albums with Shoe Suede Blues). I love the lightness of the song. The lyrics have some wonderful lines. One of my favourites being "I could hide in a crack in the road" -- something that I've wished I could do some days <smile>. Suffice it to say, today Peter is sitting with the Great Soda Jerk in the sky eating devils food cake and drinking milkshakes before he takes up his place in that great band that the Righteous Brothers told us about years ago. Enjoy!
For Pete's Sake -- The Monkees
Milkshake -- Peter Tork (with backing vocals by Michael Nesmith and Micky Dolenz)
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