Davy Jones is a song and dance guy, a vaudeville turn. He was pre-teen when he appeared in the Brit soap Coronation Street and not yet 16 when he'd made the leap to Broadway as the Artful Dodger in "Oliver!". By the time he reached the Monkees he was a veteran and he, more than Dolenz even, went along for the ride when Nesmith and Tork decided they were a real, actual rock band.
Last year I went to see Davy at the Monkees reunion tour, last week I caught him at BB Kings. I thought his lack of pretension with the Monkees was refreshing, and I found Davy's self-deprecation alarming by himself. The 66 year old man is a great, he has been at the very top of the world, he could tell Justin Bieber what it was like, moment for moment, from the top to the bottom.
On stage, Jones is a man with no illusions left. He hides in plain sight, and he acts as though everything he has ever done is the butt of a bad joke. I don't know why… maybe it is habit. Maybe he just doesn't want to give that much of himself. He wants to be light and easy, he wants to flip to the skies and just put on a cute performance.
Maybe he is upset, maybe he is angry. Jones dealt with teen idol hood with as much dignity as humanly possible, and what did it get him? Last act on a nostalgia cruise ship and daft stand up.
The actual music at BB Kings was pretty good rock and roll -nothing wrong with it, though why he played "Papa John's Blues" instead of "Cuddly Toy" I have no idea. But the entire act was a series of distractions. When I saw David Cassidy at BB King's he at least attempted to come to terms with his past, Davy completely ignored it. C'mon, he is one of the greatest stars of the 1960s. Why does he act as though he is a has been comic?
If Davy knows his legacy, he does NOTHING AT ALL, to maintain it. I would be happy to see him do something like the tour Ray Davies once did, reading from his auto-biography and playing songs solo. Or Peter Asher. Why shouldn't Davy mount a show and come to terms with his past. for us. Cement what happened.
Jones is the best loved Monkee. He and we deserve better from him.