Yeah, I was there and you can read about Micky’s tremendous 2012 gig here, but since you weren’t there try this 6 song EP from last year, the only complaint I have about the live memory is it isn’t nearly long enough. At 18 minutes it gives you a good feel for the depth and range of the show bit it doesn’t give you enough.
A fragile, soft, unbearably sweet “Sometime In The Morning” was followed by the soft shoe shuffle great depression like “D.W. Washburn” and an ode to a legendary guitarist thrown off the Monkees tour back in 1967. An amusing story (and one of the few times Dolenz includes his onstage banter) concludes with a straight up cover of “Purple Haze”.
The EP travels from a version of “Bye Bye Blackbird” Mickey used to play with his sister (the first song he ever sang) as a child (at the actual gig, his sister joined him on stage!) to the bluesy arrangement of “Sugar Sugar” he included on his last album. All of it is good and all you can do while you listen to this enormously pleasurable recording is wish he had included “Stepping Stone” and “I’m A Believer” and his terrific cover of Lennon’s “Good Morning Good Morning”.
Dolenz was in good spirits and fine voice, though it took awhile to get rid of the rust, that night, and this reminder should be longer. After all these years, Micky emerges as a song and dance man, adept at just about every form of rock and pop with a history and a present he can tap into at will and an unerring sense of moment at tempo. This should’ve been the entire show. We should have it for posterity.
He is playing Bb Kings on July 30th, miss it at your own peril.
Grade: A-
