The past week or so I've been listening to a lot of music from 1966 and 1967. During the course of this, I've stumbled back onto a song that has been a part of my music collection for many years, but somehow I've not paid a lot of attention to it, other than the fact that it's a pleasant song. Hearing it again this week, after not really listening to it for a while, I've found myself completely addicted.
The song is "Different Drum" by The Stone Poneys. I think I first became aware of this song when I was around 14 or so. It was played on a radio station called "Memories" (that has since become a country music station) quite often. I enjoyed the song and would always sing along with it, but it was several years later before I realized that the song was penned by Monkee, Michael Nesmith.
Coincidentally, I got into The Monkees around that same time (the TV show was on in the mornings before I had to go to school), but I'd never considered any of The Monkees songwriters at that time. Strangely enough, Mike Nesmith wrote some of my favorite songs The Monkees performed like "Tapioca Tundra", "Listen to the Band", and "The Girl I Knew Somewhere". But I'd honestly never heard Mike's version of "Different Drum" until this week. (How behind am I?!) His version has a lot more of a country flavor to it and features some cool guitar work, but I still think Linda Ronstadt's rendition is the definitive version. Her voice seems to resonate with a defiance that seems to be missing from other performances I've found of this song.
As for the song itself... I love the lyrics, though I suppose they're a bit wordy - at least in comparison with a lot of what was going on in the Top 40 of the mid-'60s. I am finding that I have a thing for unusual rhymes, which this song has a few. I love the classical influence in the production, featuring a harpsichord and strings... and I love the unconventional structure to the song - not following the typical verse-bridge-verse configuration of many pop songs of the time. Also, as I think I've mentioned before, I dig the fact that it's quite clearly a break up song ("It's just that I am not in the market for a boy who wants to love only me") and it's set to a rather upbeat tune. Love the contrast of that.
Anyway, I suppose I've rambled enough for now, so I'll just leave you with the song.
You should write more about The Monkees . I <3 Micky Dolenz!
ReplyDeleteLove Linda Ronstadt! Words can not describe how good she is. Linda combines musical competence with raw emotional drive. <== How's that for sounding like a liner note?
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