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The Beatles‘ songs inspired some of The Monkees‘ songs. For example, one of The Monkees’ songs is supposed to sound like “Why Don’t We Do It in the Road?” Notably, the song was co-written by The Monkees’ Micky Dolenz and another rock star.

The Beatles' Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, John Lennon, and George Harrison standing in a row
The Beatles’ Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, John Lennon, and George Harrison | John Pratt/Keystone/Getty Images

Micky Dolenz was still ‘in shock’ years after performing these songs by The Monkees

The Monkees collaborated with Adam Schlesinger of Fountains of Wayne for their 2016 album Good Times! During a 2020 interview with Rock Cellar Magazine, Dolenz recalled working on the album. “Oh man, Good Times! was an absolute highlight of my career, both recording it and then performing those songs,” he revealed. “I’m still in a little bit in shock.”

Dolenz had fond memories of Schlesinger. “I got along great with Adam and I worked a lot with him because I sang a lot of the songs on those albums,” Dolenz recalled. “He was very precise and very, very clear about what he wanted. He worked fairly quickly because we didn’t have a huge budget. And of course he played on it as well.”

Micky Dolenz and Adam Schlesinger co-wrote a bluesy song influenced by The Beatles’ ‘Why Don’t We Do It in the Road?’

Dolenz co-wrote a song with Schlesinger called “I Was There (And I’m Told I Had a Good Time).” The song became the closing track of Good Times! According to a 2016 Rolling Stone article, “I Was There (And I’m Told I Had a Good Time)” is the only song on the album Dolenz played drums on.

Schlesinger revealed why he and Dolenz used the title “I Was There (And I’m Told I Had a Good Time).” “Micky has been using that line as a running joke for years,” Schlesinger said. “I said, ‘Well that sounds like a fun song. Maybe we can do it as kind of a fun bluesy thing, almost like ‘Why Don’t We Do It in the Road?'”

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The way listeners reacted to The Beatles’ ‘Why Don’t We Do It in the Road?’ and The Monkees’ ‘I Was There (And I’m Told I Had a Good Time)’

The Beatles never released “Why Don’t We Do It in the Road?” as a single. Thus, it never charted on the Billboard Hot 100. The song appeared on The Beatles’ self-titled album, commonly known as The White Album. The White Album was No. 1 for nine of its 215 weeks on the Billboard 200.

In the same vein, The Monkees never released “I Was There (And I’m Told I Had a Good Time)” as a single. It didn’t reach the Billboard Hot 100 either. Regardless, Good Times! became a modest hit. It peaked at No. 14 on the Billboard 200, staying on the chart for four weeks.

“I Was There (And I’m Told I Had a Good Time)” is not one of The Monkees’ most famous songs, but it remains an interesting connection between the Prefab Four and The Beatles.

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