The Monkees Honor the Frisky Feline that Inspired The ‘Instant Replay’ Hit ‘Shorty Blackwell’
Many of The Monkees‘ earliest hits followed a traditional music and lyric formula popular in the mid-1960s. However, as the group evolved as songwriters and musicians, their tunes became more experimental. Micky Dolenz penned one memorable song, written from the perspective of a cat and included on the band’s 1969 LP Instant Replay, that followed that guideline. To remind their followers how great the song was, the band’s official social media page honored the frisky feline with a sweet post.
The Monkees’ ‘Instant Replay’ included three out of four original band members
After filming their only feature film, Head, The Monkees said goodbye to Peter Tork. He left the band after six albums and two seasons of their television series.
Tork contributed to six Monkees albums in total. These included The Monkees, More of The Monkees, Headquarters, Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn & Jones, The Birds, The Bees & The Monkees, and the soundtrack to Head.
By the time The Monkees recorded Instant Replay, they were a threesome. The remaining members, guitarist Mike Nesmith, Micky Dolenz, and Davy Jones, tried out new sounds and broke even more ground as a band.
One of these songs included a Micky Dolenz-penned tune written from a cat’s perspective. On Apr. 30, 2023, the band celebrated the legacy of “Shorty Blackwell” by sharing a photograph of the infamous feline and the story behind the song on Instagram.
The Monkees honor ‘Shorty Blackwell’
Micky Dolenz honored the cat, which inspired the song “Shorty Blackwell” in a social media post. The adorable black feline was Dolenz’s pet.
In a post honoring “Caturday,” The Monkees drummer was snapped with his furry friend and an essential instrument in Dolenz’s home studio, a Moog synthesizer. The musician had one of the very first of these instruments made available to purchase
The Monkees’ fourth album Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn & Jones featured one of the first uses of the Moog synthesizer in popular music. Dolenz owned one of the first twenty ever sold. Pisces was one of the first commercial recordings to reach a broad audience featuring the Moog.
Shorty Blackwell walked along the Moog in a photo that accompanied the post as Dolenz looked on. Fans responded positively to the retro snap of Dolenz and his feline companion, which inspired a song inspired heavily by the recordings The Beatles were doing in the late 1960s.
Monkees’ fans share their thoughts about ‘Shorty Blackwell’ and the furry friend that inspired it
Dolenz revealed in the liner notes to the album’s deluxe edition that the song was named after his cat. He also said how The Beatles inspired the song by explaining, “That was my little attempt to do ‘A Day in the Life’ or something.”
He continued, “Just me again being incredibly self-indulgent and writing about things that were happening in my life. Shorty Blackwell was my cat. My feeble attempt at something to do with Sgt. Pepper.”
The out-of-the-box tune had supplemental vocals by Dolenz’s sister, Coco: Brother and sister trade wordplay and harmonies on the recording. Jazz trumpeter Shorty Rogers provided a welcome addition to the song’s mammoth orchestral arrangement.
Fans shared their thoughts on the post. “Such a great song. So weird and unique. Shorty Blackwell is a cute little buddy.”
“Awesome song off an awesome album! This song and album don’t get enough credit!” penned a second fan.
“Yessss! This is easily the top 5 of my favorite songs!” a third Instagram user wrote.
“Awesome song off an awesome album! This song and album don’t get enough credit!” noted a fourth Monkees fan.
The Monkees would go on to record one more album as a threesome. The Monkees Present was the trio’s last LP before Mike Nesmith left the band for good in 1970.
