Why The Monkees Made $400 a Week While Their Albums Sold Millions

The Monkees‘ songs from their albums The Monkees and More of the Monkees were very popular. The albums themselves sold millions of copies. Despite this, none of the members of the group were making much money. One of the band’s songwriters explained this wasn’t the only problem they faced.

Several iconic hits came from The Monkees’ 1st 2 albums

Bobby Hart co-wrote many songs for The Monkees. In his 2015 book Psychedelic Bubble Gum: Boyce & Hart, The Monkees, and Turning Mayhem Into Miracles, Hart discussed the band’s popularity.

“As The Monkees became the single largest money-making project for the giant Screen Gems organization, the four actor/musicians found themselves with more and more political capital,” Hart recalled. “By early 1967, in just four months, their first single, ‘[Last Train to] Clarksville,’ their double-sided second hit, ‘I’m a Believer‘ backed with ‘(I’m Not Your) Steppin’ Stone,’ and their two LPs, had already sold nearly 12 million copies.” 

Bobby Hart revealed The Monkees were not making much money and they did not have creative control over their songs

Despite their prominence, the members of The Monkees weren’t making much money. “Of course, Screen Gems was keeping the lion’s share of the royalties, allotting a small agreed-on percentage to the group,” he said. “According to their contracts, when they toured, even when they were selling out large arenas, each Monkee still received only his regular weekly salary of $400.” 

In addition, the band didn’t have much control over their songs. “Adding insult to injury, when the second album was released, most of the group had never heard most of the music on it,” Hart revealed. “Contractually, [music supervisor] Don Kirshner retained total creative control of the group’s music.”

How the band’s first 2 albums performed on the charts in the United States

Hart said The Monkees’ first two albums were huge. The group’s self-titled debut album was No. 1 on the Billboard 200 for 13 weeks, staying on the chart for 102 weeks in total. The album’s single, “Last Train to Clarksville,” was No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for a single week. It stayed on the chart for 15 weeks altogether.

The group’s second album, More of the Monkees, was similarly successful. It was No. 1 for 18 of its 96 weeks on the Billboard 200. The album features “I’m a Believer” and “(I’m Not Your) Steppin’ Stone.” “I’m a Believer” was No. 1 for seven weeks, remaining on the chart for 15 weeks. Meanwhile, “(I’m Not Your) Steppin’ Stone” peaked at No. 20 and stayed on the chart for eight weeks.

The Monkees’ early years were very successful — even if the members of the group weren’t making much money.