New Monkees was the name of both a US pop rock music group, and the short-lived 1987 syndicated television show featuring the group.

The 20th anniversary of The Monkees in 1986 generated enough interest that New Monkees was conceived later that year, and launched the following year. The show was produced by Columbia Pictures Television and distributed by Coca-Cola Telecommunications (both are now Sony Pictures Television). Straybert Productions, headed by Steve Blauner (a former partner of original Monkees producers Robert Rafelson and Bert Schneider), served as the project's producers.

The group's members were Jared Chandler, Dino Kovas, Marty Ross, and Larry Saltis. As with the first Monkees, each had to pass a grueling round of auditions, but this time the emphasis was on musical ability. The band released one, self-titled album, distributed by Warner Bros. Records. The album was produced by many, which included veterans Steve Barri and Tony Peluso, newcomer Matt Wallace, the then husband and wife team of Dean and Carol Parks, Joe Curiale, and Mike Slamer who co-wrote a song for the album with member Larry Saltis.

On the show, the band lived in a large mansion with a butler, and numerous unexplored rooms (much like recent hit series The Young Ones), and this was the main source of their adventures. Instead of a normal kitchen and dining room, the house featured a diner with a waitress named Rita, played by former exercise instructor Bess Motta, of 20 Minute Workout fame.

Originally slated for a 22-episode season, the show earned ratings lower than expected, and New Monkees left the air after only thirteen episodes. This was partly due to the nature of syndication in the late 1980s colliding with the ever growing cable market.The show had 93 Markets with no two airtimes and day being the same! The album also did not catch on, and yielded no hit records. While the original Monkees series served as promotion for their records, and vice versa, this did not happen the second time around.In fact, Warner Bros. assumed that the show would promote the album and vice-versa. Neither happened. The New Monkees did have a generous ad campaign that included the first theatrical commercial for of which are commonplace today. The Commercial was for New Coke, which is a story unto itself!

There are currently no plans to release New Monkees on DVD from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. Their album also remains out of print. Interest in the short-lived band has continued through internet news groups. The band themselves staged a 20-year reunion in Los Angeles during 2007, with all four members in attendance.

Album

Warner Bros. Records (Released 1987)

Track listing:

1. "What I Want"
2. "Do It Again"
3. "I Don't Know"
4. "Way She Moves"
5. "Boy Inside the Man"
6. "Burnin' Desire"
7. "Whatever It Takes"
8. "Affection"
9. "Carlene"
10. "Corner of My Eye"
11. "Turn It Up"

• An additional song entitled "Clone of My Own" was featured in an episode of the TV series, but did not appear on the album. A similar fate happened to an acoustic version of "Affection".

External links

• New Monkees at the Internet Movie Database
• New Monkees at TV.com
• Unofficial New Monkees Info Site