Before the band’s emergence, there were no such branches in rock’s family tree as “bubblegum” and “sunshine pop.” The former, a sound invented in 1968 to appeal to youthful listeners while encoding adult themes for older ones, owes its livelihood to the desire to capitalize on Monkees success (in fact, “Sugar Sugar” was offered to the band years before the Archies were contrived). Lester Bangs summarized the genre thusly: “The basic bubblegum sound could be described as the basic sound of rock & roll — minus the rage, fear, violence and anomie … Ladle on a bit of Beach Boys here and there, keep the ball rolling but let it bounce … A calculated innocence, perhaps, but the wonderful irony was that it worked.” It did work, and the Hall should recognize this.
Hey, Hey Let Them In: 10 Reasons The Monkees Should Be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Twelve performers were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame this year. The Monkees weren't one of them. TIME makes a case for the pop-rock group that changed music forever — one sitcom episode at a time
Reason No. 6: Their (O.K., Not So Vital) Innovations in Music Itself
Full List
Monkees Hall of Fame
- Reason No. 1: Their Chart Success
- Reason No. 2: The Quality of Their Songs, Even Those That Weren’t Hits
- Reason No. 3: The Many Talents They Discovered
- Reason No. 4: Their Standoff Against Don Kirshner and the Music Industry
- Reason No. 5: Their Vital Innovations in Music Video
- Reason No. 6: Their (O.K., Not So Vital) Innovations in Music Itself
- Reason No. 7: Micky Dolenz’s Lyrical Talents
- Reason No. 8: They Gave Us the Movie Head
- Reason No. 9: Their Central Role in Defining Authenticity in Rock
- Reason No. 10: The Real Purpose of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame