"(Theme from) The Monkees"

Yester-day, I figured out the chords for "(Theme from) The Monkees," although I'd already figured out a section while writing this post a couple years ago.  The album version contains a couple key changes; it starts in C major, and while the song fades out rather than resolving, the coda cycles through a progression in D major (D major | G major | A major).  The version that was actually used in the television show goes even further; it starts in C major and resolves in E major.  To some degree, this key change (in either version) demonstrates the lines "But we're too busy singin' / To put anybody down" since the song ends in a higher key than where it started.

"(Theme from) The Monkees"

I was thinking about "(Theme from) The Monkees" yester-day, specifically the bass part during the first verse, which is something like:

For most of this, the bass alternates between the root and the fifth of the chords (A minor | F major | D major | G major).  Musically, this gives something of an impression of footsteps, and this matches the "walkin'" that's in the lyrics:  "Here we come / Walkin' down the street."

"(Theme from) The Monkees"

This morning I was thinking about the theme from The Monkees, and I realized a small thing about the lines "Anytime / Or anywhere."  The syllables of both "anytime" and "anywhere" are all sung to different pitches (C D E for "anytime" and E G A for "anywhere").  Musically, this gives a sense of the breadth of possibility.

"(Theme from) The Monkees"

Early this morning I was thinking about "(Theme from) The Monkees" and realized something about the shape of the melody for the chorus (except for the chorus before the instrumental section, which is a bit different).  The melody in each phrase is fairly conjunct (I think the biggest interval is a major third), and most of the phrases ascend, but at the end of the line "To put anybody down," there's a falling fourth (D to A), so that "down" is represented musically.