Ultimate Tribute to Davy Jones...

At first, when I got to work on Wednesday, February 29th, the "leap year" day, I was super excited because I had just managed to win two tickets to the Beach Boys 50th Anniversary Reunion concert at the Greek Theater on June 1st! It's not easy to be caller number 103 on the radio, especially when you're in bad traffic and you just randomly push a button and hope that a cop doesn't catch you messing with your cell phone and give you a ticket. What really blew me away was the I won as the radio station began playing John Lennon's, "Imagine" on the radio. It almost seemed surreal when Don Blue said I won!

So yes, I was flying high when I got to work that morning and even shared the good news with all my friends on Facebook. But then the news came...the sad news..

Davy Jones has passed away. THE Davy Jones from the Monkees, THE Davy Jones who was the original Artful Dodger in the Broadway hit Oliver! back in the 1960's...THE Davy Jones whom I had seen perform with Peter and Micky just last July -- the Monkees concert at the Saratoga Winery. And what a fabulous show it was. What girl didn't have a crush on Davy Jones, even the die-hard Beatles fans like me (who knew the Beatles ruled but still watched The Monkees on TV).

Suddenly I went from being excited to sadness as a whole bunch of us remembered Davy Jones on Facebook...and beyond. What could I possibly do to pay tribute to the great Davy Jones? What could all of us do?

Then it hit me -- so I contacted my good friend Steve and told him we just HAD to lead the song "Daydream Believer" at the Second Monday night ukulele jam. He agreed of course. And I knew it would work out with Steve helping out because he's a mega ukulele player who can play anything on ANY instrument! 

Annette, Bob and the gang play another song earlier in the evening...

I let our fearless leader Dave F. know that I was going to bring in like 50 copies of Daydream Believer to share with everyone and that we would lead the song -- perhaps right before the break or right after. Dave said "okay" but said he had his reservations. Why? Because he thought the song would be too hard for many people at Dana St. Roasting who go every month to play -- it was not a three chord song and it was in the key of G. I talked him into it -- "It's for Davy Jones!" I emailed back. "We must do it."

And so at the UCSV Dana St. Roasting Second Monday night jam, we all paid tribute to Davy Jones in the most stellar way EVER!!!

Check out The Ultimate Tribute to Davy Jones!!! (<---click here!)

This is what the Ukulele Club of Silicon Valley as well as the ukulele spirit is ALL about!

AFTER NOTE: on November 11, 2012, I saw the remaining three Monkees, Peter, Micky and Mike Nesmith, perform at the Flint Center. They said they couldn't decide who should do "Daydream Believer" because it was Davy's song...in the end, they "gave" the song to the all of us, the audience...I like to think that on March 12, 2012, we all did the same thing...we all sang and played Daydream Believer together...