This article appeared in the "Lively Arts" section of the San 
     Francisco Sunday Examiner & Chronicle on February 5, 1995 (things are 
     slow today at work, so I have time to type this):
     ______________________________________________________________________
     
        SOLO ALBUM FOR EX-MONKEE TORK
        by Michael Snyder
     
        First, Rhino Records reissued all nine original albums by the       
        MONKEES, rescued from the annals of rock trivia and oldies radio    
        formats. Next came last month's homevideo release of "Head" - the   
        only feature film to star the blithe '60s pop-rock hit makers and   
        sitcom stars. Now, here comes PETER TORK - the lovable, spaced-out  
        Monkee bass and keyboard player - with a solo album in hand and a   
        show scheduled for New George's on Wednesday.
     
        These days, Tork, 52, divides his time between his home in Venice,  
        Calif., and a residence near the Golden Gate Park Panhandle. He has 
        participated in a few Monkees reunion concerts over the past two    
        decades, but he has spent most of his time performing in folk clubs 
        and teaching music. 
     
        A few weeks ago. Tork and his fellow Monkees - MICKEY (sic) DOLENZ, 
        DAVY JONES and MIKE NESMITH - convened for an event that Rhino      
        promoted at the Hard Rock Cafe in Los Angeles. 
     
        "Rhino descovered that we were eligible for five platinum album     
        awards," said Tork last week. "Our first five albums were never     
        recognized for selling in the millions, so Rhino made certain that  
        they were classified platinum. We arrived in limos and were         
        interviewed by CNN, the newspapers and magazines.
     
        "It's been 25 years since the group split up. The reporters asked   
        how we could explain the continuing interest in the Monkees. I said 
        it was part of our 50-year plan."
     
        He's pleased with the rhino reissues because a number of previously 
        unreleased bonus tracks are included on each CD. "People finally    
        get a chance to hear 'Lady's Baby' and a few other songs of mine."
     
        "Stranger Things Have Happened" is the title of Tork's first solo   
        album. It's on Beachwood Records, a small label based in Woodland   
        Hills. "It's owned by JAMES LEE STANLEY, a singer-songwriter who    
        plays Sweetwater sometimes," Tork said. Stanley co-produced and     
        engineered the album.
     
        "It's not alternative, thrash, hip-hop, acid jazz or any of that,   
        but there's some funky stuff and moderately heavy guitar," Tork     
        said. He included his take on JACKIE WILSON's "Higher and Higher,"  
        played on five-string banjo. He wrote six of the album's 11 songs.  
        He does only one tune associated with the Monkees, "Take a Giant    
        Step," with backup vocals by two offspring of the Mamas and the     
        Papas - CASS ELLIOT's daughter OWEN ELLIOT and JOHN PHILLIPS'       
        daughter MACKENZIE PHILLIPS. 
     
        "At New George's, I'll be doing songs from the album, a couple of   
        Monkees covers, some old R&B and even some '50s music," Tork said.  
        "I'll have 5 or six in the band playing bass, drums, two guitars,   
        keyboards and a fiddle. IVAN IANNOLI, my son, is playing congas."
     
        Tork, who isn't married, has two children - IVAN, 19, and HALLIE,   
        25.
     
        Born in Washington, D.C., Tork was a folk musician in Greenwich     
        Village before he auditioned for the Monkees' TV series. "I had     
        been in a group with STEPHEN STILLS," he said. "In fact, he turned  
        me on to the Monkees. He told me that this guy, BOB RAFELSON, was   
        doing a TV show that was inspired by 'A Hard Day's Night.' Stills   
        told me I should audition."
     
        With the Monkees' 30th anniversary coming up, Tork says a reunion   
        tour is a possibility. A new feature film is a more dicey           
        proposition.
     
        "We'd like to do a movie if there's enough interest. It would have  
        to be an extraordinarily well-crafted script." 
     
        As for his new album, he's taking a restrained approach. "I can get 
        it distributed nationally, but I don't want to unless I have a      
        decent promotional budget. For the time being, I'd rather do        
        in-store shows and concerts and sell them as I go."
     
        The disc can be ordered with Visa or Mastercard at (800)668-7420 or 
        via mail by writing Beachwood Records, 4872 Topanga Canyon          
        Boulevard, Suite 223, Woodland Hills, Calif. 91364.
     
     ______________________________________________________________________
     
     By the way folks, Peter's new CD is quite good! (And I wasn't too keen 
     on most of Peter's work before hearing this disc.) Since it seems like 
     a rather low-budgeted affair, I have a feeling it won't be in print 
     for very long. I highly recommend you placing your orders soon!
     
     Glenn