We had to say goodbye to another great rock songwriter/producer/singer as Bobby Hart passed away at the age of 86. His wife said his death came after a long illness.
Hart, who was born Robert Harshman, was best known for his long-time collaboration with Tommy Boyce. Together, the two wrote and produced most of the Monkees’ early hits, including “Last Train to Clarksville,” “(I’m Not Your) Steppin’ Stone,” “Words,” and the Monkees TV theme song.
They also wrote hits for other artists, including “Hurt So Bad for Little Anthony and the Imperials (later covered by Linda Ronstadt) and “Come a Little Bit Closer” for Jay & the Americans. At the height of the Monkees’ fame in the mid-1960s, the duo also recorded a couple of hits themselves, including “I Wonder What She’s Doing Tonight” and “Out and About.”
At one point in the early 1970s, before the revival of interest in the Monkees’ music, Hart joined with Boyce and Monkees members Mickey Dolenz and Davy Jones, and toured nightclubs and smaller venues as “Dolenz, Jones, Boyce & Hart.”
Looking back over his career, Hart remarked: “It’s interesting and gratifying to look back these many years later and see that the Monkees are still with us, and they’re still being played somewhere...the records themselves have been staples that have gone on to sell for years and years. They still sound pretty fresh, and that we had an opportunity to do a lot of music that was married to visuals, and so, that in itself kinda seems to ensure that they’ll have a life of their own that’ll probably far outlast mine.”
His words are most certainly true. We will miss him.
