"If I Knew"
Friday Flashback with Davy Jones (Monkees) and Bill Chadwick
FRIDAY FLASHBACK (+ BELATED HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO BILL CHADWICK): “If I Knew” by Davy Jones
Bill Chadwick (whose 80th birthday was this week) is familiar to Monkees fans as a songwriter, TV show extra, studio musician, friend and confidant of the group throughout its initial run in the 1960s. He was a regular along with Michael Nesmith and John London at the famous Ledbetter's club in Los Angeles and the Troubadour in Hollywood during the pre-Monkees era. The three were soon part of a folk group called The Survivors that was assembled by Randy Sparks, who also founded The New Christy Minstrels. After The Monkees, Bill moved back east and has collaborated with other songwriters (notably Dennis Dunaway of the original Alice Cooper band).
“If I Knew” was written by Bill Chadwick and Davy Jones and was first released on THE MONKEES PRESENT album in 1969. That version was in a bossa nova style, but when Davy and I revisited it in 1994, we went for a “Philly-Soul/Hall & Oates meets 10cc vibe.” It was mixed by John Bechdel (Killing Joke, Ministry) and Rusty Richards (Chuckii Booker, Brian Wilson). Out of all the songs we were working on at the time, this was the first mix that really floored us. Uma Robin Mackey calls it “sublime.”
Personnel:
Davy Jones: percussion, songwriting & vocals
Johnny J. Blair: arrangement, bass, electronic drums, guitar, keyboards, production, harmony vocals, remastering (2021) & video-making (2021)
Bill Chadwick: songwriting
John Bechdel: mixing
Rusty Richards: drum program & mixing
#davyjones #monkees #johnnyjblair #billchadwick #phillysoul #hallandoates #10cc #singersongwriter #johnbechdel #rustyrichards #pennsylvania