Then & Now... The Best of The Monkees Then & Now... The Best of The Monkees Then & Now... the Best of The Monkees is a compilation album of songs by the 1960s American pop group The Monkees, released by Arista Records in 1986. With the 1986 revival of "Monkeemania," Arista Records issued a new Monkees "best of" collection, including three new recordings featuring vocals by Micky Dolenz and Peter Tork: "That Was Then, This Is Now," "Anytime, Anyplace, Anywhere" and a remake of the Paul Revere and the Raiders hit, "Kicks." Neither Michael Nesmith nor Davy Jones participated in the new recordings. Nesmith also did not join
The Monkees group nor unusual in this respect. The Monkees also frequently contributed their own songwriting efforts on their albums and saw their musical skills improve. They ultimately became a self-directed group, playing their own instruments and writing many of their own songs. Noted Monkees and 1960s music historian Andrew Sandoval noted, in "The Hollywood Reporter," that the Monkees "pioneered the music video format [and band member Mike Nesmith dreamed up the prototype for what would become MTV] and paved the way for every boy band that followed in their wake, from New Kids on the Block to 'N Sync to Jonas