"Mary, Mary" is a song written by

Michael Nesmith Robert Michael Nesmith (December 30, 1942 – December 10, 2021) was an American musician, songwriter, and actor. He was best known as a member of the Monkees and co-star of their The Monkees (TV series), TV series of the same name (1966–1968) ...

and first recorded by

the Paul Butterfield Blues Band The Paul Butterfield Blues Band was an American blues and blues-rock band from Chicago. Formed in the summer of 1963, the group originally featured eponymous vocalist and harmonicist Paul Butterfield, guitarist Elvin Bishop, bassist Jerome A ...

for their 1966 album '' East-West''. Nesmith's band,

the Monkees The Monkees were an American pop rock band formed in Los Angeles in the mid-1960s. The band consisted of Micky Dolenz, Davy Jones (musician), Davy Jones, Michael Nesmith, and Peter Tork. Spurred by the success of ''The Monkees (TV series), Th ...

, later recorded it for ''

More of the Monkees ''More of the Monkees'' is the second studio album by the American pop rock band the Monkees, released in 1967 on Colgems Records. It was recorded in late 1966 and displaced the band's debut album from the top of the ''Billboard'' Top LPs chart ...

'' (1967).

Hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...

group Run–D.M.C. revived the song in the late 1980s, with an adaptation that appeared in the U.S. record charts.

The Butterfield Blues Band

In 1966,

Elektra Records Elektra Records (or Elektra Entertainment) is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group, founded in 1950 by Jac Holzman and Paul Rickolt. It played an important role in the development of contemporary folk and rock music between the ...

was entering the singles market with new rock acts such as

Love Love is a feeling of strong attraction and emotional attachment (psychology), attachment to a person, animal, or thing. It is expressed in many forms, encompassing a range of strong and positive emotional and mental states, from the most su ...

and

the Doors The Doors were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1965, comprising vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, guitarist Robby Krieger and drummer John Densmore. They were among the most influential and controversial rock acts ...

. Hoping that the Paul Butterfield Blues Band would produce a hit, Elektra arranged an extended stay and recording sessions for the group in Los Angeles during the summer. It was there that producer Barry Friedman suggested that the group try a song written by guitarist

, a group with which Friedman had been working. Butterfield guitarist

Mike Bloomfield Michael Bernard Bloomfield (July 28, 1943 – February 15, 1981) was an American blues guitarist and composer. Born in Chicago, he became one of the first popular music stars of the 1960s to earn his reputation almost entirely on his instrume ...

recalled: According to Bloomfield biographer David Dann, "the song was given a muscular arrangement that included backup vocals, overdubbing, fuzz-tone effects, and dramatic stops." It also included brief solos by Bloomfield and by Butterfield on harmonica but "was clearly intended for Top 40 airplay." However, Elektra did not release the song as a single. "Mary, Mary" was included on the influential Butterfield album '' East-West'' in August 1966. The album included the group's adaptations of several older blues songs, which did not list the songwriters, and "Mary, Mary" also lacked a composer credit. After the Monkees' version was released, Butterfield fans complained to Elektra that Nesmith was taking the writer's credit for the song, but Elektra president

Jac Holzman Jac Holzman (born September 15, 1931) is an American record executive. He is the founder of the record labels Elektra Records and Nonesuch Records. Holzman helped commercially launch the CD and home video formats, as well as the pilot program wh ...

assured them that Nesmith did indeed write it.

The Monkees

On July 25, 1966, Nesmith produced and recorded the song for

at Western Recorders in

Hollywood, California Hollywood, sometimes informally called Tinseltown, is a List of districts and neighborhoods in Los Angeles, neighborhood and district in the Central Los Angeles, central region of Los Angeles County, California, within the city of Los Angeles. ...

Micky Dolenz George Michael Dolenz Jr. ( ; born March 8, 1945) is an American musician and actor. He was the drummer and one of two primary vocalists for the pop rock band the Monkees (1966–1970, and reunions until 2021), and a co-star of the TV series ''T ...

sang lead, and Nesmith used the crack group of session musicians known as the Wrecking Crew to bolster the Monkees' sound, including

James Burton James Edward Burton (born August 21, 1939, in Dubberly, Louisiana, United States) is an American guitarist. A member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame since 2001 (his induction speech was given by longtime fan Keith Richards), Burton has also ...

Glen Campbell Glen Travis Campbell (April 22, 1936 – August 8, 2017) was an American country musician and actor. He was best known for a series of hit songs in the 1960s and 1970s, and for hosting ''The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour'' on CBS television from ...

, Al Casey,

Hal Blaine Hal Blaine (born Harold Simon Belsky; February 5, 1929 – March 11, 2019) was an American drummer and session musician, thought to be among the most recorded studio drummers in the music industry, claiming over 35,000 sessions and 6,000 singles. ...

, Jim Gordon, Michael Deasy and

Larry Knechtel Lawrence William Knechtel (August 4, 1940 – August 20, 2009) was an American keyboard player and bassist who was a member of the Wrecking Crew, a collection of Los Angeles–based session musicians who worked with such renowned artists as Sim ...

. The Monkees' version was included on the album ''

'' in 1967. The Monkees' "Mary, Mary" was not released as a single in the U.S. in the 1960s, although it was distributed as a cereal-box prize in 1969. It was, however, released as a single in Australia to coincide with the Monkees 1968 tour there and went to #4 in the Australian charts.

Personnel

Sourced from AFM contract. *Lead vocal by

*Guitar:

Peter Tork Peter Halsten Thorkelson (February 13, 1942 – February 21, 2019), better known by his stage name Peter Tork, was an American musician and actor. He was best known as the bass guitarist and keyboardist of the Monkees and co-star of the NBC ...

, Al Casey, Michael Deasy and Don Peake *Piano: Michael Cohen *Bass:

and Bob West *Drums:

and Jim Gordon *Percussion: Gary Coleman

Run-D.M.C. version

Run-D.M.C. covered "Mary, Mary" in a

rap rock Rap rock is a music genre that developed from the early to mid-1980s, when hip hop DJs incorporated rock records into their routines and rappers began incorporating original and sampled rock instrumentation into hip hop music. Rap rock is co ...

version. It was released as a single from their fourth album, '' Tougher Than Leather'', in 1988. It was released by

Profile Records Profile Records was one of the earliest hip hop labels. As well as hip-hop they released disco, dance, and electro records. History In 1980, Cory Robbins, who was 23 at the time and had worked briefly for MCA, wanted to start a record label ...

and produced by the group along with

Rick Rubin Frederick Jay Rubin (, ; born March 10, 1963) is an American record producer. He is a co-founder of Def Jam Recordings, founder of American Recordings, and former co-president of Columbia Records. Rubin helped popularize hip hop by produci ...

. It was their most successful single from the album, and was the only one to reach the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, peaking at #75, and it reached #29 on the

Hot Black Singles The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by ''Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 po ...

chart. Run-D.M.C. changed the line "Mary, Mary, where ya' goin' to?" to "Mary, Mary, why ya' buggin'?". Although Run-D.M.C. replaced Nesmith's original lyrics with their own, Nesmith was the only writer credited on Run-D.M.C.'s single. Their version samples Dolenz singing the title from the Monkees' recording.

Track listing

;A-side #"Mary, Mary" – 3:12 ;B-side #"Mary, Mary" (Instrumental) – 3:12 #"Rock Box" – 5:28

Chart history

References

{{authority control 1966 songs 1988 singles The Monkees songs Run-DMC songs Songs written by Michael Nesmith Song recordings produced by Tommy Boyce Song recordings produced by Bobby Hart Song recordings produced by Rick Rubin Music videos directed by Mary Lambert Profile Records singles RCA Records singles