Love Monkees

Play it: Love Monkey (TV Series)
Play it: Teddy Geiger Underage Thinking

When CBS launched their hour-long series Love Monkey, it was billed as sort of a Friends meets High Fidelity. Turns out it might have had more in line with The Monkees. While the casting isn't centered around musicians (or, rather, actors playing musicians,) one of the purposes of the series followed in line with the old Monkees train of thought - create a series that helps sell records.

With that in mind, Teddy Geiger was cast as a teen musician being courted by several labels big and small. In the end, the small label wins out, but in real life, it's the big label, Sony, that's pulling the strings here. Geiger's album, Underage Thinking, sees it's release today, and if the series would've continued on like it was supposed to, it would've given the teen John Mayer a great cross-promotion. But, alas, the experiment failed, as Love Monkey was cut after only three episodes (7 episodes were shot,) so we may never know how it would've turned out. But I don't think it's the end of the experiment.... be on the lookout for more to come, as it's a concept that tv's been edging towards for some time. When MTV stops playing videos, and radio is becoming less an option (Eliott Spitzer makes Sony/BMG payola strategies more expensive,) the tv tie-in has become more and more attractive. And with the added bonus of charging extra for the DVD licensing (booo!) TV can serve as both promotional tool, and backend profit center.

While the selling of Teddy Geiger was rather odious, the cast and much of the rest of the content on Love Monkey was kind of refreshing, and beat the hell out of all the other mid-season replacement series, so it will be missed. Musically, the series incorporated a lot of Sony/BMG's back catologue and smaller subsidiaries, but still you still had a feeling that there was at least some brains behind it, and not just label hackery. Doubt that we'll see the other four episodes, unless Geiger takes off and there's more a demand for it. It would've been interesting to see where they went after they launched Geiger, perhaps putting together a band of kooky actor/musicians who all live together in a loft and occasionally talk to the camera.

Full music tracklisting here.

Previously
Buddy-tape it (Ep. 1.03)
Ben Folds' bald spot makes cameo (Episode 1.02)
Does anyone remember Hanson? (Episode 1.01/Pilot)

tags: playlist, music, rhapsody, television, soundtrack, love monkey, teddy geiger, the monkees, payola, sony