Bobby Hart, a songwriting dynamo who partnered with Tommy Boyce to write iconic hits for “The Monkees” has died, the band announced.
He was 86.
Hart had been in poor health since breaking his hip last year and died at his home in Los Angeles, his longtime friend Glenn Ballantyne told the Associated Press.
Boyce and Hart were a well-known writing team in the mid-1960s, especially for the Monkees, the made-for-television group promoted by Don Kirshner that went on to become one of the decades’ biggest chart-toppers with tracks like “”Daydream Believer.”
The duo wrote hits like “I Wanna Be Free,” their first No. 1 hit, “Last Train to Clarksville,” and the iconic Monkees theme.
“Another great is gone,” the Monkees’ Micky Dolenz wrote. “His talent, humor, and calmness amidst chaos brought peace to those around him—the eye of the hurricane. Rest in peace, Bobby.”
While working with The Monkees, Boyce and Hart embarked on a successful career as recording artists, releasing three albums on A&M Records. They also appeared in iconic sitcoms such as “I Dream of Jeannie” and “Bewitched.”
Boyce, who died in 1994, and Hart were the subjects of a 2014 documentary “The Guys Who Wrote ‘Em.”
“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…” Hart once said.
“The records themselves have been staples…they’ll have a life of their own that’ll probably far outlast mine.”
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