Monkees - Riu Chiu - Offical Video - High Quality

[petalrs]

What gorgeous voices! Have you seen this on the actual Christmas episode and at the end of the song the boys bring on a lot of the crew to front of camera to introduce them to the audience at home, great to see, honest friendly guys.

[xkaptinx]

It took me until 2012 to catch the inside joke. Davy is smiling at Peter who silently introduces a lit stick of incense - thus imitating Mickey with lit candle. Mike is really into the song and remains oblivious to what's going on around him. Unlike many Beatle songs, there's not one giggle or snicker!

[pattythek]

@xkaptinx LOL! I can't tell you how many time I've seen this and never noticed!

[ThatsMrMoronToYou]

Even though they're lip-syncing, it's nice to see them together.

[GirlsinFogandSmoke]

@ThatsMrMoronToYou This isn't lip-synced.

[ThatsMrMoronToYou]

@GirlsinFogandSmoke  Is.

[IMkirok]

Hmmmm, one tone deaf scrooge

[cannibalisticrequiem]

I came here thanks to PushingUpRoses! I can't believe I never knew about this, I loved The Monkees as a kid!

[whitewolf80ful]

I just discovered this last night.  What a beautiful rendition! This band was formed as a parody of the Beatles, but a wonderful side effect was the discovery of their amazing talents and they wound up a legitimate band.

[Monkofmagnesia]

I watch this every Christmas, but I wonder who could possibly dislike this. Some one did. Whomever did it was probably upset because in this clip the Monkess did not play their own instruments.

[G30D3]

lovely tune and it's really nicely harmonized. First time that i've heard the Monkees and it's a great first impression!

[califtina45]

They did a great job. Just like all the other ones. I love the monkees

[Crotchrot]

When I see old Monkees videos I'm just reminded at how disappointed I am that Mike Nesmith has worked so hard to distance himself from that.

[PattieLNoah]

Possibly their finest moment. True talent.....

[chester7ism]

these guys kicked ass back in the 60"s love them. saw them in 86 in rockland community college in suffern new york. awesome.

[sccatluvr]

Riu Chiu by The Monkees has been a Christmas favorite of mine for years. Their rendition of this song is wonderful!

[loularry]

So beautiful!

[wcpom]

All the controversy was rubbish, probably most of it was created by their own publicists. No they weren't the Beatles, or one of the greatest bands of all time, but they were very entertaining.

This is great and far from the only thing that proved they had talent.

[MikesTV101]

Truly talented performers.

[fitzbadder]

I have trawled this and other sites for versions of rui rui... that reach me as deeply as the first time I heard it. This is the closest. The monkees were true artists after all.

[lanewright4425]

Just to clear this up: Peter was adept on several musical instruments from before the show started, and yes, Nesmith could play guitar. So, for that matter, could Micky, but they needed a drummer, and he took lessons to become one. And all of them could sing, with varying degrees of ability. 

[bunnasoo2]

LOVE THIS! My friends and I used to sing it together for fun; then in 1987-ish at a Monkees convention in L.A. Micky invited three people who knew it to come up to sing it with him. But I was the one who did Micky's part so not me!! Still I got to see my friends sing this on stage with Micky, which was really, really, REALLY cool.

[TheStuck411]

It wasn't that they couldn't sing. The scandal was that none of them could play instruments except for Nesmith. (Those who couldn't did go on to learn musical instruments & Tork went on to be a music teacher.) The other problem was that too many saw them as just an over produced knock off of real musical groups, an image they could never overcome.

[LaurieH1994]

@TheStuck411 Tork was a musician as well -- piano, guitar, banjo. The producers stuck him on bass because clearly Jones and Dolenz couldn't have even pretended to play it.

[bubblebear83]

@LaurieH1994 They put Micky as the drummer. What Davy said, Peter, Mike, and himself did not want to be the drummer so the three of them took a step back leaving Micky to be chosen as the drummer. Normally, Micky plays guitar. Now, Davy and Micky can play the guitar and the drums.

[BeeDotSix]

@bubblebear83 I remember the producers originally wanted Davy as drummer since he showed the most natural talent there, but they were afraid he'd be hidden behind the set since he was so short. Never understood that as they could have put him on big-ass risers or something. But your comment adds some sense to the situation.

Still, the original idea of Mike on bass and guitar, Peter on guitar and keys, Davy on drums (instead of the 100 maracas) and Micky as main singer would have been neat.

[bubblebear83]

@BeeDotSix No offense to women who are under 5 feet. With Davy's situation, what if a woman who auditioned to be the drummer got the job. However, the woman drummer is only 4'10" or 4'11". It is hard for a drummer who is short to be hidden behind the set. I agree, they should have build in another riser so it's easier to see Davy on the drums. For Davy who is 5' 3" that is close to an average height of a woman. In The Monkees TV Series, there were episodes where they made fun of his height.

[Marla1001]

@bubblebear83 Why are you guys even talking about this? Everybody knows Davy is short; he was a jockey for cryin' out loud; but what has any of that to do with this video?

[bubblebear83]

@Marla1001, @BeeDotSix was talking about how did Micky became a drummer. Originally, Davy was supposed to be the drummer, however; what @BeeDotSix and myself kind a explained the entire story. @LaurieH1994 talked about Peter being assigned as a bass player on the show even though he can play multiple instruments. @BeeDotSix just brought the conversation up.

You don't have to picky into our conversation. We have difference of opinion about what we should discuss.

[mmka1]

@TheStuck411

Peter Tork was a folk musician long before he joined the Monkees.

[mmoyer727]

The world before auto-tune. Is this before or after the Monkees tried to prove themselves as actual musicians?

[minpinned]

This is better than I would have thought possible for them--I'm impressed!

But their tuning is inconsistent and their vowels are not as pure as classical vocal ensembles.

Still, this is pretty good.

[aylward48]

best vocals done as the Monkees

[LTF6161]

Beautiful song. Mickey and Michael could sing. Peter couldn't carry a tune to save his life. Davy's voice had a very nasal quality to it, but folks seemed to like it.

[AgimA74]

This is the version that comes probably most close to the original pronunciation :)

[Jackieis60]

Just beautiful.

[msbeverlyclapp]

Since 1966 I've been a fan of The Monkees, for those who said they couldn't sing I would play this song. They are very talented both in singing, song writing and playing. If you have never heard or seen Peter play a banjo you are missing out on a treat.

[gspaulsson]

they go flat.

[krhenell]

Thanks for expanding my horizons, terrybrass. Lovely!

[MyOrganist]

I agree with KittyinVA, the group sang well and musically in a style that suits them. The King Singers do it differently -- as you would expect. This is refreshingly different and shows what talent the Monkees have --- well done.

Next Christmas, I'll get my choir to sing this.

[HotBroodish]

aw Davy smiled at Micky.

[KittyinVA]

How can anyone say they weren't talented? Singing a capella like this, in perfect harmony and time, takes so much talent.

[Ongarukat]

@KittyinVA Indeed. They may not have written their own songs like the Beatles did, but they could certainly sing!

[theprophet20]

@KittyinVA 

I still remember my amazement at seeing this originally back in 1967...

[Augustbeauty69]

@theprophet20 They do have amazing harmonies, don't they?

[theprophet20]

@Augustbeauty69

They sure do!

[petalrs]

How talented is that! Mickey you are great!

[jimmysudar]

@petalrs good ol' elephant boy...

[desamator11]

very,very impressive and talented.

[TopazStar67]

Beautifully done.  All four guys are great... but I especially love Micky's voice here.

[xdashlydia]

I've always enjoyed the Monkees, and this is probably their most impressive performance ever.

[librarybob1958]

I've heard the sung by both the Kingston Trio and the Monkees. Both, needless to say, are terrific, but I think the Prefab Four have the slight edge, thanks primarily to that great mix and equally great Chip Douglas arrangement.