Pleasant Valley Sunday is a 1967 song written by Gerry Goffin and Carole King and recorded by the Monkees. It was released as a single in July 1967 and later appeared on the album Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn & Jones Ltd. The pop rock tune with psychedelic touches was inspired by King and Goffin’s move to West Orange, New Jersey, and its lyrics critique suburbia, materialism, and keeping up with the Joneses. The Monkees’ version features a distinctive guitar riff by Michael Nesmith and a heavily reverberated fade-out, and it was produced by Chip Douglas. It reached No. 3 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and became one of their biggest hits; the B-side was Words by Boyce and Hart. The song later helped spur renewed interest in the band when MTV aired a Pleasant Valley Sunday marathon in 1986.
