Davy Jones -- lead singer of The Monkees -- has died ... TMZ has learned.

An official from the medical examiner's office for Martin County, Florida confirmed with TMZ they received a call from Martin Memorial Hospital informing them that Jones had passed away.

Jones is survived by his wife Jessica and 4 daughters from previous marriages. He was 66-years-old.

Jones joined The Monkees in 1965 ... along with Micky Dolenz, Michael Nesmith and Peter Tork ... and together they churned out a bunch of hits including, "Daydream Believer, "Last Train to Clarksville" and "I'm a Believer."

The group was initially cast by TV producers who wanted to create a scripted series about an actual rock n' roll band.



UPDATE -- A rep for Davy tells TMZ the singer died from a heart attack this morning.

rest in peace mr jones

RIP Davy Jones

Just heard, really sad, R.I.P. Davy.

 

   

'Monkees' teen idol Davy Jones dead of apparent heart attack at 66, Florida law enforcement official says.
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The Monkees' Davy Jones dead at 66
By Ashley Hayes and Todd Leopold, CNN
updated 2:09 PM EST, Wed February 29, 2012
The Monkees' Davy Jones, shown here at the 2003 TV Land Awards, has died.
The Monkees' Davy Jones, shown here at the 2003 TV Land Awards, has died.
STORY HIGHLIGHTS

   * Davy Jones sang lead on several of The Monkees' hits
   * Source: Jones suffered an apparent heart attack
   * "The Monkees" television series premiered in 1966 and lasted for two seasons

(CNN) -- Davy Jones, whose charming grin and British accent won the hearts of millions of fans on the 1960s television series "The Monkees," died Wednesday, according to the Martin County, Florida, sheriff's office. He was 66.

A witness told authorities he was with Jones in Indiantown, Florida, when Jones "began to complain of not feeling well and having trouble breathing," the sheriff's office said in a statement.

Jones was transported to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead, authorities said.

A Martin County law enforcement source with knowledge of the case said Jones apparently suffered a heart attack.

The diminutive vocalist and actor sang lead on the musical group's hits such as "Daydream Believer" and "A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You."

Besides Jones, The Monkees included band members Micky Dolenz, Peter Tork and Michael Nesmith. The pop group was created to star in an NBC sitcom and capitalize on the Beatles' teenybopper popularity. "The Monkees" TV series premiered in the fall of 1966.

In terms of musical popularity, the project succeeded beyond anyone's expectations, with the group notching a handful of No. 1 songs (including "I'm a Believer," Billboard's top song of 1967) and four No. 1 albums.

The group, which was dubbed the "prefab four" by critics, rebelled against its management in an effort to take control of its musical career.

The move worked to an extent -- band members, who had generally been replaced by session men on Monkees recordings, were allowed to play their own instruments and contribute songs -- but coincided with a decline in the Monkees' popularity. NBC canceled the TV series "The Monkees" after just two seasons, and the band lasted for only one more year after that.

Though the TV show was never a huge ratings hit, its knockabout, Marx Brothers-style comedy -- inspired, to an extent, by the loopier sequences in the Beatles' "A Hard Day's Night" -- inspired fans and followers, reigniting the band's popularity when MTV reran the show in the mid-'80s.

David Thomas Jones was born December 30, 1945, in Manchester, England. He was already famous in his home country when he joined the Monkees. He had starred in the musical "Oliver!" on the London stage as the Artful Dodger and was nominated for a Tony for his performance on Broadway, according to a biography on a Monkees fan site. Indeed, he got a taste of the Beatles' popularity when the "Oliver!" cast appeared on "The Ed Sullivan Show" on February 9, 1964 -- the date of the Beatles' first appearance.

After the Monkees broke up, Jones enjoyed occasional acting roles, including a guest spot on an episode of "The Brady Bunch" and appearances in "SpongeBob SquarePants" and "The Brady Bunch Movie." When he wasn't singing -- he participated in several Monkees reunions over the years -- he was devoted to owning and racing horses.

Jones was married three times. He is survived by his third wife, Jessica Pacheco, and four daughters from his two previous marriages.

He told Britain's Daily Mail last year that he used to be 5 feet 4 inches tall, "but I've lost an inch."

He posted photographs of his horses, his grandchildren and himself on his blog, "Keep up with Jones," sometimes also posting messages to fans.

"I wrote some time ago that not everyone has dreams and hopes that come true," he wrote in a January 2011 message. "Mine have.

"Regrets, yes -- if you don't have them you're a fool. However, I thank all of you -- yeah, you -- for your support and love."
http://www.cnn.com/2012/02/29/showbiz/obit-davy-jones/

An admission -  in "Daydream Believer",
I always thought Davy was singing "My
shaving razor's cold, and it STINKS".

shocking and very sad news.

Marcia's gonna be heartbroken.....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hm39e0w8fzw

RIP, Davy  

RIP !!!!!

Starbuck wrote on Feb 29^th, 2012 at 2:59pm:


That was SS (and his son, I think). Davy came in by himself and they seated him right next to SS, and I guess he was thrilled that SS left him alone to eat in peace.  So he bought him and his son dessert.

It seems like just about everyone in my neck of the woods has a similar story.  Davy was a pretty cool guy.  He also was fond of drinking, but I guess that might be thought of as speaking ill of the dead, so I'll save those stories for another day.

It's Odd in a way...I just looked at an episode of the Monkees with Frank Zappa.
RIP Peace Mr Jones............You guys had guts, as far as I'm concerned you rocked!

I think I remember hearing he actually was on the Ed Sullivan show the same night as the Beatles....February 9,1964.
I believe he was a member of the cast of a Broadway show...Oliver!

In the past on this place I have always wrote bad things about the Monkees, but I also confessed that they were one of my first bands I was a fan of. The local radio stations used to make contests of Beatles vs. Monkees and most of the times I voted for them. I was only 9 years old then. Fortunately I am the 6th of 7 kids and my brother introduced me the Rolling Stones and many other great bands the same year, by 1967 I hated the Monkees and since then I hate them as a band

I watched the TV series and bought the comics (cartoons), nowadays  a collector’s item LOL. When I watched Shrek with my daughters at the Cinema with great audio, I liked a lot the end of the movie with their music

RIP Davy…

PS. In his honor I’m gonna play one of my 7” picture sleeves singles (yes I kept them)

Here is Davy (the first) with band mates Mickey and Peter and Jimi Hendrix, I can’t believe Jimi was their opening act!

RIP Davy Jones.