About The Song
“Different Drum” was copyrighted by Michael Nesmith in July, 1965, before he became a member of The Monkees made-for-TV band. The show featuring the band aired from 1966-1968. Nesmith reportedly performed the song as early as 1963 with the folk group The Survivors. He liked the song and even managed to sneak a condensed version of it into a Monkees comedy skit, where he was pretending to be a country singer named Billy Roy Hodstetter (Season 1, Episode 15). The song was first recorded in 1966 by a folk roots band, the Greenbriar Boys, in a bluegrass style, and it was included in their album “Better Late Than Never.”
A young woman with long dark hair and a braid leans against a wooden structure, looking thoughtfully at the camera.A young woman with long dark hair and a braid leans against a wooden structure, looking thoughtfully at the camera.
Linda Ronstadt had been singing only harmonies. In late 1966 she was looking for a song where she could sing lead. Linda heard the Greenbriar Boys record and thought it would be a fit for her Stone Poneys trio, which was playing mainly acoustic folk music. Their agent and recording producer Nick Venet wanted a more upbeat folk/rock sound featuring two guitars, bass, and drums, with a baroque-style harpsichord bridge. (The harpsichord solo, longer on the album version, was played by Don Randi who had been playing keyboards with L.A.’s Wrecking Crew studio band with the Beach Boys and Phil Spector.) It worked out that Linda Ronstadt was the only member of Stone Poneys to appear on “Different Drum,” although the record label credited the song to “Stone Poneys.”
From Marc Meyers’ 2016 book Anatomy of a Song: The Oral History of 45 Iconic Hits That Changed Rock, R&B and Pop: Linda has said she was confused during the recording session. She had no rehearsal with the group, no lyric sheet, and no lead sheet – she couldn’t read music anyway. Yet she quickly adapted to the new arrangement and faster tempo. Linda says: “We did a rundown take and then recorded the second take without any overdubbing. That became the version you hear on the record.” (She has also stated that it was not one of her favorite recordings.) Michael Nesmith first heard Linda Ronstadt’s “Different Drum” vocal on the radio, and he loved it. He said: “She infused it with a different level of passion and sensuality. Coming from the perspective of a woman instead of a guy, the song had a new context.”
Linda Ronstadt was the top female recording artist of the 1970s. She’s gone on to be one of the biggest selling recording artists of all time and has sung in a wide range of genres, including folk, rock, pop, Great American Songbook, Spanish, stage and film musicals (“Pirates of Penzance”), and opera (“La Boheme”). She earned 10 Grammy Awards, three American Music Awards, two Academy of Country Music Awards, an Emmy Award, and an ALMA Award. Linda was nominated for a Tony Award and a Golden Globe Award. Other recognition includes a Latin Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award (2011) and a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award (2016). She was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (2014) and the Great American Songbook Hall of Fame (2014).
Video
Lyric
You and I travel to the beat of a different drum
Oh can’t you tell by the way I run
Every time you make eyes at me
Wo-ohYou cry and moan and say it will work out
But honey child I’ve got my doubts
You can’t see the forest for the treesOh don’t get me wrong
It’s not that I knock it
It’s just that I am not in the market
For a boy who wants to love only meYes, and I ain’t saying you ain’t pretty
All I’m saying is I’m not ready
For any person place or thing
To try and pull the reins in on meSo good-bye I’ll be leaving
I see no sense in this crying and grieving
We’ll both live a lot longer
If you live without meOh don’t get me wrong
It’s not that I knock it
It’s just that I am not in the market
For a boy who wants to love only meYes, and I ain’t saying you ain’t pretty
All I’m saying is I’m not ready
For any person place or thing
To try and pull the reins in on meSo good-bye I’ll be leaving
I see no sense in this crying and grieving
We’ll both live a lot longer
If you live without me