Chip Douglas

In 1986, a Monkees reunion tour reawakened interest in the band, and Rhino Records reissued all their original albums, including their work with Douglas.

In 1976, Douglas re-teamed with Dolenz, Jones, and Tork to record the single, "Christmas Is My Time of Year", co-written by Douglas and Howard Kaylan. By then, Nesmith was no longer affiliated with the group.

The Modern Folk Quartet reunited in 1975 and began to perform again, often appearing at the Ice House in Pasadena, California. For several years, they teamed up with ex-Kingston Trio member Dave Guard to back him in his solo act. In the 1980s, the Modern Folk Quartet recorded several albums for a Japanese record company. They also toured Japan, where they remain popular (1988, 1990, 2003, 2005, 2011 and 2016).

Douglas kept in touch with the Monkees and returned in 1969 to record his composition "Steam Engine" with Micky Dolenz on vocals. The song appeared in reruns of their TV show.

In 1969, Douglas produced the album Hand Sown...Home Grown, the first solo album by Douglas' then-girlfriend Linda Ronstadt.

Douglas also introduced members of the Monkees to new songwriters, including John Stewart, who wrote "Daydream Believer", which would become their second-biggest all-time single and was included on the 1968 album The Birds, The Bees & The Monkees. Douglas also introduced the band members to Harry Nilsson, who played them a selection of his original songs, and became friends with the band. One of the songs, "Cuddly Toy", was covered by the Monkees, and featured on both the Pisces album and an episode of their TV series. Douglas has been quoted as saying, "I like to think I gave Harry his big break, which resulted in a record deal with RCA."

Seeing the Turtles perform at Hollywood's Whisky a Go Go in early 1967, the Monkees' Michael Nesmith approached Douglas and asked if he would like to become the new producer for the band, who were tired of the "manufactured" recording setup they were accustomed to. Douglas answered, "I've never produced a record in my life." Nesmith, who had produced album tracks for the group, but had little influence with their label Colgems Records, assured him, "Don't worry; if you're willing to quit The Turtles, I'll show you everything you need to do."

Douglas's final appearances with the Turtles were in February 1967. He was replaced by Jim Pons of the Leaves.

Douglas accepted Nesmith's offer, and joined the Monkees in the studio, first to create a new single with all four Monkees playing. It couldn't be released because of a publishing restriction imposed by Screen Gems (who both produced the Monkees series and controlled their music publishing). Douglas's next Monkees project was their Headquarters album. Recorded over six steady weeks of sessions at the RCA Studios in Hollywood, Headquarters was the first album to feature the Monkees playing on every track. Douglas contributed a song, "Forget That Girl", and joined them on bass guitar in the studio. The album was released in the spring of 1967, and began a steady climb up the charts, eventually reaching #1 on Billboard's album chart, but was displaced by the Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.

As 1967 ended, the Monkees wanted to take full control of their music, and said farewell to Douglas, who became a producer for the Turtles. The first project was The Turtles Present the Battle of the Bands album, the name of which was taken from the title track, co-written by Douglas and Harry Nilsson. It also included two more Turtles' top-ten hits: "Elenore" and "You Showed Me".

The Modern Folk Quartet was signed by producer Phil Spector in 1966, and recorded a song, "This Could Be the Night", co-written by Spector and up-and-coming singer-songwriter Harry Nilsson. The record was not released at that time, but Douglas and Nilsson became friends. In the latter half of 1966, Douglas was a member of the short-lived Gene Clark Group, a band featuring the ex-Byrds Gene Clark, ex-Grass Roots Joel Larson, and Bill Rinehart, formerly of the Leaves. Clark disbanded the group at the end of that year without having recorded or released any records.

Douglas had performed "You Showed Me" with Gene Clark in 1966, while he was a member of the Gene Clark Group. Originally an uptempo number, the slow, moody arrangement came about by accident. Douglas was demonstrating the song for vocalists Howard Kaylan and Mark Volman, on an organ whose bellows was broken, requiring him to play it slowly. Douglas told them "This isn't the way it's supposed to sound", but Kaylan and Volman disagreed, thinking the new tempo would be perfect.

The group dissolved and Douglas, along with Cyrus Faryar and noted rock photographer Henry Diltz, formed the Modern Folk Quartet (along with musician Jerry Yester) in Los Angeles. They were signed by Warner Bros. and recorded two albums: Modern Folk Quartet and Changes. They also appeared as themselves in a nightclub scene for the Warner Bros. movie Palm Springs Weekend, starring Connie Stevens and Troy Donahue (1963). MFQ spent the next several years touring the U.S. playing college concerts.

Douglas Farthing Hatlelid (born August 27, 1942), better known as Chip Douglas, is an American songwriter, musician (bass, guitar and keyboards), and record producer, whose most famous work was during the 1960s. He was the bassist of the Turtles for a short period of time and the producer of some of the Monkees biggest hits, including "Daydream Believer" and "Pleasant Valley Sunday".