David Cassidy: Davy Jones was 'Deeply Caring Guy'
Former teen idol David Cassidy and the late Davy Jones had a lot in common growing up, both musically and due to their respective TV fame, and the former Partridge Family star tells ET, "The world feels a little less light today, and sad."
"I loved the guy. He became my friend later and I admired his talent, respected him a lot for enduring the kind of backlash to having that kind of fame," says Cassidy. "He was a deeply caring guy."
Cassidy, 61, tells ET he heard through someone close to the situation that the 66-year-old Monkees performer had apparently "been having problems breathing" in the days leading up to his death, and reportedly "he was in the barn on his farm" when he suffered his heart attack.
In addition to their music and fame, both Jones and Cassidy had bonded over their mutual love of thoroughbred horses. Cassidy says the passing of his friend is a "unique loss" to him given their "parallels" both behind the scenes and on the public stage.
A Life in Pics: The Monkees' Davy Jones
Cassidy says that he and Jones took their show on the road starting approximately five years ago, when Jones contacted Cassidy with the idea of performing together. The novelty of having two of the biggest teen idols (The Monkees TV show ran from '66-'68, while The Partridge Family ran from '70-'74) perform together on stage was a big hit with the baby boomers; the two were set to perform several more shows, and Cassidy says he plans to honor Jones with some Monkees tunes.
"I have a concert coming up that Davy and I were supposed to do here in Miami next month," says Cassidy. "I'm going to do it, and do a tribute to Davy Jones."
"The world feels like I do about the loss of someone who had a real wonderful happiness, joy, light, impact on our lives, and I'll miss him," concludes Cassidy.