Monkees - More of the Monkees (Dlx)
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Free Music Notes for More of the Monkees (Dlx)
Free Music Review: A Classic Never Dies
Hit: 5 Stars
At 29 years old this album was my "mom's music." It grew to be a favorite of mine as well. Catchy and memorable songs make this one of their best!Free Music Review: Monkees Best....and Worst
Hit: 4 Stars
"More of the Monkees" hit the pop charts like a shot across the bow of everything that seemed `cool'. Teenagers destined to become hippies hated the band, the TV show, and everything that the Monkees represented, feigning a preference for the more `sophisticated' sounds of the Lovin' Spoonful and Buffalo Springfield. Little did they know that either of these bands would have sold their credibility for a piece of the Monkees superstardom; in point of fact, the Lovin' Spoonful almost were the Monkees but were rejected for a lack of personality, while Stephen Stills (of the Buffalo Springfield) got axed for the gap between his front teeth. "More of the Monkees" shipped with pre-orders of 1.5 million copies and then continued to sell in significant quantities, so nay-sayers who figured the band as one-hit wonders had to quickly reformulate their perspective.
Stylistically speaking. "More of the Monkees" duplicates the layout of their first album, but with exaggerated characteristics. The good bits are much better, while the bad bits are almost unbearable. Neil Diamond and the team of Carole King and Gerry Goffin provide some of the best songs of their careers ("I'm a Believer" and "Sometime in the Morning", respectively). Monkee Mike Nesmith proves that he is exceptionally qualified to write his own material for the band, too. "Mary Mary" and "The Kind of Girl I Could Love" are album highlights, with a countrified, rocking edge that must have put some doubt in the minds of those who claimed that the bandmembers could not play their own instruments. Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart provided hits for the first album, and although they didn't provide the hit single here, they would have to settle for writing the best Monkees song ever, "(I'm Not Your) Stepping Stone", and the hook-laden opening track, "She." These six tracks mark a high-water mark in the band's career, but the balance of the album shoots a hole in the bucket. "Your Auntie Grizelda" is an oafish attempt at humor, but not nearly as bad as the forced stupidity of "Laugh," sung by the hapless Davy Jones. As bad as that track is, poor Davy is also saddled with the most painfully insipid love song ever written, a sappy moon-pie called "The Day We Fall in Love," (which he sings as "luff").
The dual disks present the album in both stereo and mono, with little discernible difference to the casual listener. The real bonus is in the extra tracks, which add a few excellent songs that were woefully overlooked, along with alternate mixes of songs from other albums. If you have ever harbored doubts about this band, then it's high time you check your preconceived notions at the door. When "More of the Monkees" is good, it is very, very good, so relax, lighten up and be very grateful that CD changers make it easy to skip over the bad tracks. A- Tom Ryan
Free Music Review: Magic music like I'd never heard.
Hit: 4 Stars
After the success of the Monkees first album, it was natural that a second album would be released. For this album, music supervisor Don Kirshner decided to have several producers record as many songs as possible. Then he picked out twelve songs (out of over two dozen) and slapped together an album. In theory, this wasn't such a bad idea. After all, that's pretty much how most pop albums are made today (40 years later). So it might have worked, if Kirshner actually put the twelve best songs on the album. In truth, most of the songs are quite good. "She", "Mary, Mary", "Steppin' Stone", "Look Out", "Sometime in the Morning" and "I'm a Believer" are great songs. But then there are mediocre songs "Hold On Girl" and "Laugh". But the thing that really drags the album down in "The Day We Fall in Love", the absolute worst thing ever to make it onto a Monkees album (although I suppose the 12 year old girls who were in love with Davy swooned when they heard it). Overall though, the album is quite enjoyable. Now, what we have hear is a two cd "deluxe" edition. The first disc has the stereo version of the album and the second disc has the mono version. Both discs have bonus tracks, which are the other songs recorded at the same sessions, and a few alternate versions of songs from the album. Some of these songs should have been included on the album, especially "Valleri" and "Words". But for some unknown reason, two songs from the sessions were not included as bonus tracks here, those being "Looking For the Good Times" and "I Never Thought It Peculiar". Regardless of that, this is still the "ultimate" version of the album. Whether or not you need both the stereo and mono versions of the album is up to you.Free Music Review: More Of A Monkeemaniac's Dream Come True
Hit: 4 Stars
This deluxe edition is a first class reissue of the Monkees' second album. Everything from packaging and liner notes to track inclusion and sound quality is first rate, making this the definitive CD edition.
That having been said, I would recommend this more to a devoted Monkeemaniac. If you are a casual Monkees fan, seek out the previous single-disc remaster from Rhino. Both are good in terms of overall quality, but the deluxe edition is targeted at hardcore Monkee fans.
Free Music Review: Very Good Sophomore Effort
Hit: 4 Stars
This was actually the 2nd Monkee album released. The story is that it contained songs that didn't make their debut album which angered the group. Nevertheless, most of the songs are above average Monkees tunes that you'll recognize from their hit television show.