The Monkees (album)

The Monkees is the first album by the band the Monkees. It was released in October 1966 by Colgems Records in the United States and RCA Victor in the rest of the world. It was the first of four consecutive U.S. number one albums for the group, taking the top spot on the Billboard 200 for 13 weeks, after which it was displaced by the band's second album.[4] It also topped the UK charts in 1967. The Monkees has been certified quintuple platinum by the RIAA, with sales of over five million copies.

The Monkees
Studio album by
the Monkees
ReleasedOctober 10, 1966 (1966-10-10)
RecordedJuly 1966
GenrePop rock[1]
Length29:24
LabelColgems
Producer
The Monkees chronology
The Monkees
(1966)		 More of the Monkees
(1967)
Singles from The Monkees
  1. "Last Train to Clarksville" / "Take a Giant Step"
    Released: August 16, 1966
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
MusicHound[2]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[3]

The song "Last Train to Clarksville" was released as a single shortly before the release of the album and went to the top of the Billboard Hot 100 chart. It was the only hit single from the album. "I'll Be True to You" was previously released as a single by the Hollies in January 1965 under the title "Yes I Will".

History

Recording

The album was recorded in several separate sessions around Los Angeles from July 5–25, 1966. Early sessions were produced by the trio of Tommy Boyce, Bobby Hart and Jack Keller; later sessions were produced by Boyce and Hart. Michael Nesmith produced two sessions scheduled around the work done by Boyce, Hart, and Keller.

Famously, the Monkees were not permitted by their management to function as a working band for this album. Although the album cover credits the band as playing instruments (drums for Dolenz; guitar for the other three members), the group's actual contributions were limited almost entirely to vocal tracks. Eight of the original LP's twelve tracks feature one lone Monkee singing lead vocal over instrumentation and backing vocals recorded entirely by a group of session musicians which varies from song to song. Other tracks feature multiple Monkees singing over session players; only on the two tracks produced by Michael Nesmith does a Monkee (Peter Tork) get to play an instrument (guitar). (Nesmith wrote or co-wrote these two tracks.) No tracks on the original LP feature participation from all four Monkees.

Artwork

The photos in the "film strip" on the left side of the back cover are from two episodes of The Monkees TV series. The first three photos are from "Your Friendly Neighborhood Kidnappers"; the other two are from the episode "The Spy Who Came in from the Cool". Also included are brief stats on each band member (height, weight, age).

Early pressings of the LP cover as well as side 1 of the label featured the misspelled song "Papa Jean's Blues" (Catalog number COM/COS 101). This was soon corrected as "Papa Gene's Blues" (Catalog number COM/COS 101 RE). It was standard practice for RCA to add an "RE" when any one side of a record sleeve had a revision. Open copies of both versions are easy to find. In addition when the album was reissued in 1969 the Colgems symbol replaced the word "Colgems" on the bottom right-hand corner of the reverse side (Catalog number COS 101 RE2). There were no mono copies issued in 1969, as they were phased out altogether in 1968.[5]

Track listing

Original 1966 Colgems vinyl issue
Side 1

All tracks are written by Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart, except where noted.

No.TitleLead vocalsLength
1."(Theme From) The Monkees"Micky Dolenz2:18
2."Saturday's Child" (David Gates)Micky Dolenz2:43
3."I Wanna Be Free"Davy Jones2:39
4."Tomorrow's Gonna Be Another Day" (Tommy Boyce, Steve Venet)Micky Dolenz2:39
5."Papa Gene's Blues" (Michael Nesmith)Michael Nesmith1:57
6."Take a Giant Step" (Gerry Goffin, Carole King)Micky Dolenz2:33
Side 2
No.TitleLead vocalsLength
1."Last Train to Clarksville"Micky Dolenz2:44
2."This Just Doesn't Seem to Be My Day"Davy Jones2:09
3."Let's Dance On"Micky Dolenz2:30
4."I'll Be True to You" (Gerry Goffin, Russ Titelman)Davy Jones2:50
5."Sweet Young Thing" (Gerry Goffin, Carole King, Michael Nesmith)Michael Nesmith1:56
6."Gonna Buy Me a Dog"Micky Dolenz, Davy Jones2:41

1994 Rhino CD reissue

Tracks 1-12: Original album in stereo

  1. "I Can't Get Her Off My Mind" (Early version) - 2:55
  2. "I Don't Think You Know Me" (Goffin, King) (Alternate version) - 2:18
  3. "(Theme from) The Monkees" (Early version) - 0:52

1996 Sundazed vinyl reissue

Bonus track at the end of Side 1: "I Can't Get Her Off My Mind" (Prev. unissued early version) - 2:55
Bonus track at the end of Side 2: "I Don't Think You Know Me" (Goffin, King) (Prev. unissued alternate version) - 2:18[6]

2006 Rhino deluxe CD reissue

The following tracks were included on the 2006 deluxe edition of the album. Some were previously unreleased, while others were on the 1994 Rhino reissue or the Missing Links series. Studio chatter is included between some bonus tracks.

Disc One

Tracks 1-12: Original album in stereo

  1. "(Theme from) The Monkees" (Second Recorded Version) - 1:03
  2. "The Kind of Girl I Could Love" (Alternate Mix) (Nesmith, Roger Atkins) - 2:06
  3. "I Don't Think You Know Me" (Micky's Vocal) (Goffin, King) - 2:16
  4. "So Goes Love" (Goffin, King) - 3:31
  5. "Papa Gene's Blues" (Alternate Mix) (Nesmith) - 1:59
  6. "I Can't Get Her Off My Mind" - 3:38
  7. "(I Prithee) Do Not Ask for Love" (Alternate Mix, Davy's Vocal) (Michael Martin Murphey) - 3:11
  8. "Gonna Buy Me a Dog" (Backing Track) - 2:59
  9. Monkees Radio Spot (Previously Unissued) - 0:53

Disc Two

Tracks 1-12: Original album in mono

  1. "Kellogg's Jingle" - 0:20
  2. "All the King's Horses" (Nesmith) - 2:21
  3. "You Just May Be the One" (TV Version) (Nesmith) - 1:59
  4. "I Wanna Be Free" (Fast Version) - 2:46
  5. "I Don't Think You Know Me" (Mike's Vocal) - 2:16
  6. "I Won't Be the Same Without Her" (Mono Mix) (Goffin, King) - 2:41
  7. "Propinquity (I've Just Begun to Care)" (Demo Version) (Nesmith) - 2:27
  8. "(Theme from) The Monkees" (TV Version) - 0:50

2014 Rhino Super Deluxe 3 CD reissue

The following tracks were included on the 2014 Super Deluxe edition of the album.

Disc 1 The Original Mono Album

  1. "(Theme from) The Monkees"
  2. "Saturday’s Child"
  3. "I Wanna Be Free"
  4. "Tomorrow’s Gonna Be Another Day"
  5. "Papa Gene’s Blues"
  6. "Take a Giant Step"
  7. "Last Train to Clarksville"
  8. "This Just Doesn’t Seem to Be My Day"
  9. "Let’s Dance On"
  10. "I’ll Be True to You"
  11. "Sweet Young Thing"
  12. "Gonna Buy Me a Dog"

The Original Stereo Album

  1. "(Theme from) The Monkees"
  2. "Saturday’s Child"
  3. "I Wanna Be Free"
  4. "Tomorrow’s Gonna Be Another Day"
  5. "Papa Gene’s Blues"
  6. "Take a Giant Step"
  7. "Last Train to Clarksville"
  8. "This Just Doesn’t Seem to Be My Day"
  9. "Let’s Dance On"
  10. "I’ll Be True to You"
  11. "Sweet Young Thing"
  12. "Gonna Buy Me a Dog"

Bonus Material

  1. "(Theme from) The Monkees" (Second version)
  2. "You Just May Be the One" (Mono TV version) †
  3. "This Just Doesn’t Seem to Be My Day" (Mono TV version) †
  4. "Take a Giant Step" (Mono TV version) †
  5. "All the King’s Horses" (Mono TV version) †
  6. "I Wanna Be Free" (Fast version – Mono TV mix) †
  7. "The Kind of Girl I Could Love" (Alternate mono mix) †
  8. "Monkees NBC Promo Spot" †
  9. "Saturday’s Child" (Mono TV version) †
  10. "Kellogg’s Jingle"
  11. "Monkees Radio Spot"
  12. "(Theme from) The Monkees" (TV version)

Disc 2 The Monkees - Sessions

  1. "I Wanna Be Free" (Overdubbed demo – Take 2) †
  2. "All the King’s Horses" (Alternate vocal take) †
  3. "The Kind of Girl I Could Love" (Alternate vocal take) †
  4. "I Don’t Think You Know Me" (Stereo remix – Micky's vocal) †
  5. "(Theme from) The Monkees" (Version one - Master backing track) †
  6. "Let’s Dance On" (Master backing track) †
  7. "This Just Doesn’t Seem to Be My Day" (Master backing track) †
  8. "Gonna Buy Me a Dog" (Version one - Backing track, Take 5) †
  9. "So Goes Love" (Take 1) †
  10. "So Goes Love" (Alternate vocal take) †
  11. "Papa Gene’s Blues" (Backing track - Take 1) †
  12. "Papa Gene’s Blues" (Alternate vocal take) †
  13. "I’ll Be True to You" (Stereo remix) †
  14. "I Won’t Be the Same Without Her" (Backing track - Take 6) †
  15. "I Won’t Be the Same Without Her" (Stereo remix) †
  16. "Sweet Young Thing" (Backing track - Take 1) †
  17. "Sweet Young Thing" (Stereo remix) †
  18. "You Just May Be the One" (Rehearsal & Backing track – Take 19) †
  19. "You Just May Be the One" (Stereo remix) †
  20. "I Wanna Be Free" (Version Two - Backing track, Take 6) †
  21. "I Wanna Be Free" (Version Three - Backing track, Take 3) †
  22. "I Wanna Be Free" (Version Three – Stereo remix) †
  23. "Jokes" (Backing track) †
  24. "Tomorrow’s Gonna Be Another Day" (Master backing track) †
  25. "Gonna Buy Me a Dog" (Version Two – Backing track, Take 2) †
  26. "I Can’t Get Her Off of My Mind" (Version one – Stereo remix) †
  27. "Mary, Mary" (Backing track – Take 1) †
  28. "Of You" (Backing track – Take 1) †
  29. "Of You" (Stereo remix) †
  30. "(I Prithee) Do Not Ask for Love" (Rehearsal) †
  31. "(I Prithee) Do Not Ask for Love" (Stereo remix of Davy's vocals) †

Disc 3 David Jones - The Original Mono Album

  1. "What Are We Going to Do?"
  2. "Maybe It’s Because I’m a Londoner"
  3. "Put Me Amongst the Girls"
  4. "Any Old Iron"
  5. "Theme for a New Love"
  6. "It Ain’t Me, Babe"
  7. "Face Up to It"
  8. "Dream Girl"
  9. "Baby, It’s Me"
  10. "My Dad"
  11. "This Bouquet"

David Jones - The Singles

  1. "Take Me to Paradise"
  2. "The Girl from Chelsea"

David Jones - The Original Stereo Album
(Does not include "Dream Girl" as there is no true stereo mix known to exist)

  1. "What Are We Going to Do?"
  2. "Maybe It’s Because I’m a Londoner"
  3. "Put Me Amongst the Girls
  4. "Any Old Iron"
  5. "Theme for a New Love"
  6. "It Ain’t Me, Babe"
  7. "Face Up to It"
  8. "Baby, It’s Me"
  9. "My Dad"
  10. "This Bouquet"

Michael Blessing - The Singles

  1. "The New Recruit"
  2. "A Journey With Michael Blessing"
  3. "Until It’s Time for You to Go"
  4. "What Seems to Be the Trouble, Officer?"
  5. "Who Do You Love?" †
  6. "Get Out of My Life, Woman" †

The Monkees – Demos

  1. "I Wanna Be Free" (Rehearsal) †
  2. "I Wanna Be Free" (Demo – Take 12) †
  3. "I Wanna Be Free" (Demo remake – Take 1) †
  4. "I Wanna Be Free" (Demo remake – Take 5) †

Note

  • † indicates a previously unissued recording

Session information

Charts

Album
Chart (1966–67) Peak
position
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[8] 3
Canadian Albums (RPM)[9] 1
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[10] 1
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[11] 11
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[12] 3
UK Albums (OCC)[13] 1
US Billboard 200[14] 1

Single
Year Single Chart Peak
position
1966 "Last Train to Clarksville" Billboard Hot 100 1[15]
1967 "Last Train to Clarksville" UK Charts 3[16]

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[17] 5× Platinum 5,000,000^

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone

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References
  1. The Monkees at AllMusic. Retrieved January 14, 2017.
  2. Graff, Gary; Durchholz, Daniel (eds) (1999). MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide (2nd ed.). Farmington Hills, MI: Visible Ink Press. p. 774. ISBN 1-57859-061-2.CS1 maint: extra text: authors list (link)
  3. Brackett, Nathan; with Hoard, Christian (eds) (2004). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). New York, NY: Fireside/Simon & Schuster. p. 553. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  4. Lefcowitz, Eric (2011). Monkee Business: The Revolutionary Made-For-TV Band. Port Washington, NY: Retrofuture Products. pp. 74–75. ISBN 978-0-943249-00-1.
  5. "Monkee45s - Albums - The Monkees". Monkee45s.net. Archived from the original on 22 February 2013. Retrieved 18 September 2012.
  6. stevehoffman.tv
  7. Some sites like the Monkees Music Vault claim that the song was recorded on July 6, while other sites like the Sunshine Factory and Monkees Sessionography claim July 5.
  8. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (doc)|format= requires |url= (help). Australian Chart Book, St Ives, NSW. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  9. "RPM: The Monkees (albums)". RPM Magazine. Archived from the original on October 14, 2017. Retrieved April 8, 2017.
  10. Pennanen, Timo (2006). Sisältää hitin - levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972 (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava. p. 263. ISBN 978-951-1-21053-5.
  11. "Longplay-Chartverfolgung at Musicline" (in German). Musicline.de. Phononet GmbH. Retrieved April 8, 2017.
  12. "Norwegiancharts.com – The Monkees – The Monkees". Hung Medien. Retrieved April 8, 2017.
  13. "The Monkees Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 8, 2017.
  14. "The Monkees US Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved April 8, 2017.
  15. "The Monkees - Charts and Awards". Retrieved 23 June 2014.
  16. "Official Charts Company". Retrieved 22 June 2014.
  17. "American album certifications – The Monkees – The Monkees". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 23 June 2014. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH. 

Works cited

  • Liner notes, 2006 reissue of The Monkees
  • The Monkees: The Day-By-Day Story of the 60s TV Pop Sensation by Andrew Sandoval
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