Need Help with the new album reissues

[HelloLarry]

I haven't purchased the new reissues of the first four albums yet and have a question. Are there any differences with the bonus tracks on the original reissues from the late mid 90s than on the ones that have just been released?

I let a friends nephew borrow some of the shows. They really like them and wanted to hear some of the music. I thought this would be a perfect opportunity to upgrade these sets but I wasn't sure if the bonus tracks on the orignal 4 reissues are included as part of the bonus tracks on these new reissues or if there was anything I needed to save (burn) for myself before giving them to her nephew.

Does anyone have detail on the differences/similarities in the bonus material or have a site they can point me to?

Thanks.

[Billy K.]

Yes, the are pretty much re-mixed and sound much more fuller than the versions on the Missing Links series. Instruments that were previously burried in the mixes on ML are now up in the mix in most cases.

Also, some of the version on the ML series were sped up from what I understand such as "So Goes Love" as well as "Tear Drop City" from The Monkees album "Instant Replay". They are now back to their "Normal Speed".

Also, the actual "albums" sound phenomenal. Much fuller and clearer than the 1994-95 versions.

Let me know if you want more examples..

[HelloLarry]

Sorry to be a pain and thanks for the follow up Billy K but I was wondering specifically about the bonus tracks on the 94 reissues. Are they basically 'reissued' on these as is (aside from maybe improved sound) or are there any differences?

[Larry Surrell]

I only have "More of the Monkees" and "Headquarters" Rhino 1994 reissues so those are the only 2 I will speak about, but here are the differences I've seen.

The new issues are all 2 disc sets. One disc is the original stereo mix plus bonus tracks, the other is the original mono mix plus bonus tracks.

The 1994 reissue of "More of the Monkees" has 5 bonus tracks. The new set has the same bonus tracks plus an additional 13 bonus tracks.

The 1994 reissue of "Headquarters" has 6 bonus tracks. The new set has the same bonus tracks plus an additional 16 bonus tracks.

I'm glad they include both the mono and stereo mixes; some of the songs are noticeably different. I got "The Monkees" and "More of the Monkees" for my 9th birthday when I was a kid when The Monkees were on in prime time (boy do I feel old now!). We only had a mono record player so naturally the versions my parents bought for me were the mono albums. I'm glad I can hear these mixes again because that's what I grew up listening to.

Go to amazon.com and under the Music category type Monkees. You can see the track lists for the 1994/95 reissues and the new CDs.

BTW, look at what "Headquarters Sessions" is selling for there!!! I'm glad I bought my copy when it first came out.

[HelloLarry]

Thank you Larry.

So from what it sounds like, the new releases (at least of the first two albums) includes all the bonus tracks from the 94/95 rereleases with no differences in addition to other bonus tracks. I appreciate it.

Yes I did check that. I think that is a little excessive for that release especially when you consider you can download the album on ITunes for $60!

[Billy K.]

You can also listen to samples of each of the tracks.

I think that the mixes on these sets are awesome! -- as well as the sound.

Yes, the bonus tracks on the 94/95 are on there -- but not in different mixes as far as I can tell.

Headquarters -- there may be a little more echo in Mike's version of "The Girl I Knew Somewhere".

A lot of the stuff has been "Remixed" (ie. Stereo Remix).

The regular version (ie. Micky's lead) of "The Girl I Knew Somewhere" on the Stereo disc has the drums burried in the mix where the tamborine is raised up and the harpsichord is up in the mix as well (though it comes in a little later that the original mix does). Then there's the longer fade.

There's a lot of nuggets/differences you can find between the "released" track and the newer "mixes" made for these CDs.

[Larry Surrell]

Thanks for the additional info about the bonus tracks, Billy K. I didn't listen to both versions very carefully, and even if I had my hearing ain't what it used to be! I hear people talking about how the Dr. Ebbetts, Mirror Spock and now Purple Chick Beatles albums sound so much better than the official releases, but I've listened to the Ebbetts and some of the Mirror Spock discs and can't tell a difference, really. So I'll have to assume it's my hearing gone bad!

[Dr. Thong]

I think it all depends on what kind of fan you are. If you're more of a completist/obsessive, than you definitely should get these. If you're more of a casual fan, stick with the single disc reissues.

I'm somewhere in the middle - I love The Monkees, but I've never bought any of the studio albums after Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn & Jones, which is my favorite Monkees album.

However, I have bought all four of the Rhino deluxe editions and they are great. Ironically, Pisces has the least amount of "new" bonus material -an alternate take of "What Am I Doin' Hangin' Round" and "Riu Chiu," the song they sang on the 1967 Christmas episode. I'm not counting new stereo or mono remix tracks as they are just retreads of existing songs.

But they do sound great, the liner notes are impeccable and they are the definitive CD versions of these albums.