Headquarters

Nostalgic

Great

Starts off sounding like the Beatles. Some genuinely good tracks. A good variety of sounds and styles. Not everything is great, but overall pretty good.

There are worse examples of 60s pop on this list and this album is by some guys that were often criticized for being phonies. When this popped up I thought it was the soundtrack to Head. Once I realized it wasn't I was a little disappointed but this is good.

Enjoyed the early rocking sounds

Much better than I expected for a manufactured band coming up with their own stuff for the first time.

Fun 60’s music!

Probably more like a 3.5 for me but rounding up for nostalgia, my mom was always playing the monkees growing up

Solid for what it is. “Zilch” went crazy

fun

I don’t get it -this isn’t even one with any of their big hits on it. Are we going to get multiple Monkees albums? They were definitely better off with studio musicians other songwriters. Not a big fan of most of these 60’s rock albums but this was better than some of the other stuff. 1.5

More trash from the 60’s. I bet it was super uncool to like this band.

Oof that was rough. I felt like I was doing someone a favor by listening to it

3,5

"Pillow Time" was like sound cut straight out of some artsy horror movie, something I'd never guess was in an album by The Monkees. Overall nice. Not exactly something I'd listen to on daily basis.

man ļoti patika, bet es padevos kaut kur pusē :D deluxe edition ir kkādas 50 dziesmas no thank you

First time listening to it. Some good songs, must give him at least, a couple of more turns

I have high hopes for today’s album. I haven’t heard a lot by The Monkees, but Daydream Believer was one of my favourite songs as a child. It isn’t on this album, but if the music here is remotely similar then I reckon today should be a pleasant listen. Let’s find out! Songs I already knew: none Favourites: For Pete’s Sake, Randy Scouse Git I did enjoy this, but I wanted to enjoy it more than I did. The genres span an interesting area of 60’s rock throughout the album, but it just unfortunately just wasn’t as well done as a lot of other bands of the era. The vocal harmonies stood out as pleasant, and there were certainly some songs here that were very good, but the album as a whole just didn’t really captivate me like I wanted it to.

A really good album, I love the style of music. My favourites were The Girl I Knew Somewhere, No Time, Forget That Girl and Randy Scouse Git.

Why not just listen to the real Beatles?

https://www.toppermost.co.uk/monkees/ The monkeys were an incredible band. This is an incredible album. Zilch! Tape looping in 1967. Randy scouse git. This is an all time great example of sixties pop. Possibly only surpassed by the astounding Pisces … Think of this. Imagine BTS doing something like Zilch. Not to knock BTS - they do what they do and it appeals to millions. But to bring in cutting edge musical compositional ideas. (To be fair their albums are generally very philosophical even if the music is predictable). More of my feelings on this incredible band - the band that shouldn’t be - can be found in the link above. 16 stars.

a bit archival for me. they were fun on TV . somehwat unmoved, every time i listen - except ofr "im a beleiver" - rocks.... and I like a bit of twangie light boyish playfulness ... somehow there's no "glue" for me.

I’ve got the first 3 Monkees albums on vinyl & this would have to be my least favoured of the 3. Mainly because the first 2 were stacked with hits, mainly written by well-known songwriters and the backing was largely done by musos-for-hire. But as the band prepared for this album, they refused to do it unless they were given more control. So half the songs here were written by band members & they go to great lengths on the back of the record cover to point out that, except for some cello, french horn & occasional brass, they themselves were the actual musicians. Back in the day, I only knew 2 of the songs here, because the only Monkees you heard on the radio were the singles, and the only 2 singles here were Nesmith’s You Just May Be The One & Dolenz’s Randy Scouse Git, which was released in Australia as Alternate Title(Randy Scouse Git). In the UK it was just called Alternate Title, because the phrase Randy Scouse Git was considered rude, even though you could hear Warren Mitchell’s character Alf Garnett use it every week in the TV series Till Death Do Us Part, as he abused his Liverpudlian son-in-law. I was also vaguely familiar with Nesmith’s Sunny Girlfriend, only because I have the cover single by Pam &The Passions (1984). Pam was Pam Burridge & at the time she was going out with the late Damien Lovelock, who produced & played on that single. Pam would go on to be Australia’s first female world surfing champion in 1990. And it was only a few years ago, when I decided to give the record a spin that I discovered that the throwaway track Zilch was obviously the inspiration for Del Tha Funkee Homosapien’s 1991 hit single Mistadobalina, which in years to come may be the main thing this album is remembered for. Interestingly, No Time sounds a lot like CCR’s Travellin’ Band (not released until 1970). It’s mentioned in the Wiki entry for Travellin’ Band , as is the fact that CCR had to settle a plagiarism claim with the publishers of Little Richard’s Good Golly Miss Molly in 1972 because they believed Travellin’ Band had ripped off that classic. Personally, I reckon the opening track, Nesmith’s You Told Me (which opens with great banjo by Tork) sounds a helluva lot like The Beatles’ Dr Robert off Revolver, released 6 months before The Monkees album was recorded. It’s interesting to note from the compilations I own, how the tracks on Headquarters have been regarded by their record companies over the decades since it’s release. In ‘76 Arista released an 11-track Greatest Hits with only one track from this album - Shades Of Gray; three years later, in ‘79, Glenn A. Baker was behind a double album, 40 Timeless Hits, which included Shades Of Gray, Randy Scouse Git & For Pete’s Sake ( this was around the time that Baker had a show on 2JJ & was often heard to claim that The Monkees were a better band than The Beatles); in ‘89, Arista released a 16 track self-titled CD that included You Just May Be The One, Shades Of Gray & Randy Scouse Git; & in ‘95, Rhino released a 20-track Greatest Hits CD with just Randy Scouse Git on it.

The Monkees finally were finally allowed to write and perform on their own records. And it is not a disaster. Pleasant folk/country inspired pop rock, with some hints of psychedelia. But I can't really remember a single song on it, except Zilch (an experimental thing that I quite like)

Good album, but like most older rock it all kinda sounded the same

Very evocative of the era. But also a very different sound from earlier Monkees albums.

Beatles like is always good

This really did very little to me. I'm hearing and reading this is a huge improvement on their first two albums and they showed they really could make music. Well, I'm not hearing it.

brilliant

Not my favorite, might be a product of my generation but why listen to this when you could listen to the Beatles.

Was not expecting this to be this good.

Pop sixties de qualitat. Molt variat i amb uns quants temes a què agafar-se. Era el treball que marcava la independència de la banda respecte la indústria, i no els va poder sortir millor la jugada. La quarta estrella és pel plus d’haver-los escoltat passejant per Byron Bay ❤️

Fun album, very 1960s with the short songs, but the sound is solid. You can feel the British Invasion throughout the entire 30 minutes. Songs that stand out: “Mr. Webster”, “Sunny Girlfriend”, “Randy Scouse Git”. 4/5

Nothing special, wasn't a big fan tbh

Felt like I was taking drugs in a good way

I’m a sucker for the sixties but it was kinda meh Top Tracks: 1) You Told Me 2) I’ll Spend My Life With You 3) Forget That Girl

Some great stuff, though it’s still all about the first two records to me.

Good albums for the 60's. Forget That Girl was the best song. Randy Scouse Gilt sounded the most modern.

Ngl was a snoozer. Happy Monday I guess. Had a good weekend

Can’t get past their origins as TV actors.

Seems bland and a pale copy of the Beatles

Odd to find on this list, but interesting in parts.

Heard before. Listened to the deluxe version. Wellll, I'm not sure. I think I liked it more the first time I heard it, but this time... One thing I like though is when they horse around, that's what I like about the Beach Boys too. + Forget That Girl + Band 6 + Zilch (best one for Mr. Dobalina)

Rock viejo, suena bastante bien pero tampoco es la gran cosa.

I have to admit being surprised that any Monkees is on this list. My Mom was a huge fan so I heard a lot of Monkees growing up. I got to take her to see them (or at least some of them) live a few years ago. It was a fun if inconsequential show, not unlike this album. 2.5 I want to round up in honor of my Mom but it's really not that good overall.

This album was way too freaking long

Legit 1960s pop, pleasurable and more substantial than one expected of course. There are a handful of very good, borderline excellent tunes ("You May Be the One," "For Pete's Sake" [which is slightly over-earnest, it must be said,] "Early Morning Blues and Greens," "Randy Scouse Git"). Still, they missed their window to be taken seriously and few, if any, self-respecting hipsters are going to take their side in arguments about underrated '60s bands.

2.5

Was a nice listen overall

New album for me (only have a copy of a greatest hits album). Difficult album to rate. I listened to it 3-4 times. I am not so bothered with the Beatles references even though the opening song is overdoing it a bit. In fact, as expected, there are some very nice songs on it, but perhaps a couple too many that are less special and have this 3-stars feel. overall score: 3 stars.

Beatles-like, with a few songs that can match that level plus some less noteworthy stuff.

Wasn’t what I was expecting. A solid 60s album, an easy listen

This absolutely ruled. I knew The Monkees were underrated, but this still took me by surprise. I loved every second of this album, even the sillier moments.

Cute

Better than expected

More than half of the tracks are generic 60s boy band stuff about girls. A few songs stand out due to their more contemplative mood, a different sound, and less cliche lyrics.

It's not their best album, but they have so e jams on there. Makes me miss the TV show.

The album sounds a little like early beatles and early beegees but not really as impressive or inspiring as either. By 67 you'd hope for something a bit different. The latter half of the album is better than the first half, apart from zilch, which was a waste of time Between a 2 and a 3 depending on how nice I feel in the morning

The Beatle (singular)

nah

Anyone who thought the Beatles were not influential at all just needs to listen to the Monkees. I mean, yes, at first it was a ploy to capitalize on the Beatlemania, but soon the members protested the songs they were given. THEY could write, too. And wouldn't you know it, the songs pretty much sounded like the Beatles ANYWAY. It's not like the songs are BAD, mind you. But it's very obvious where the influence comes from. Even so, the band experimented with tempo and such in songs, a bit more than the Beatles did. And the songs worked, but one has to wonder if they had been modeled after the Stones, what would they sound like? High points for me: "You Just Might Be The One," "Shades of Gray," "No Time." The album is probably their best effort. They claim to have sold more than the Beatles at one point, but which do people really remember?

I assume this album made the list because it was the first time the Monkees got to play their own instruments. And yeah, they're not virtuosos but they're not bad. I think we forget that the majority of humans can't play an instrument worth a lick (myself included), so even average professionals are still well above average. And they could still sing. Overall it was a fun album devoid of any really big tunes (though You Told Me, You Just May be the One, I Can't Get Her Off My Mind, No Time, and Randy Scouse Git were all very solid...and very 60's pop) but also devoid of any true clunkers (even Zilch was kind of cheeky fun). Good for the Monkees to show they could do their own thing and not suck.

Genres: Pop rock Formed: LA, US in 1966 (Manufactured) Run time: songs, min, sec The third album by the American group. It was the first album on which the group members made substantial songwriting and instrumental contributions. For background the Monkeys were created for a TV show of the same name. The four members of the group were nothing more than puppets, miming along to performances. The vocals and instruments were performed by session musicians. This was despite the fact the four were all capable musicians. Spotify: Least popular song: >31k Most popular song: >2.9M plays. Although there are a couple of tracks with millions of plays, most are only 1-2k. 5. “I Can't Get Her Off My Mind” is a love song. 10. "Sunny Girlfriend" is an upbeat and positive song. It was written and sung by Mike Nesmith. 12. “No Time” was written by all four members and sung by Dolenz. The Monkey of the TV series was fronted by Davy Jones. I prefer songs like this one with Dolenz taking the lead. This particular song reminds me of 50’s Rock ‘n’ Roll and I can imagine it being sung by Little Richard. 14. "Randy Scouse Git" is written and sung by Dolenz. The song is about a chaotic part, where the narrator is trying to impress a girl. It contains waves of mania and calm. 17. "A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You” is a Neil Diamond song. It is the perfect song for the Monkeys to perform. Many of the tracks are nothing special. The deluxe version of the album seems to contain more fluff than the original. I can’t imagine why anyone would have thought that was a good idea. This may have been an important album for the group, getting away from their manufactured origin. A couple of tracks on this album are good and I enjoy many other Monkeys tracks, but particularly this album does not do it for me. Listen Again?: No My Rating: ***

The original Big Time Rush. Enjoyable easy listen. Rating: 4.1

I feel it hasn’t aged well. Didn’t get anything out of listening.

Solid but uninteresting. 2.5

Hey Hey I've always misjudged this band despite having a friend who was way into all their stuff and swore to me there was pop brilliance behind all the bubblegum shenanigans. I already have music I prefer that fills this particular niche for me, however, having listened to this record I can hear that my friend was not entirely wrong. I would've had to have had to encounter them with an open mind when I was much younger for them to have stuck.

A Monkees album with some kick - they really let it rip with some of the guitar parts here, an unexpected surprise for a band that always seemed keen to stay in the lines instrumentally. Got me wondering what could’ve been if some of these more mainstream 60s bands had indulged in some heavier guitar tones.

Meh...bubblegum pastiche Beatles half arsed twaddle. Is this on because they started to write their own songs? Lame

Boring and annoying, they somehow managed it, guys. Marge deserved the shit she got for liking them honestly.

They were moving, they were grooving

Ouh ouh

leger et furtif ca ne fait de mal a personne

Un álbum poco interesante que busca emular lo más posible las mejores composiciones de The Beatles en su periodo de 1966 a 1967. Un proyecto clon, bastante bien interpretado, pero con poca originalidad. A pesar de que los miembros de The Monkees pudieron escribir sus canciones, no lograron crear una pieza musical original.

“The album was released on May 22, 1967, and charted at No. 1 in the U.S., only to be replaced the following week by the Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band” Lol rekt

Solid

It's wild that Beatles mania was so powerful that all these awful knockoff copycat acts all became popular and well regarded. It's trash.

Track 1 seems to be a rewrite of the Beatles 'Doctor Robert'. I steadily lost interest. Formulaic, fluffy sixties nonsense.

Wasn’t a fan, felt very hollow and boring. Nothing caught my eye or held my attention on this one.

Woof. I know the Monkees have a place in history, and some hits out there, but goodness gracious so much of this feels like Beatles imitation, and not the good Beatles music that they were making by the time this album dropped, but the mediocre bubblegum poppy stuff. "I Can't Get Her Off My Mind" feels ripped from that "With the Beatles" album that I despise with a passion. Most of this whizzed by me, but there were a couple standouts, especially "Zilch," that song is weird as hell. Guys just chanting over each other until they run out of gas and just start laughing. Do they have more weird stuff like that? Seems like something Zappa would do, love it. Album's weak though. Favorite tracks: Zilch, You Just May Be the One. Album art: Professional cutesy photo of the band, not much to say. Font stuff is kind of cool though. 2/5

On dirait un composite de plein de groupes, en particulier The Beatles, ce qui est flagrant. Par contre, n’ont pas à rougir de la comparaison, très efficace et entraînant

Kind of an interesting historical foot note as the #2 album when Sgt. Pepper's came out. But obviously one is a classic and the other is not. I'll be nice and give it the 3. It's not unpleasant, but it's basically background music at best.

To me, very cool that the Monkees finally learned to play and perform their instruments so they could ghost write the Beatles an album after Revolver. Although this leans back towards more towards Rubber Soul so I see why they went and did Sgt Peppers instead.

why listen to the beatles when you can listen to someone doing a beatles impression?

3.5, some good tracks albeit very 60s/love song theme to it. (Randy scouse git, no time, for petes sake)

Another good example of an album that listening to the original is a completely different experience than listening to an extended version. It is long and it gets boring. I wish Spotify would bring back the original albums...

Does what it says on the tin really. Unfortunately wasn't able to source a non-extended version so it's more difficult to judge, but this is more or less what I expected. It's OK but it's not about to set my world on fire.

Mr. Dobalina, Mr. Bob Dobalina.

Its surprisingly not as bad I thought. Sure, it's obvious from the first track they stole ideas from the Beatles and Byrds but are far less creative or melodically interesting. But it's catchy and has a different style which each song, a good reflection of mid 60s pop. This is the album where the Monkees start writing their own songs. And although they don't produce anything mind blowing, at least I can acknowledge they put in the effort with how diverse the sound is. It's my type of music, with optimistic jangly guitars and harmonic vocals, so I'm a bit biased. If this were a previous album, I'm sure I would have dismissed most of it as filler besides the hit tracks. Favorites: Forget that Girl, For Pete's Sake, Mr Webster, Randy Scouse Git

Wat zoetjes allemaal

Kan dit best waarderen, maar zou het uit mezelf nooit zomaar aanzetten.

Mjah, antwoord op de Beatles toch? Niet echt een antwoord, meer een vraagteken.

Deze band wordt altijd weggezet als een gimmick, maar ik moet zeggen dat ze in bepaalde nummers toch wel aardig dicht bij de vroegere Beatles sound komen! Lang niet alles is even boeiend, en al die extra's en demo's maken het niet echt een coherent geheel. Maar al met al toch nog best goed te hebben.

Blegh.

Not sure if the Monkees belong on this list, and if they do this isn't the album. 2/5

Too safe

Seeing this record come up made me laugh, as I don't take The Monkees seriously, and never had, except to recall their "hits" whenever they appear. It's definitely a 60's record. The only "starred" by Apple Music is track 6, "Shades of Gray". It's pretty bad. In summary, this record took three minutes to review and discard!

Pretty generic, inoffensive 60's pop rock. It is very much modeled after The Beatles and some of the melodies and harmonies are actually pretty good. There just wasn't much memorable about this album, and I don't think I'd revisit it.

There they are, they say they're The Monkees

Frekar dull á heildina litið. Enginn banger, bara meh.

Wanting to prove themselves as a bonafide rock and roll band as opposed to teenyboppers propping up the flagpole abandoned by The Beatles, The Monkees set out to establish their headquarters and mark their own territory with wholly original materials and some nods towards the left-field that would rear its head later. On the whole, while not totally remarkable, it is impressive for a band that seemed real on the outside but not inside to just completely fill up the inside portion of the image and start becoming who they wanted to be. Sure, they may have been seen as the butt of most jokes but, on Headquarters, The Monkees implore you to start taking them seriously. I say mission accomplished. Fun fact: while listening, the beginning portion of Zilch began and I swore my streaming service began randomly playing "Mistadobalina" by Del the Funkee Homosapien and it didn't take long to realize that Del had sampled The Monkees. Funny how that works, huh? Favorites: You Told Me, I'll Spend My Life With You, You May Just Be the One, Shades of Gray, Sunny Girlfriend, Zilch, No Time, Randy Scouse Git.

This is literally the album where the people who were too garbage at music to make songs managed to wrest control and make an album. It's bland soulless garbage and whoever says it was a must listen is beholden to nostalgia and definitely should not be reviewing music

Beatles inflytande

Very solid 60s pop! Would definitely return to it

Dehä va så hype dude. Basen e så kracked o låtarna går hårt

I ALREADY RATED THIS YOU IDIOTS

They are better than a "made for TV" band from the 60s should be. 4 stars.

I wanted to love this...

It's mediocre at best. Sounds dated for being from 67 and The Beatles have released awesome albums like Rubber Soul, Revolver and Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band that blows this out of the water. It's not a bad album but it's not that exciting.

Huismerk Beatles met country-invloeden. De hits staan niet op dit album dus ook dat is me niet gegund. Wat over blijft is wel erg eenvoudige, brave jaren '60 pop. Het is niet verschrikkelijk om even uit te zitten maar ik neig toch enorm naar 2 sterren. En dat op donderdag.

This was a grower for me and I even listened to the full 1hr 30 or whatever it was. At first I found it a little irritating and then I felt I got it more. A few creepy songs about girls and sisters but I guess that was the norm at the time

Surprisingly good. I don't know much about the Monkees except they were off a TV show and in the Simpsons Marge had a Monkees lunch box and some horrible kid said to her 'you know they aren't even a real band', it was really sad.

very 60s quirky

I actually liked this quite a bit more than I thought I would! Kinda had some surf rock Beatles with an early punk vibe to it. Huge points for having mister dobalina on here as well. Now excuse me while I go cry to “shades of grey”.

Really good in parts, lyrically it’s a bit sus!

I've only heard the Monkees radio hits before (and maybe some songs from the TV show I watched as a kid) and love them all. I don't recall ever hearing any of the songs off this album before. I liked it for the most part, nothing amazing though. The first song, You Told Me sounds like very much like a Beatles song cut from Rubber Soul. Still, I wonder why this was the Monkees album chosen for the list.

Wow this is fluffy. At least the 1002 App didn't make is watch the TV show.

It’s interesting and maybe predictable that once the made-for-TV Monkees escaped the clutches of the record company, they would put out an album that was less commercial, more acoustic and psychedelic than their first two releases. The only song I recognized was “Shades of Gray” and the Bob Dabolina sample in “Zilch”. The chaotic chorus in “Randy Scouse Kit” gives the song a proto-punk feel. It’s hard to imagine it almost topping the UK pop Charts. At first, I thought the LP sounded a bit retro for ’67, comparing it to say, Sargent Pepper, but looking at ’67 releases by The Byrds, The Electric Prunes and The Who-Sell Out, it is another interesting nugget from a time when the musical landscape was rapidly changing.

Mediocre jingly jangly 60s pop.

I was a little surprised to see the Monkees on this list: one of the earliest examples of a manufactured boy band, they’ve been derided and slighted by many a “serious” music listener since their conception. The band were bred in the laboratory of the US’s TV industry, to contend with the Beatles’ effortless charisma in “A Hard Day’s Night” and “Help!”. The style was there, but the substance was not. After spending several years goofing around in their own TV show without playing or writing any of their own music and becoming increasingly disillusioned, “Headquarters” marks the moment they dispatched their manager Don Kirshner and took control themselves. It’s hardly a triumphant story of rock and roll legend, because it’s undermined by these songs not being out-and-out classics. “Headquarters” lacks any of the seismic singles which have allowed the Monkees to endure into present day: no “Daydream Believer”, “I’m a Believer”, “Last Train to Clarksville”. It is, however, a modest success. On first listen, I heard no merit in most of the by-the-numbers tracks and was all ready for a dismissive two-star write up. When they aren’t aping the Beatles, the Monkees shoot for the Kinks with toe-curling music-hall (“I Can’t Get Her Off My Mind”) or the Zombies with snoozy baroque-pop (“Shades of Gray”). Later, the band’s stagey roots sprout up to the fore with “Zilch”, which comes off as some kind of tongue twister warm-up exercise from stage-school hell. But it’s unfair of me to trash every single 60’s band on account of not being the Beatles. In truth, there are some standout, glistening melodies here. “You Just May Be The One” and “Sunny Girlfriend” sparkle with sunshine - feel-good hits with amazing choruses - while “Mr Webster” shows off some sophisticated chord progressions and stands up as a competent character study piece. And finally, “Randy Scouse Git” is full of rage and pent-up frustration, seemingly the band letting loose in their newfound freedom. When told by their label that UK listeners would take offence and they’d need an alternate title, they begrudgingly released it as “Alternate Title”. That raised a smile.

Från början väldigt likt något av det sämre som Beatles gjorde. 'You Told Me' är i princip en tidig Beatleslåt. Annars rätt så tråkigt. Grejen att The Monkees skapades för en tv-serie känns också... fejk på något sätt. Att medlemmarna hade det ganska gott ställt innan och handplockades till serien kanske bidrar till det själlösa i Monkees' musik. Blir mer konstruerat än organiskt. Har också alltid stört mig på Micky Dolenz ansikte, men det felet ligger ju bara hos mig. Det finns ändå några trevliga spår här: 'I'll Spend My Life With You', 'Shades of Gray', 'Mr. Webster', 'Early Morning Blues And Greens', och, speciellt, 'Randy Scouse Git', som har en kontrollerad spretighet och en råhet i refrängen som inte hörs annars på albumet. Bästa låt: Randy Scouse Git.

Nothing wrong with the music, wki said it was released same period as Sgt. Peppers, that one is still standing firm, this one is average, so 3*

This album doesn't contain any of their big hits (as far as I'm aware); some tracks sound like The Beatles, while others are a bit country and western in style, with a couple of very experimental tracks thrown in. Interesting.

Hey, hey now! Hey, hey, now, now!

mocked by hippies

This is just…just awful. Whose idea was it to pack an hour and a half of music into one album like this? They could’ve at least split it into 3 albums.

Welcome to BS HQ.

I remember as a kid I really liked The Monkees. I thought they were like the funny version of the Beatles...always runnin' around, too busy singing to get down. So when I listened to this I was pretty disappointed. It was like Beatles light. Beatles straight-forward. Whiny Beatles. There are a few interesting songs, even some experiential stuff like Zilch that I thought was fun. But no, this album is not for me.

Childhood memories flooding back. Couldn't possibly get through the 1000 songs on this though.

I do enjoy a spot of the Monkees, and this had lots of lovely moments, especially Randy Scouse Git. I am a little torn on whether this is a 3 or a 4 but I'm having a sad day so giving this a 4 will uplift me a tiny bit.

Un bon beetles cover band 3

Well what a coincidence that this was today’s album. Definitely not their best hits but by second listen I was liking it more.I’ve always really liked the last track which I knew as Alternate Title. All in all a nostalgic 3*

Pretty staid. Nothing much to get into.

Nah, you’re alright. Shite.

Collection of inoffensive mid-60s pop/rock songs without anything special to make them stand out. 2.5/5

3.3 - Some pleasant pop compositions though they mostly come across as pale imitations of the Beatles and the Beach Boys. Also, the production and vocals overall sound thin and wimpy, perhaps done intentionally to appeal to 12 year old teenie boppers. "Zilch" is one interesting a cappella aside with some rhythmic spoken word interplay, most notable for the "Mr. Bob Dobalina" refrain that was later copped by Del the Funky Homosapien. I also like the last two tracks "Early Morning Blues And Greens" and "Randy Scouse Git."

Highlights: "Randy Scouse Git," "Band 6," "For Pete's Sake" If you're going to directly copy a band in 1967, who better than the Beatles. It's a convincing duplicate. And these 25-year-old boys even wrote some of the songs themselves this time. That's all there is to say.

Lidt kedeligt album, hvor der ikke rigtigt var nogle fængende sange på.

Solidly enjoyable

Was pleasantly surprised by this. First few songs really weren't a style I could be bothered listening to and nearly tapped out. Glad I pushed through, there were plenty of nice tracks. Bit too cheesy to make any real impact on me. 3/5

A couple of shining lights amongst what I found to be a mostly throwaway, if cute and inoffensive, list of tracks. A really nice ballad in Mr. Webster just pipped to the post late in the game by my fave track: Randy Scouse Git Two and a half.

Yeah, I dunno. The Monkees never seemed impressing, and for sure this album just seems a bad knock off of their contemporaries; only a few years too late for whatever sound they were trying for. Not all that interested in this one. Fave track: Shades of Gray

tämä on musiikkia!! tämä tässä on saatana kunnon albumi. ei miitään orvokki perse munaa kitaran vängytystä vittu originaalisuus kiinnostava lyrisismi hevonpaskaa.. TÄSSÄ ei oo muuta kun RAAKAA 2minuutin pituisia sieluttomia korporaatti biisejä. the monkees bändi pelasti koko perkeleen musiikkiteollisuuden, tällästä se kuuluukin olla!!!! jo album coverista näkee, kuinka häpeämättömän nerokas bänger on tulossa! VITTU YHELLÄ JALALLA TUO"""""""""HULLU!!!!!!!hymyhuulin .. vittu se tietää mitä tekee... early morning blues and greens

Not great. 5/10.

There’s nothing special here, just another typical album that you’d hear in the 60s

Manufactured pop that actually does surprisingly well for itself.

It’s enjoyable but someone pointed out that it was released a month before Sgt Pepper and that month sounds a decade different.

believer

I really like this - it's very of its time, but still has some interesting tracks.

3/5 Although I didn't hate this, I prefer the real Beatles more. This album felt like was just parodying another band, cause it was. It felt bubble gum and watered down, like what would be used in a soundtrack in a B movie if they didn't have the budget for the Beatles royalties. It was a meh for me.

Urgh. The Spotify version had 36 tracks and after 26 of them I'd frankly had enough. This is okay but as seems the theme lately, is not to my taste. Mediocre to me and so a strictly average rating.

It may not be very "good" but it sure is happy and fun dammit!

I enjoyed this album. It’s a relic of the 60s. 3.5 stars

интересный альбом. местами звучит максимально обыденно и привычно, словно я слышал такую музыку сотни раз, местами происходит что-то необычное (возможно дело в том, что это deluxe) один из прикольных экспериментов: Zilch а вот Midnight Train мне очень отдает русской музыкой, что-то типа Высоцкого (напр. Лекция о международном положении) и ещё хочу сказать, НУ КАК ЖЕ МНОГО ПРО ЛЮБОВЬ. я прям вспомнил недовольства Феди и внезапно для себя их пережил. не могу сказать, что весь альбом стоит внимания, но отдельные работы хороши

Недобитлы? Супербитлы? Битлы? Прикольные ребята, которые в одно ухо влетели и в другое вылетели. Но на фон потанцевать неплохо

Ммм... это было что-то интересное. По крайней мере, изначально мне сначала казалось, что я получу альбом классических поп-песен 60х. Иногда так и было, но! Здесь были довольно экспериментальные вещи, которые... сходу не придумаются. Например, Zilch: чуваки начитывают текст в несколько голосов одновременно. Это какое-то речитативное многоголосие получилось даже... Всё это конечно же сопровождалось корявым звуком, но это было интереснее слушать, чем, например, "летающие буррито". Ещё здесь басист делает что-то интересное, пытается в мелодии, а не в "том-том-там-там". Альбом конечно середняк-середняком все равно остаётся. Но рекомендуется послушать фанатам эпохи 60-х: есть узнаваемый стиль эпохи, но он по своему дополнен экспериментами.

Надо было бы норм альбомчик без делюхов на площадках иметь отдельно, ибо это кек конечно. А так ну 3

not into it sorry. in a bad mood for music. 2 2 2 2 2 2 2

Mixed bag. Some real shite

Like the beatles, typical music of the sixties

Catchy middle of the road pop from the 60s. Fun, but nothing mind blowing.

Mieleenpainumatonta 60-luvun huttua

Saattaa toimia. Jos on alle 13-vuotias ja elää vuonna 67.

Not a bad album at all, spans a couple of genres for me. No Time is the fave.

also already heard 7.5/10

3+ This was fun.

2/5. Feels like a B-Sides collection of Beach Boys or Beatles, they are fine but I would rather change it to one of the other bands.

Dette var faktisk veldig bra, men aldri noe bedre enn det

Best: You Just May Be The One Worst: Pillow Time

Fluffy Entertainment 2.4

Great energy and album

swinging.

Hey hey

I don't like The Beatles

decent background music, i like the glockenspiel(?) in Ill Spend My Life With You but its not anything crazy good (looked it up and apparently its a celeste, not a glockenspiel)

Hetken jaksoi hyvällä mielenkiinnolla kuunnella, mutta aivan liian pitkä levy ja melko tasapaksua.

Ilosta rallatteluu

I just couldn’t get into the album…

Hey hey, it's the Monkees! Very much sounding of the era it was recorded, but perfectly pleasant and sunny.

Some interesting ideas in here but my brain didn't have the space to sift through them all, so this ended up feeling more like random songs than a cohesive album. Nicely psychedelic in places, but it put me in mind of Bowie's Laughing Gnome at various moments. Probably worth another listen at some point, but must admit I felt more at home when the deluxe edition launched into the Spanish version of 'Hey Hey...'. 2.5 stars.

Something of a Rubber Soul pastiche. Please tell me that Randy Scouse Git is a Beatles piss take. This worked well with the country soul tracks; not so when it went off waffling in a folk direction. There's a sad feeling that tries to hold the different fragments together. Zilch very odd. It reminded me of A Tribe Called Quest and Benita Applebaum. Drugs might have been involved. Not really an album, more a random collection of songs

Why are the Monkees on this list at all? They were created in a lab, taught to play instruments (mostly poorly), and released to an army of teenage girls whose parents wouldn't let them list to Elvis or the Beatles. Don't get me wrong, there are 3-4 Monkees songs that I like - but not a single one of them was on this album. That leads me to believe that there will be more Monkees to come on this list. More Monkees? Nope.

Such an interesting history and background, given the television program, the musicians being actors and vice versa, so it's a different context here. I watched the series as reruns when I was a kid in the 70s. Setting aside all that to listen to the album -- and I don't recall ever owning or listening to any of The Monkees' albums -- it's good pop music that's very much appropriate for pop music of the time. It doesn't stand out to me as anything special, but I get how the group and album are considered important with the commercial success of the show and group, and the cultural setting in which it all happened. Listening to this album did help me appreciate the band members' musical abilities. Mike Nesmith writes and performs really well, and Micky Dolenz has a cool voice that stands out a bit.

Perfectly pleasant pop pieces.

Came into this one pretty skeptical of the merits of the Monkees. If you get past the fact that they ripped the Beatles unabashedly, you can find some redeeming qualities on this album, and some generally solid songs. It’s also somewhat impressive how they fought to gain control of their music and legacy, a true stepping stone for artistic/creative control. So although not musically groundbreaking, it’s quality era-specific music. I’d still take an album of Ringo tracks though.

Nothing memorable. Derivative early 60s pop. I guess that was the point,

Like the Beatles without the depth

This Beatles album is ok but they have better ones. FIVE STARS BABY, THE DEL SAMPLE!!! I like the first song and the last one! Everything in between is ok to trash! Kind of gives Grateful Dead vibes but if they didn't go further than like 3 minute pop songs, all the Dead without the drugs! Also heavy Beatles energy!

Meh

Monke

I used to watch the Monkees as a kid (kid of the 80's/90's, but obsessed with 60's tv). this album was a nice surprise. I wish they were taken more seriously as musicians in their prime, this album is fun and experimental pop.

It's always a toss-up with these '60s band albums, so I'm really glad this was closer to The Beatles than it was to late '60s The Kinks or any of those folk rock groups. Fun, energetic music that's nothing too special, but makes for a good way to spend 30 minutes. Standout tracks were Forget that Girl, Mr. Webster, and honestly? Zilch.

High energy, fun to listen to

I really appreciated the deep cuts and one in Italian.

Very of time got some good chill tunes

A fun and quick little trip into the summer of love, no major bangers but its a fun time no doubt. Would listen to again. Favourite tracks - You just may be the one, Sunny Girlfriend, No Time.

momnkeksknknes

Helt okej!!

meh, interesting future samples ib hip hop album tho

this is actually pretty good. 3.5 stars

Cute

An album by a '60s novelty act without any of their notable hits? I am disappoint. On the bright side, the throwaway track "Zilch" was sampled on one of my favorite Del the Funky Homosapien tracks, "Mistadobalina," so at least there's some future greatness derived from a snippet of this album.

I've loved the The Monkees since I was a ten yr old kid. Thanks to my aunt & Nickelodeon, watching The Monkees TV show was part of my afternoon schedule. It was then when I developed one of my first crushes on Michael Nesmith. It was as an adult that I learned that he was from TX & spent quite a bit of time in my hometown. Childhood aside, this group is incredibly talented. My favorite songs are those led by Mike, but Mickey is also a fantastic lead vocalist. Also cool to note that at least one of these songs is written by Neil Diamond (he's a phenomenal song writer IMO) and that wins points too. I hope we see more from The Monkees. They're definitely a favorite.

Listened to a lot of music by The Monkees growing up. Still brings a smile to my face. This was a good album even though it had very few songs I knew.

Big hot trash

I am not really sure why this album is on this list but it was relatively easy to listen to and a bonus for only having a 30 minute run time. In the end it is just very simple music that is light and fun. They aren't trying to do anything deep and or meaningful and I think that self-awareness counts for something.

Yuck

wanna be beatles and kinks. dont know if they want bubble gum pop or some rock or other. what did their producer expect? what did they expect. tepid water with mosquitoes in it. oh noes!

This was good fun, but not very memorable. Scouse Git is still great, but the rest are a bit of a blur. I think if I was going to pick a Monkees album I’d go for a best of over this, even though it’s a cop out. Interesting it was a contemporary of Sgt Pepper.

I personally give this 5 stars and note that there is some bias in play. This was the first album they played their own instruments on, which was a big deal for them. It's an even bigger deal that when it came out, it topped both The Beatles and Beach Boys. Probably a largely underappreciated album, but one of my favorites for sure.

I grew up in the nineties when Nick @ Nite aired old reruns of the Monkees show. My mom adored them growing up, and Headquarters was in fact her favorite Monkees' album. I've never stopped loving the Monkees. Some bias may show here, but I'll show good reason for it! Headquarters is different from the Monkees' previous albums. Not only are Peter and Michael's vocals featured more, but the overall quality is better and feels more authentically Monkees. This album isn't as breezy and light as their first two albums but instead contains more substance. The Monkees were given more creative control for this album, which is unmistakable when comparing their albums. More than half of the album is written by at least one Monkee, along with the usual Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart additions. I will plug the delightful opening lyrics from "My Sunny Girlfriend" written by Nesmith: "She owns and operates/her own sunshine factory". Not to mention, for a band that was created simply for a TV show and not because they could play instruments, the four of them creating the "Band 6" instrumental is monumental as an inclusion. As mentioned before, Headquarters has more depth. There are some sweet, slow songs ("Shades of Gray", "Early Morning Blues and Greens"), but you have the typical Monkees humor ("Zilch", "Randy Scouse Git" - and I swear you can hear Micky's laughter in the back of "No Time") and your love songs for Davy and his girlfriend of the week ("I Can't Get Her Off My Mind"). Sure, it's a similar formula, but more meaning is contained within than before. Headquarters is the first Monkees' album to balance all members without relying only on Micky and Davy's vocals. If anyone is slighted, it is Peter; later albums show how soft and beautiful his voice on songs could be. There's a reason why "Shades of Gray" stands out on this album. But for Mike to have three (!) songs he wrote and sang included, that shows the Monkees' personal influence. Don't get me wrong: Headquarters is brilliant and enjoyable, but I love all Monkees' music. Regardless of the album or the song, a smile always finds its way to my face when listening to them. One of the easiest 5s I've ever given.

As someone who is fairly ignorant on The Monkees except for a few songs here and there, I was interested to give this a listen. I wouldn't say it blew me away, but it was a fun, happy, easy listen. On this album, the band being influenced by The Beatles is apparent, but what I love is that they're more approachable than The Beatles. Though somewhat a product of the 60s, I really appreciate how concise and straightforward the songs on this album are. They're full of heart and "Randy Scouse Git" is my favorite Monkees song, and it was welcomed to hear this banger as the album closer. It just jolts you out of the comfort of the rest of the album and gets you moving and jamming. In mentioning what seems to be inspiration from The Beatles, it bears mentioning that this is the song that most closely captures the "weird" and "random" side of The Beatles. Another new to me song that really stood out was "You May Just Be the One". I loved the cadence of the song and the harmony going on.

I'm very curious about the process that led to this album cover. Aside from being the antithesis of cool, it doesn't disguise the normalness of the Monkees—at a time when the wind was blowing counter-culture. Fine, Jangle-pop overlaid with melodic singing was tried and proven at this point. But...you know...talk about freezing a moment. Interesting, Wiki tells me that this was the first album that the band had a creative control over. It doesn't not work, but it seems rather unambitious. But then, it doesn't seem to be looking for a bandwagon to hijack either, so that's something. And the facts don't lie – it was a hit album. Perhaps young adults just functioned differently 55 years ago.

The train had left the station by this point, and everyone was left standing around munching on the Beatles' dust

Had high hopes for the band name

кажется не слышала их раньше, но по результатам одного дня ощущение только битлов для бедных

I’m kinda bored of this kinda music

Bleibt nicht wirklich viel von hängen. Das hat man alles von anderen Sixties-Bands ebenso gehört. Nicht schlimm, aber auch keine drei Sterne.

notes - 60s pop band the monkees’ third album - reminds me a lot of early beatles stuff and a bit of beach boys - first album where the members of the monkees got to have creative input in the music that they made - after kicking out their former music director/producer - some interesting experiments with tape effects, multitrack recording - you can tell they were having fun in the studio and just seeing what happened fav - forget that girl - i like the laid back vibe and falsetto vocals least fav - i cant get her off of my mind - goofy little tune but i wasnt a huge fan 4.5/5, fun listen and more enjoyable than i expected

Such an era defining sound. I wouldn't normally like it but it made me feel happy - and that's alwasy good.

That first song sounds like it belongs on Ticket to Ride or Rubber Soul with a little Pinball Wizard lick thrown in at the beginning. Interesting album that would have been amazing if it hit two years earlier.

Very nostalgic listen for me on this one as I watched their tv show as a child and can remember the neighborhood kids debating the relative musical merits of the group. Nothing really special about this album but considering they were a group of guys just tossed together for a faux Beatles-like tv production, they managed to find a sound unique enough to distinguish themselves in the era. As an aside Mike Nesmith went on to become a successful singer/songwriter and Grammy winner.

Esattamente come mi immagino un album dei Monkees. Speravo in un qualche guizzo

Eh

Meh. It's just the Beatles D sides.

0 stars. F*ck the Monkees.

Nice album, actually really enjoyed most of it. Clearly loads of Beatles influence but they definitely have their own sound in some of the songs. Forget That Girl, Shades of Gray, Randy Scouse Git, Love to Love, All of Your Toys

A perfect example of an older album that should be cut to make room for newer releases. The album The Monkees wrote themselves because they wanted to be taken seriously as musicians? So?

Well I don’t really like the idea of a “fake band” that the monkees brought to the scene especially that it was for shallow corporate reasons but the album itself is pleasant if not a little forgettable at places until zilch which is just wired. Rest is ok though 3/5.

first listen it's good

As a kid, Daydream Believer was my most favorite song. As an adult, I could not listen to any one song all the way through.

Decent, but not great.

I really thought I would like this more, but man wanted to rip my hair out at points

I didn't make it far into the album but it's 60s pop music for a TV show so....

I had heard of The Monkees before, and knew that they were America's answer to The Beatles and had a TV Show, but never delved into their stuff too much. Apparently this was the first album where the label allowed them to create their own music instead of regurgitating music that was created for them, so with that in mind, there is some experimentation here, and some of it feels a bit unpolished. You can hear how they were very similar to The Beatles, and can also hear inspiration from the likes of Chuck Berry and Simon & Garfunkel. Spotify links to the Deluxe version of this album, which has a bunch of stereo remixes of songs as well as some demo stuff from the recording studio, and a few stand alone singles. I didn't mind this album, you can see what they were driving at, but it just didn't wow me, and it wasn't refined and groundbreaking like The Beatles, more of a parody of sorts. Favourite songs: 99 Pounds, No Time, For Pete's Sake (Closing Theme), Sunny Girlfriend, Randy Scouse Git, Mr. Webster, All of Your Toys, She Hangs Out, Nine Times Blue, Love to Love, You Can't Tie a Mustang Down Least favourite songs: Zilch, Pillow Time, Band 6, Early Morning Blues and Greens, If I Learned to Play the Violin, Peter Gunn's Gun 3/5

Of all the Beatles clones - the Monkees on this album capture Help! Era feel and fun. And it’s a good record overall - helps that it is short and keeps you wanting more.

It was completely fine. 2.5 stars/5. Favorite track: Sunny Girlfriend

Prefs: For Pete's Sake, Sunny Girlfriend, Zilch, No Time, Early Morning Blues and Greenes, Randy Scouse Girl Moins pref: Band 6

Rating: 3.4 Best Track: No Time

hahaha i am aware that some people actually think the Monkees were good musicians and that's fine i guess, but this is not a good record, very dependent on vocals and harmonies except they are not great singers, otherwise a very derivative 60s sound

Interesting harmony with the voices, but not my favorite

It's very twee. That isn't necessarily a bad thing if it's still interesting to listen to, but this isn't.

A mix of the Beatles, Elvis and Bowie To long to repetitive and a a lot of dobbels

Ok. This has a surprising number of high points. The Peter Tork song, For Pete’s Sake seems like such a signature sound for the Monkees. The Mike Nesmith songs are pretty good, but less fun. You can see he takes himself too seriously. Besides that, the first song, You Told Me is a blatant Beatle ripoff. Obviously the whole group is based on the Beatles, but if Mike Nesmith wanted to be recognized for his own work and have the Monkees seen as more than a caricature of the Beatles, that’s not the best way to do it. I liked the other songs the four of them did together, as they seemed to capture something of the humor and whimsy that the group had naturally, while also taking things in the psychedelic direction that they, and music in general, were heading.

Never listened to an album from The Monkees before and this is a lot cooler than I thought it would, sure it's got the very classic British pop vibes you'd expect from the late 60s but there's something a bit weirder and stranger on a lot of the tracks rather than the just straightforward pop songs I was expecting. The Monkees seem cool

Meh, they weren't really musicians, although I did appreciate finding a tune I used to enjoy on the closing credits of the TV show when I was a kid

Rock sesentero variadito y bien hecho. For Peter's Sake y Randy Scouse Git mis favoritas.

Tenía este prejuicio en conta de The Monkees, quizá un poco por Los Simpson o porque eran en su origen un producto para la TV basado en tomar todo lo que estaba funcionando en la época y empaquetarlo. Sin embargo este disco me gustó. Tiene rolas agradables, pedacitos chistosos y muy buena instrumentación. Ahora me da curiosidad checar su trabajo previo (que según lo que leí es mucho más controlado por la televisora) y comparar.

I tried to give it a fair listen but just so meh.

I just can't...

After they told the world they didn’t play on their own albums, they took more creative control for their third release. It plays as a poor imitation of the Beatles who were weeks away from releasing Sgt. Pepper. While music in 1967 was pushing boundaries of musicianship, lyrical content, genre, and form, the Monkees were making bland music for a TV show about a fictional band. Obviously this album was more successful than it had any business being, and its production is slick, but it's just not good.

Ok album

Den gamle pop-rock, en smule Beatles-vibe, korte sange, simpel lyrik, catchy

Better than i thought, but that's not a high bar to clear

Ok but nothing spectacular.

I like the harmonies and the uplifting nature of each song, but overall the music is very average for the 60s considering all that came from that decade.

Entertaining album without any real highlights or anything that make it hard to give more than the usual 3 stars

det är ganska uddlöst

Beatles if they weren't great.

Solid 60's rock - cool to see an old TV band get creative freedom to write their own music and actually do well with it. 3.5

Nothing wrong with a little Monkees. Not quite sure it belongs on this list, but it's a decent album with a few more original songs than their previous albums. Kind of when The Monkees started coming into their own I guess. At their best, they sound like a more bubble gum version of the Zombies. 3 stars.

Needed this one today, great fun bit of silly 60s pop that's better than it pretends to be. Sure the beatles thing is writ large, but there is something special here.

smá erfitt með þessa, nokkur fín lög en svolítið dated

painful at times

2.5/5 Nothing special here.

What I knew of this album was Zilch, as this was sampled years later, and from that and it's reputation, I was expecting an album of wild experimentation - this is definitely not that. It's a pop band trying to go 'serious'. It is pleasant, but largely unexciting, with the exception of Randy Scouse Git, which is great, if a little derivative of Ray Davies. Like a post Disney Miley Cyrus record, I respect the move, even if I wouldn't bother with a whole album of it.

it was okay, not the best, not the worst.

meh. Beatles knockoff not much to it

I guess there is some merit to this one, but I made the mistake to just press play in spotify and then endured like 2 hours of off brand beatles lol...

I was surprised at the diversity of styles on this album. The weird talking just distracts and detracts but there are some nice songs here.

still a Beatles clone definitely enjoyable

For all the grief they took for being "prefab" during their time, the Monkees were actually a pretty talented group of performers. These songs are a testament to that, with some really charming, well-produced and highly listenable pop confections. This is an especially fun album if you're only familiar with the Monkees' hits, lots of surprisingly interesting stuff. You can hear shadows of the Beatles and the Byrds and everything in between in these songs. But we never entirely hear who the Monkees are. I genuinely like many of the songs here. The musicianship is solid, with some lovely melodies and beautiful guitar work. The vocals are crisp and spot on. But in the end it all just feels a little hollow. I think "Zilch" really made that point for me. It's an empty headed obverse of other musical experimentation going on at that time, made by far better bands. I had heard the song before, presumably on the TV show, but for some reason it bugged me today. Fave Songs: Randy Scouse Git, For Pete's Sake, I'll Spend My Life with You, You Told Me, You Just May Be the One

I know we're supposed to say that they were actually as good as the Beach Boys and the Kinks. but they weren't were they? A stellar greatest hits, but their albums? No.

it's funny that this is their creative breakout album, where they finally wrestled some creative control away from the producer and played all the instruments for themselves. It's not really fun and it just sounds like any old pop/rock/folk band from 1967. Not all of it is terrible but they really should have just stayed as an boy band with no creative control.

Hey hey, it's the Monkees.

Rock sesentero. Venga, vinilo, aunque alguna canción no me ha entusiasmado.

Too long

You know it's another Beatles riff off when it's a '60s boy band with a misspelled animal name as a band name.

I'm tempted to give this five stars. It's not the Monkees I expected. There is some really creative amazing music on this album. But there is also some pretty elementary stuff. Overall, loved it and listened to several of the songs multiple times. Would def listen again.

I like the Monkees. I was the right age for when their show had a revival, and I honestly liked the show and their music. I may have only listened to some compilation and greatest hits albums, and I know I've never listened to Headquarters. Three tracks from this album are added to my personal playlist ("You Just May Be the One", "For Pete's Sake" and "Randy Scouse Git"), all of which I've heard before. "You Just May Be the One" is one of my all-time favorite Monkees songs, and for me is an example of what Michael Nesmith had to offer as a songwriter and a performer. Headquarters is an interesting mix of music, considering the history of what it took to get an album that the Monkees could actually record on their own. There is a tinge of country (which I believe is due to Nesmith) and a couple tracks that have some of the experimentation that you might have expected from this album ("Band 6", "Zilch"). Surprisingly there is a track that sounds very much like a Davy Jones (not necessarily a 'we're the Monkees and we're going to record what we want') song ("I Can't Get Her Off My Mind"), and a generic pop track that sounds like a low energy filler on the show ("Forget That Girl"). I liked hearing the whole album, but the final product is uneven in energy and musical styles.

Fine.

I liked it better when they didn't write their own songs.

grrr this was an awkward album because i don’t hate it but i definitely don’t like it because it’s just outdated? like it’s just music i wouldn’t listen to not because it’s bad but because it’s old. it’s interesting but not for me.

ehh? My reaction went from "aw jeez, i don't need to hear the Monkees" to "ok this is different..." to "yeah i'm just not that interested in this." I mean, it's fine - it's truly not bad at all, just that i think 60s pop music like this doesn't hold my interest for very long. Each song is kind of quirky and fun and I suppose "Randy Scouse Git" might be my favourite; it's almost like a very early period Who song. I'd say if you like 60s pop (I've seen this labeled as psychedelic but i don't agree) this might be up your alley. I'll give it a soft 3 seeing as nothing made me turn it off (what an endorsement eh). n.b. I had no idea that "Mr Dobalina" came from the Monkees (catchy Del Tha Funky Homosapien early 90s hiphop hit) 5/10 3 stars.

It's fine. Upbeat and pleasant. Manufactured or not, the songs are just very simplistic when viewed from a 21st century perspective. I can appreciate them contextually but I'm not sure how much I'd listen to them on my own.

Começo do pop rock.

Despite fillers, Band 6 and Zilch, it is a solid album from the band. They were finally able to play their own instruments and they were able to be a real band.

I sometimes think of the Monkees as an inferior version of The Beatles, which probably isn't fair, but I couldn't stop thinking about it as I listened to this album.

I thoroughly enjoy The Monkees and don't hold their origins as a manufactured group against them. I think it's rather remarkable that they were able to gain creative control in the process of making this record. And on top of that, the fact that they were talented enough to make that transition sound fairly seamless to their previous output is kind of amazing really. I appreciate their sense of humor and playful nature. It's not complete fluff as some would have you believe. Their music easily stacks up to other psychedelic pop albums on this list (Electric Prunes come to mind for example) and they're often much more enjoyable because they don't take themselves too seriously. Yeah, they are indebted to The Beatles, but who wasn't? They're not simply Beatles clones by any means.

I am too young to have known much of The Monkees, I just assumed they were a shitty band trying to capitalize on Beatlemania, but seems I'm half right. It was an interesting Wikipedia read to see that they were originally a made-for-tv band for a sitcom, which over time morphed into a real thing due to the band members feeling like they were duping people. I can respect the drive to want to be their own thing and not just letting other musicians play their music behind closed doors. Regardless of that though, it really is not my thing. Definitely of the time and still sounds like knock-off Beatles, manufactured music to appeal to the kids. They paved the way for all boy bands and other manufactured pop stars, it seems.

I grew up in the 80s, but fell in love with the Monkees watching reruns of the television show. I bought copies of all their albums and knew all their songs. This album happens to be my favorite of theirs. A little something for everyone.

3.5/5. Above-average 60s pop. It's nothing amazing, but it's not bad.

Fantastic pop album no complaints

better value Beatles

Harkened a mother’s quest to be pretty bland and uninteresting. Should’ve stuck to the ghost writers and session musicians.

❤️

So according to Wiki the band fought hard for creative freedom... and then this is what they did with it? It's sort of crazy how cheesy and dated this one is and I really can't fathom a reason to listen to this, except in a museum sense of "this is what people liked almost 60 years ago".

You can tell in this record that they were a ‘60s boy band. Designed to make catchy “Beatles-esque” tunes. There’s a couple on here.

Five stars just for "If I Learned To Play The Violin". Funniest song I've ever heard.

essential sixies pop rock