In an effort to restore and remaster the music of The Monkees, Headquarters is back in a new and improved way! Featuring "The Girl I Knew Somewhere," "You Just May Be The One," and "Randy Scouse Git," this album is a gr... more »eat addition to any Monkees fan's collection.« less
In an effort to restore and remaster the music of The Monkees, Headquarters is back in a new and improved way! Featuring "The Girl I Knew Somewhere," "You Just May Be The One," and "Randy Scouse Git," this album is a great addition to any Monkees fan's collection.
I wanted to write a nasty review, but it's really superb
Micaloneus | the Cosmos | 07/15/2007
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This deluxe edition of Headquarters is so nicely done (much like the first two in this series), I honestly couldn't write anything nasty. It's been presented with love and care.
The sound quality is good for mono, but the stereo mastering seems a little bright and not as satisfying as the older CD version of Headquarters. It's very similar in sound quality to the Beatles Capitol Records releases that just came out recently. The bonus material is entertaining, as well as strong, I also loved some of the stuff I'd never heard before. The booklet is also really good, with lots of rare photos and the in depth story of the making of this album.
The overall packaging is very classy. It makes me hope that The Beatles get this kind of treatment through Apple records, or my favorite band, Deep Purple get this sort of stunning re-packaging from Rhino.
I grew up on the mono versions of the Monkees albums, all the way up to their fifth album "The Birds, The Bees & The Monkees" in April 1968, so I was really thrilled to see that mono finally made it to CD. I've always thought that the mono mixes were better overall, giving an overall impression of a heavier rock band sound. Though, I got the feeling that the Headquarters mono mix was a fold down of the stereo mix. As for the stereo mastering, it sounded brighter than the original Rhino CD's, with some added compression, and the signal might have been pushed harder than the older Rhino discs. But on the whole, a wonderful job. Let's hope the next two albums (released in mono & stereo) get this same kind of royal treatment.
Sure they seem to be milking the Monkee-cow, but when it's this strong, milk it baby. Next up, The Birds, The Bees & The Monkees?"
Here They Come...Better Then EVER!!
lonlives | Michigan | 11/30/2007
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I barely remembered their TV show when it first came in 1966, I was only four at the time, then I've became a HUGE fan of The Monkees since 1975 (after I started watching there shows on syndicated channels). None of there LP's existed at the time. Then Arista (bless them) released their Greatest Hits collection in 1976. A few years later, imported LP's from Japan started to come thru my local record shop. I bought their Debut thru Birds, Bees & Monkees. The sound was good, but their was not enough base sound to it. Then...1994, Rhino gave The Monkees the respect they deserve, releasing ALL their albums on CD, each in a nice special casing, liner notes AND unissued bonus tracks. Too Bad The Beatles didn't get this treatment( way over due ). In 2006 and 2007, Rhino did it again EVEN BETTER!! I have the first (and best) four of their Deluxe Editions-more bonus tracks, a lot more liner notes, PLUS the Sound Quality of both Mono & Stereo are superior to anything released before. I only hope the will do the same with the five original remaining CD's "The Birds, The Bees and The Monkees" thru "Changes". We Can Only Hope..."
That was a little too long.
Johnny Heering | Bethel, CT United States | 01/27/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Headquarters is considered by many to be one of the Monkees' best albums. Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn & Jones Ltd is probably slightly better, but Headquarters is a fan favorite because the Monkees played the majority of the instruments on it. It really is a terrific album, with many great songs and no real stinkers. This two disc edition features both the mono and stereo versions of the album. The two versions of the album feature different bonus tracks. Other songs from the Headquarters recording sessions are naturally included. But other songs from about the same time period are also featured. Six songs that Davy Jones sang with no participation from the other Monkees in February, 1967 are featured (including the hit "A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You"). And, believe it or not, disc 1 concludes with the Italian version of the Monkees theme song. Like I said, great album, but whether you need both the mono and stereo versions of the album is up to you."
Please make the shrill stop...
ALK | 09/10/2007
(3 out of 5 stars)
"This should be a really enjoyable CD given that some of the source material was included on the Headquarters Sessions a few years back. Apparently in some strange attempt to clean-up the sonics a significant amount of treble boost was applied to this CD version. The result is a shrill sounding version of Headquarters (particularly the stereo version). If you like 'ssssssssss' sounds then you'll love this.
The booklet is great however and strangely the "bonus" tracks sound better than the original mixes - probably because the bonus tracks were taken from the original 4 track tapes. Why can't that be done for the stereo version of the original album? Clean is good, sssssssssssssssss is bad."
The Garage sound!
S. P. Escobar | oakland, ca United States | 05/03/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"The sound of the discs are perfect! Just as it was! Most re-issues are remastered in a way that it doesn't sound as you remember the album sounding. But here in stereo, mono, and even the outtakes sound a little clearer, but just as you remember it sounding!
The best "garage band" sounding album ever made! And that could be why there were no singles or hits from the album. Probably because the powers that be didn't think they sounded as slick as the other singles from the first two albums, but that doesn't matter one bit! Die hard of the music and the TV show always think of this album as their best!"