The Monkees - Headquarters (Full Album) 1967 (1995 Rhino reissue CD bonus tracks)

Released May 22,1967
1. You Told Me 0:00
2. I'll Spend My Life With You 2:25
3. Forget That Girl 4:51
4. Band 6 7:17
5. You Just May Be the One 7:59
6. Shades of Gray 10:02
7. I Can't Get Her off My Mind 13:25
8. For Pete's Sake 15:52
9. Mr. Webster 18:04
10. Sunny Girlfriend 20:09
11. Zilch 22:42
12. No Time 23:48
13. Early Morning Blues and Greens 25:57
14. Randy Scouse Git 28:33
15. previously unreleased, bonus track) All of Your Toys - (Alternate Mix 31:12
16. The - (previously unreleased, alternate version, bonus track) Girl I Knew Somewhere 34:15
17. bonus track) Peter Gunn's Gun - (previously unreleased 36:54
18. bonus track) Jericho - (previously unreleased 40:32
19. demo version, bonus track) Nine Times Blue - (previously unreleased 42:35
20. demo version, bonus track) Pillow Time - (previously unreleased 44:43

In the context of continuing complaints about how the Monkees weren't a real
band (yawn) and they didn't even play their own instruments for christ sakes,
"Headquarters" stands as the only album the Monkees ever made as a band:
Michael Nesmith on vocals, pedal steel guitar, six-string guitar and organ;
Davy Jones on vocals, tambourine, jawbone, maracas, etc.; Micky Dolenz on
vocals, drums and guitar; Peter Tork on vocals, keyboards, 12-string guitar,
bass and five-string banjo.

Not to belabor this point--even rock critics know this really doesn't matter
by now--but the above credits mean that Dolenz was the only drummer on
"Headquarters." Tork was the only keyboardist. Aside from assistance from
Jerry Yester and Keith Allison on one track ("No Time"), Nesmith, Tork and
Dolenz were the only guitarists.

Supplemented only by producer/fifth Monkee Chip Douglas on bass and by cello
and French Horn players on "Shades Of Gray," the Monkees on "Headquarters"
were as much a "real" band as the Beatles or the Rolling Stones. Hell, they
were more of a "real" band here than the Beach Boys were on "Pet Sounds."
Not bad for a bunch of TV idols with a manufactured image.

Sure, it's all irrelevant. But "Headquarters's" authenticity lends it a
hard-won aura of credibility. That gives it a special place in the hearts
of Monkees fans, but its virtues go beyond merely transcending the perceived
limitations of the Monkees' artificial origins. It's a terrific record, a
wonderful melange of pop, rock 'n' roll, folk and country influences.

Most of the album's best moments are spearheaded by Nesmith, who pilots the
band through irresistible performances of his songs "You Told Me," "Sunny
Girlfriend" and "You Just May Be The One." Jones, perhaps physically
restrained from rendering any puppy-eyed ballads, turns in two of his best
vocal performances on the decidedly non-drippy "Forget That Girl" and "Early
Morning Blues And Greens."

Still, the album's best moment is probably "For Pete's Sake," a wonderful
peace-and-love anthem co-written by Tork (with Joseph Richards) and sung
winningly by Dolenz. It's chiefly remembered as the closing theme for The
Monkees TV series's second season, but it should have been a single.

(The album's weak moments? There aren't any. Even the goofy larks "Zilch"
and "Band 6," Nesmith and Dolenz's inept attempt to play the Looney Tunes
cartoon theme, are diverting and agreeable.)

Bonus tracks on "Headquarters" include two more tracks by the Monkees band
(with John London on bass): the previously-unissued single mix of "All Of
Your Toys" and a previously-unissued Nesmith-sung version of "The Girl I
Knew Somewhere." Both of these fit in perfectly with the original album.
There's also Nesmith's solo take on his own "Nine Times Blue," a Tork
instrumental (a weird version of "Peter Gunn"), an impromptu singalong of
the traditional "Jericho" and a revealing listen to Dolenz in the studio,
chatting with Douglas and singing "Pillow Time."
Michael Nesmith: vocals, pedal steel guitar, 6-string guitar, organ
Davy Jones: vocals, tambourine, jawbone, maracas, etc.
Micky Dolenz: vocals, drums, guitar
Peter Tork: vocals, keyboards, 12-string guitar, bass guitar, 5-string banjo
Chip Douglas: bass guitar
John London: bass guitar on "The Girl I Knew Somewhere" and "All of Your Toys"
Vince DeRosa: French Horn on "Shades of Gray"
Fred Seykora: cello on "Shades of Gray"
Jerry Yester: additional guitar on "No Time"
Keith Allison: additional guitar on "No Time"