The Partridge Family in the 1980s: Two Different Arista Releases of “The Partridge Family At Home With Their Greatest Hits” LP

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Today’s post dovetails nicely with my last post about different versions/different pressings of the same album.

Just over a year ago I posted a piece about some Partridge Family records I had recently purchased which included a version of their 1972 album “The Partridge Family At Home With Their Greatest Hits” that I had never seen.

Let me backtrack a little.

The Partridge Family was a TV show in the 1970s starring Shirley Jones and featuring her then stepson David Cassidy. Not only was The Partridge Family a high-rated TV show but there were also several singles and albums released under The Partridge Family name that were enormous sellers resulting in seven Top Forty US hits (three of them Top Ten hits including the No. 1 smash “I Think I Love You”) plus six gold-selling albums.

The songs from The Partridge Family featured David Cassidy on lead vocals plus Shirley Jones as part of the background vocal blend that became a signature of the sound of the records that came out under The Partridge Family name.

(Note: None of the other cast members of The Partridge Family TV show were a part of the recordings)

While the show lasted from 1970-1974, the recordings that were released as The Partridge Family had a much longer shelf life as their 1972 gold-selling album “The Partridge Family At Home With Their Greatest Hits” managed to outlive the TV show being reissued in the 1980s by Arista Records with not one but two different covers and catalog numbers.

(Note 2: All of the original issues of The Partridge Family records were released by Bell Records which was owned by Columbia Pictures who made The Partridge Family TV show. Bell Records became Arista Records in 1974 thus any Partridge Family recording issued after 1974 was on Arista Records)

Now I was a fan of the show during its first run in the 1970s and owned all The Partridge Family recordings on Bell Records. It wasn’t until a few years ago that I discovered that a lone 1980s vinyl reissue of “The Partridge Family At Home With Their Greatest Hits” existed and was released by Arista Records sometime in the early 1980s.

As The Partridge Family recordings have some sort of stigma as a relic of the 1970s bubblegum/teen idol era you don’t see much about their records online so there isn’t too much information about this particular reissue of the album. (And yes I think these recordings are pop/rock gems and feature exquisite pop tunes song superbly by David Cassidy who is a much underrated singer.)

It wasn’t until last year in fact that I even came across a copy which I featured in this very blog.

Well much to my surprise I was on ebay a couple of weeks ago and discovered another Arista pressing of this album! This pressing is obviously from the early 1980s as well (see photos of other Arista albums on the inner sleeve) and while it features the same basic cover as the other Arista reissue the back cover on this version has removed all the photos and fan club info that was on the original back cover from 1972 and this one features a different catalog number as well (see photos above and below).

I’m guessing by the second Arista reissue of this album since the other Partridge Family albums were out of print they decided to delete those album photos from the back cover as well as the now mute fan club information. Why they didn’t do that for the first Arista reissue I don’t know. Maybe that first reissue came out a couple of years earlier then the second Arista issue and they were just reusing original Bell album covers and slapping new catalog stickers on them, who knows?

The photos above feature the new version I just found of the album with the changes to the back cover while the photos below feature the first Arista pressing I found which mirrors the original album cover from 1972 but just changes the catalog number from the Bell issue.

Are you following me lol?

I know, I know practically no one besides me cares about this sort of thing but for the four or five people out there who do here’s your chance to see both Arista reissues. As I said in my previous blog post, I love these little vinyl variation discoveries and since there are other nutjobs like me out there feast your eyes!

Just a fun vinyl tidbit for fellow 70s pop music collectors and Partridge fans out there. And for those who are interested, both of these Arista issues sound great and both the copies I have are near mint and play super quiet and are very dynamic sounding records.

The original Bell Records issues were made of cheaper vinyl than these and tended to sound like Rice Krispies at times from the pop and static. If you want some Partridge hits in decent sound, try and hunt one of these down, you won’t be disappointed.

Well, that’s all again.

Be safe and well and see you soon!

Treasure Hunt: Monkee Records Hit the High Seas – “The Monkees” and “Headquarters” from El Salvador, India and Venezuela

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I’ve come to believe that looking for older, obscure records especially from other countries is more like the thrill of a treasure hunt than anything else.

That feeling of hunting down a really rare or just plain weird looking pressing from some small country that may or may not sound as good as a more common pressing from say the USA is something that can get under your skin and before you know it take hold of your psyche in a very non rational way.

I mean really, what on earth is it about records from other countries that gets under a collectors skin? Is it the unique cover art? The sometimes alternate track listing or alternate mix? The sound of vinyl from other countries? The groovy different record labels?

Well, it’s all of the above my friend, at least it is for me.

Take for instance todays blog post. If you’ve read any of the previous posts than you know I’m a sucker for all things Monkees or Beatles; especially vinyl. The more obscure or rare the better. A slightly different alternate mix or record cover and I’m all over it like a fly on … well, you get the picture.

Today I’m taking a look at three fairly obscure foreign pressing of Monkees records:

“The Monkees” – a mono pressing from Venezuela

“Headquarters” – a mono copy from El Salvador

“Headquarters” – s stereo copy from India

I’ve acquired all three of these pressings in the last few months with the “Headquarters” from El Salvador landing at my doorstep just this past week.

First off, I have to say that while all three of these pressings are fairly obscure here in America they aren’t full of alternate mixes or truly different covers (the copy of “The Monkees” from Venezuela does have a different rear cover though). They do however have great labels featuring the black RCA label common to foreign pressings which does check off a couple of marks on my want list.

I also have to add that while they aren’t all in mint condition all three sound really good! I’m guessing they all come from plates made in the States and even “The Monkees” from Venezuela has the same matrix from mono US copies – TZRM-4687 and TZRM-4688.

The only one of the three that has a bit of surface noise is the Venezuelan pressing and even that has nice strong bass and clarity and sounds just the same as a mono US copy.

I guess the thing that really drives my near obsession with Monkees vinyl is the fact that during the 1970s and early ’80s there was precious few new Monkees vinyl on the market and finding used copies of the original Colgems US albums was hard at least for me. Seeing as how I couldn’t drive in the ’70s, by the time I could drive used copies around my area were scarce.

Fast forward to the current Internet age and the availability of used Monkees albums is a common thing. I am just fascinated by looking up Monkees albums on ebay and when I come across an interesting foreign copy for a decent price I love to add it to my collection.

Of the three albums above I really love the Indian “Headquarters” as it has the beards cover on the back and the fact that I’ve never seen any other India pressings, it’s a real fun one to own. The El Salvador pressing is also amazing to me as I never even knew that Monkees records were pressed in El Salvador so having two unique pressings of “Headquarters”, one in stereo and one in mono, is really great.

An earlier post of mine that highlighted the mono copy of “The Bird, The Bees & The Monkees” also from Venezuela that features the ultra rare US mono mix so I’m hoping to find some more unique foreign pressings with mix differences. If I find any, I’ll be sure to post them here.

As you can see from the photos above and below, these foreign pressings are fun to look at and hopefully I’ll be featuring more on the near future.

That’s all of now.

Until next time, be healthy and well and see you soon!

Eight Routes of Broad Street – Paul McCartney’s 1984 Soundtrack Album on CD

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Ah, the Fall of 1984, I remember it well. 

It was a time of transition for Paul McCartney career wise, and it truth be told it was a major time of transition for me as well.

You see I had graduated from high school in May of 1984 and I was kind of floundering. What to do? Where to go? What to be?

I wanted to go to college but I had no idea of what to study or what to do with my life. That long ago Fall I remember working part-time and taking a couple of classes from an area trade school in hope of finding out what I wanted to do.

As usual I was my Beatle loving self and was anxiously waiting the new Paul McCartney movie and soundtrack “Give My Regards to Broad Street”.

I was a major Paul McCartney fan at the time, still am as you can see if you read this blog, and I was particularly fond of McCartney’s last two albums produced by George Martin – “Tug of War” and “Pipes of Peace” – so I was beside myself thinking about how good the movie and soundtrack surely would be when they arrived.

Of course, as all Paul McCartney fans know both the soundtrack and the film of “Give My Regards to Broad Street” were not greeted warmly and in fact kind of derailed McCartney’s career for a few years.

It started off great with the lead single “No More Lonely Nights”, a superb song and Top Ten hit on both sides of the Atlantic, which which is still considered one of McCartney’s better ballads. The song not only contains a great McCartney vocal but also includes some lovely guitar work from David Gilmour of Pink Floyd.

Then as the Fall progressed and McCartney did a massive amount of press to boost the pictures fortunes it was becoming apparent that the film of “Give My Regards to Broad Street” was not only not liked it was roundly panned by most critics.

While the soundtrack wasn’t loved it wasn’t quite as hated as the movie. Because McCartney decided to re-record some of his most famous Beatles songs the soundtrack was dismissed as good in spots but overall it was deemed a lackluster affair and written of as too slick and bland.

Now I couldn’t have disagreed more at the time. I loved the soundtrack particularly the two new songs “No Values” and “Not Such a Bad Boy” (which was performed live in the film) and the lovely new longer version of “Eleanor Rigby/Eleanor’s Dream” which to this day is one of my favorites.

Yes the remakes of “Yesterday”, “For No One”, “Good Day Sunshine” and “Here, There and Everywhere” didn’t improve on the originals (how could they?) but they were nonetheless very enjoyable and I still rate the soundtrack as a whole a solid 8 out of 10.

I really do love the remake of “The Long and Winding Road” though as I really like how George Martin produced it with some lovely horns and strings which is not nearly as bombastic sounding as the Phil Spector version from 1970.

Anyway, as I said I was kind of floundering at the time and this soundtrack album always takes me back to that feeling of uncertainty and it illustrates just how much Paul McCartney’s music meant to me as it gave me a lifeline when I needed it most and that feeling remains with me to this day.

It’s those memories I feel every time I listen to this album and the reason it remains one of my all-time favorite McCartney albums as it means more to me than just a dismissive review, it was then and is now a portal to another place and time as well as a bridge over some weighty decisions and angst that leads to calmer waters.

It’s also simply a lovely collection of great music.

And of course though it did kind of derail McCartney’s career a bit at the time it was one of the first times since The Beatles split that he openly celebrated his Beatles past and I think in way it kind of saved him as the commercial and critical disappointment of “Give My Regards to Broad Street” gave him the impetus to work his way back to his muse which opened up his later career to a second wave of superb work that rivaled his Beatles days.

I’m sure a lot of folks will disagree but to me it felt as if subconsciously McCartney was trying to reconnect to his past to propel him forward.

So that leads me to the eight routes of Broad Street.

I have eight, yes eight (I know, crazy but true) different CD variations of the “Give My Regards to Broad Street” soundtrack on CD and thought I’d share photos of all of them here today.

The Broad Street film and soundtrack have not been a part of McCartney’s Archive Collection of the past sixteen years and I’m guessing it may never be as I’m sure the whole affair of bad press and reviews from the period have majorly tainted both the film and soundtrack in McCartney’s mind.

That’s too bad as an Archive release of “Give My Regards to Broad Street” could really be fantastic but we may never have the chance to experience it but who knows, weirder things have happened.

Anyway, below is a list of all eight CDs of Broad Street that own as well as photos above and below for folks to are interested in seeing them.

I also threw in some newspaper clippings of the local showing of the film that eventually did land in a theater near me though it took a bit of time to get to my city. I believe the film was released in late October of 1984 but didn’t land here until about a month later.

I still quite enjoy the film but I see it more a s long form video ala “Thriller” than as a film on the level of The Beatles “A Hard Day’s Night”. I think critics at the time were constantly comparing it to the universally acclaimed Beatles film but really if you look at it as a long form music video with a bare bones plot but lots of well filmed music videos it holds up much better.

All of My Broad Street CDs (see photos above and below):

Give My Regards to Broad Street – 1st issue US Columbia CD Made in Japan

Give My Regards to Broad Street – US Columbia CD Made in USA

Give My Regards to Broad Street – Columbia CD issued in Canada but CD Made in USA. Has different cover insert and rear tray card that were printed in Canada
 
Give My Regards to Broad Street – 1st issue UK CD Made in Japan
 
Give My Regards to Broad Street – UK CD Made in UK
 
Give My Regards to Broad Street – UK CD from 1993 Paul McCartney Collection
 
Give My Regards to Broad Street – Capitol CD USA issue
 
Give My Regards to Broad Street – Mini Lp CD Made in Japan from late 90s
 
Also, there are two ads from my local newspaper for showings of the “Give My Regard to Broad Street” film. I saw it at the Northwood Cinema (see below)
 
There you have it, just a few views on the “Give My Regards to Broad Street” soundtrack and film and a peek at most of the variations of CDs that were produced of the soundtrack from the 1984/85 era and the lovely remastered CD from 1993 as well as the superb looking Mini-Lp CD from Japan which features the 1993 mastering.
 
I actually just added the Canadian Columbia CD and the US Columbia CD Made in Japan in the past couple of weeks which spurred me on to do this blog post.
 
That’s all for now.
 
Until next time be safe and well and see you back here soon!

Budokan Nights – The 60th Anniversary of The Beatles Famous Japanese Shows Are Being Celebrated with Two New Japanese SHM-CDs (And Vinyl)

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Today’s blog probably falls into the not needed but cool category but here I go nonetheless.

Sixty years ago in June and July of 1966, The Beatles gave their only concert performances in Japan at the Nippon Budokan in Tokyo, Japan. In honor of that, Apple Records has issued 2 SHM-CDs (as well as two vinyl Lps) celebrating these Japanese concerts.

These new anniversary reissues are replicas  of two special 1966 Japanese vinyl issues of The Beatles first two UK albums “Please Please Me” and “With the Beatles” that were released in Japan in honor of The Beatles performing at the Budokan.

These brand new releases are only available in Japan but can be found on various CD import Websites (Importcds.com for one) as well as places like Amazon.

Now I have to say that when these were first announced I was thinking to myself “really do I need these?” and of course the answer was no. UNTIL I saw them on Facebook and that was all she wrote.

I decided to get the 2 SHM-CDs and am very happy to say that they are thing of beauty (see photos above and below).

They are beautifully done as most Japanese SHM-CDs are and both contain mini-lp style covers each with gatefold openings that have small booklets in the gatefold and each contain a mini poster of The Beatles walking onto the stage  of the Budokan arena.

I’ve talked about SHM-CDs on this blog many times and again I have to say that I find them to sound a bit less compressed than their regular CD counterparts and a little bit more clear. Of course many in the collector community poo poo the idea that SHM-CDs sound better but even if we don’t agree on the sound quality the packing of these Japanese CDs is superb!

I thought I’d share some photos of these two special SHM-CDs here as these reissues are really of interest to a small section of collectors but for those that are interested at least you can see what you’ll get if you decide to purchase them.

There’s no new or unreleased music here just lovely reissues celebrating The Beatles iconic Japanese shows and for any true blue Beatles fan a great addition to a Beatles collection.

Here is the link to The Beatles Web store which goes into more detail about these releases:

https://www.thebeatles.com/beatles-60th-anniversary-their-first-visit-japan

As usual enjoy this snapshot of the two SHM-CDs with photos of each that I bought and if you decude to purchase them they are limited and will only be available for a short time.

Until next be well and see you soon.

The Monkees Celebrate Ten Years of “Good Times” with Two Excellent Reissues – A Deluxe 2 CD Set and A 180-Gram Vinyl Lp

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Anniversaries are a funny thing, at least music-related anniversaries.

Practically every day of the week the anniversary of some album or another comes up but sometimes it’s well worth taking the time in looking back on a particular album or event.

On May 29th, one such anniversary came about and to me it’s well worth celebrating; the 10th anniversary of The Monkees 50th anniversary release “Good Times!” (wrap your head around that). The album is being celebrated with a new 2 CD deluxe edition with bonus tracks plus a Rhino Reserve 180-gram single vinyl version available online at https://monkeesstore.warnermusic.com/ or at indie record stores.

The 2 CD Deluxe edition features the original “Good Times!” album on CD 1 and CD 2 contains four bonus tracks issued at the time on various specialty releases (“Terrifying”, “Me & Magdalena (Version 2)”, “A Better World” and “Love’s What I Want”) but collected here on CD for the first time plus the whole “Good Times!” album in instrumental form newly remixed in 2026.

The Rhino Reserve 180-gram single vinyl contains a wonderfully newly remastered version of the “Good Times!” album sans any bonus tracks or instrumentals.

It took me a bit to get both of these items as they were ordered from Warner Brothers online Monkees store and boy they sure take their time to ship but it was worth the wait.

Here are my thoughts on both:

2 CD Set:

I love the new 2 CD version of this album. I’d say the mastering is a bit hot but overall very enjoyable. I especially love the bonus tracks being made available on CD as they are probably four of my favorite songs on the entire record. I think this mastering is a bit more detailed than the original but also a tad louder.

My two nitpicks that I do have are one, where is the Spanish version of “Me & Magdalena” that Mike Nesmith himself mentioned recording and two, I would have loved the bonus tracks on Disc 1 and just the instrumentals on Disc 2 but those are small things as overall I love having this new 2 CD version.

I actually enjoyed listening to the instrumentals a lot which is something I wasn’t expecting. I think the new remix of these instrumentals is a bit more dynamic than the regular album and a fun listen. I will definitely give it a spin again in the near future that’s for sure.

I’ve read online that come fans are just meh about this new CD set but having the bonus tracks on CD in one place is enough for me to make purchasing this new set a must.

The Rhino Reserve 180-gram Vinyl Reissue:

Now this one surprised me. I think that the mastering on this new vinyl version of the album is superb; very dynamic, great sound on the vocals and listening to it through the first time was almost like hearing the album for the first time it was that good.

It’s much more dynamic sounding and less loud than the CD version and my pressing was dead quiet and sounded as good as I’ve heard any recent vinyl reissue sound. If you were only going to buy one of these two new incarnations of “Good Times!” and you aren’t interested in the CD bonus tracks this is the best I’ve ever heard this album sound.

All I can say is that this new mastering sounds very analog; very warm and detailed and makes it sound more like a record of the 1960s than it even sounded before – which a good thing in my book.

Even if you own the previous vinyl versions of this album it’s well worth tracking this one down as to me it’s the clear winner sound wise. I also love the care in which this new vinyl version is packaged especially the nice inner and outer sleeves – a nice touch.

Well that’s all for now. Just a quick look at these new 10th Anniversary version of The Monkees “Good Times!” and as usual you can check out photos of both above and below.

Until next time be well and Happy Monkeeing around if you so chose to do so!

Dungeon Station: A Look Inside a Few Physical Format Variants of Paul McCartney’s “The Boys of Dungeon Lane”

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Seeing as how this blog is a celebration of physical media, today I thought I’d share with you some of the physical formats I bought for the new Paul McCartney album “The Boys of Dungeon Lane”.

Having just been released last Friday you’d think I’d have all the variations I was going to get but most of the variations available come form different stores and Websites so it took a bit of time to locate and receive the variants I bought.

Now there are a plethora of variants out there – enough to make you go bankrupt, trust me – but I chose to buy just, just mind you, two CD versions and two vinyl versions (see photos above and below). It’s kind of mind blowing to see just how many variations there are for sale but lucky I stopped at just these four. Really, that’s good for me. I know, I know but I am getting better.

(Note: Just so you can peruse the various versions available, there’s a handy chart that details all of the variants for “The Boys of Dungeon Lane” courtesy of Beatlesblogger.com: https://beatlesblogger.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/dungeon-lane-variations-215.jpeg)

The ones I bought are (drum roll please):

“The Boys of Dungeon Lane” – regular issue CD

“The Boys of Dungeon Lane” – Target exclusive CD with lyric card (smaller, different photo collage than the vinyl)

“The Boys of Dungeon Lane” – Gatefold cover, black vinyl issue, paulmccartney.com Exclusive

“The Boys of Dungeon Lane” – Target exclusive red vinyl issue with lyric card (larger, different photo collage than the CD)

I didn’t receive the vinyl copies until yesterday so I based my last blog review of the album on the CD version I got last Friday. Now that I own the vinyl I must say the vinyl issue may be the way to go as it’s a better listen. It sounds more open and dynamic and my pressings sound very quiet and quite good.

Now that I own the red vinyl, I’m glad that I got at least one of the colored vinyl issues. I certainly don’t need all of the various colors but the red vinyl matches the sleeve well and looks and sounds great. I also like that the gatefold and the red vinyl covers are different.

The gatefold sleeve has a pure white with embossed writing (ala the “White Album”) and I love that inside the gatefold the photo collage is spread out and easy to see. By the way the inner sleeve of the red vinyl version has the same photo collages but they are on the inner sleeve, one on each side. It’s much easier to see the collage all as one spread on the gatefold so it’s nice having both.

Truth be told I was very tempted to order the green vinyl exclusive from paulmccartney.com but with the shipping added it was too cost prohibitive – at least for now lol.

Well, that’s all I have today. I just wanted to share some groovy photos of the variants that I own (currently) and share the link above for the list of the complete variants from Beatlesblogger.com – a truly great Website for Beatles info.

And who knows if I decide on another variant I’ll be sure to post it here as well.

Until next time be well and see you soon!

Paul McCartney’s Latest Solo Album “The Boys of Dungeon Lane” Proves McCartney is Still at the Top of His Game

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Last Friday, Paul McCartney released his much anticipated new solo album called "The Boys of Dungeon Lane". 

To say I was excited to hear it is an understatement. After reading a lot of pre-release buzz and glowing reviews I was practically giddy when I finally had a CD copy in my hands by noon on Friday.

And that's when something strange happened. I popped the CD in my player and gave it a spin. I enjoyed the first listen but was left with a feeling of being underwhelmed - initially.

A couple of the tracks - "As You Lie There" and "Mountain Top" - grabbed me on the first go but others left me feeling that yeah, it's a good but not great album. As is the case with many a McCartney album sometimes my first impressions change. And with "The Boys of Dungeon Lane" they certainly did - A LOT.

Since so many people had so many good things to say about the this album I decided to give it a few more spins over the weekend and see where I landed on the album by Monday.

Like many of McCartney's solo albums the songs on "The Boys of Dungeon Lane" snuck up on me gradually. By the fourth time through the little nuances in arrangement like the mellotron popping up every so often or the orchestration or the vocal effects began to make even the simplest song seem dreamlike and interesting. 

For example, the song "Ripples in the Pond" seemed just okay the first time through but the subtle instrument choices and languid feel to the song won me over and by the fourth time through it just really gelled with me.

I was really surprised by how much the album blossomed for me with each new listen. By the second time through many songs jumped out to me when they had seemed so low key the first time through. I've definitely felt this way about some of McCartneys other solo albums and honestly those albums that this has happened with have ended up being some of my favorite McCartney albums in his canon.

I have a sneaky suspicion that this will be one of those McCartney albums for me that will stand the test of time.

I also feel that McCartney is at his best when writing about the common man in simple ways and making them sound extraordinary through the music and arrangement of the song. He has a way with making a simple song shine by how he arranges and performs the song. I'm glad producer Andrew Watt has managed to make McCartney sound like McCartney yet gives the songs a sonic edge that sounds vintage and modern at the same time.

Also, McCartney's vocals on this record are much stronger than on his last two solo albums. Older sounding for sure but that suits the songs and is not distracting in the least. Very well done and well performed songs on this set!

There are a lot of Beatles influences as well as Wings to give these songs not only a lyrically reflective tone but a musically reflective tone as well. A really nice combo that makes this album shine.

My thoughts on each track of the album:

As You Lie There  - what a great opening track! On the first listen I thought it was good. On the second listen I thought it was very good and by the third and fourth listen I thought it was superb. A lot of twists and turns in this track but McCartney's vocal is wonderful which really made me excited to hear the rest of the album. Love all the textures in the music. This first track alone is one of the best tracks he's done since the "Flaming Pie" album.

Lost Horizon - this is a solid track which I really enjoy. Not my favorite on the album but a good track with nice vocals

Days We Left Behind - I'd have to say this is one of my all-time favorite McCartney songs of recent years. Poignant, well executed and his older voice suits it to a T. Great song.

Ripples in a Pond - this is another one of the highlights of the album for me. This song to me is "Chaos" meets "New" as far as McCartney albums go. Bouncy with a Wings feel this track would make a great single if radio would play it. The production and arrangement choices really enhance the song

Mountain Top - another highlight of the album for me. This song about a girl from Glastonbury who was tripping on mushrooms really evokes The Beatles, Wings and McCartney's most recent work; a terrific blend of all his work to date and is a superb track. This one is a wild ride and one of the more interesting tracks he's made since going solo.

Down South - a fun track, this is a very simple song which I enjoy, not my favorite on the album but very solid.

We Two - Another solid track, very reminiscent of McCartneys "New" era, a very low-key love song. Lovely pop song which McCartney excels at.

Come Inside - I absolutely love this song another highlight of the album for me. This is very reminiscent of a Wings song mixed with his early 2000s work; fast-paced, rocky with  great vocals. Terrific. Love, love the vocals on this one. McCartney is really pulling off the rock vocals on this album more so than his last two albums for sure.

Never Know - love this track. It features a slight psychedelic edge with the instrumentation. Low-key love song that really evokes the "Magical Mystery Tour" era. Lovely song with great backing vocals. Love the flutes near the end.

Home to Us (with Ringo Starr) - I like the song a lot. It took a while to grow on me. The first couple listens I thought it was okay. But by the fourth listen it's really grown on me. Love the lyrics, very reflective in a fun way and Ringo's voice is terrific along with Paul's.

Life Can Be Hard - another absolute highlight of the album for me. To me it's very reminiscent of one of my favorite recent McCartney tracks "English Tea" but with a mix of Beach Boys backing vocals along with a slight psychedelic feel, terrific. Bouncy and positive with a great arrangement.

First Star of the Night - One of my favorite songs on the record. Features a great bass line and soothing lyrics with lovely backing vocals. A sweet and comforting song. Very languid and beautiful.

Salesman Saint - I absolutely adore this song. The salesman and saint in the lyrics are about his mom and dad. I absolutely love the '40s instrumental bursts near the end of this song. Such a great track. It took a couple of listens to really get this song into my veins but I really like it a lot now.

Momma Gets By - this song is the perfect ending to the album. To me it sounds like "My Valentine" from the "Kisses" album of recent years but with an absolutely wonderful arrangement of strings near the end of the song and wonderfully reflective lyrics. Superb.

Well there's my two cents on Paul McCartney's "The Boys of Dungeon Lane". It really is a wonderful record. Moving, reflective, rocking, languid and dreamlike are the words that sum this album up for me.

Now that I've gotten acquainted with these songs and they have made a home in my heart and brain I look forward to listening to it often. My criteria for a good album is one that I want to listen to again and again and this album fits that criteria in spades.

Until next time be well and see you soon!

“The A’s, The B’s & The Monkees” Part 2: The Vinyl

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Today is the official release date of the new 60th Anniversary Monkees collection entitled “The A’s, The B’s & The Monkees” which I featured in my last blog post here about three weeks ago.

That particular blog highlighted the wonderful 2 CD set of “The A’s, The B’s & The Monkees”  but today I’m taking a look at the 2 lp vinyl version which was just released in stores.

I had ordered the 2 CD version from Monkees.com in November I believe and weirdly enough it was sent out in the mail and I received it in late December much to my surprise. The vinyl version was held until today so having marched myself to the local Barnes & Noble (the only place in my town carrying the vinyl set) I duly purchased it to see how it compares to the CD.

Now I mentioned in my last post that the liner notes stated that the CD collection was mastered by Bernie Grundman with digital mastering by Dave Schultz with Bill Inglot. I can see in the run-off groove that Bernie Grundman’s initials are etched into the matrix (see photo above) so I’m guessing he mastered this vinyl set while the CD was done by Dave Schultz with Bill Inglot.

As I also previously mentioned in my last post the CD set sounded wonderful but I wasn’t expecting the 2 vinyl set to sound much better – but I was wrong. 

I have to say as much as I enjoyed the 2 CD set this new 2 vinyl version sounds even better! For starters the bass is SO much louder and more present but the overall sound is also warmer and a bit more dynamic which really made me glad I sought out the vinyl issue as well.

I love that all the original mono hit mixes were used and this vinyl set was excellently pressed; it was very flat and played flawlessly without a hint of any pops or clicks or distortion which has marred quite a few modern Lp pressings I’ve encountered.

If you’re a fan of The Monkees and like and play vinyl you owe it to yourself to track this beauty down. It really is one of the better sounding Monkees collections out there and with all their hits from 1966-1970 plus their b-sides, you really can’t go wrong.

Of course the 2 CD set is fantastic so if you don’t do vinyl you’ll be very happy with that but if you have access to playing vinyl I think this new vinyl set might just be the way to go if you decide to purchase it.

Anyway, just a quick update.

As usual you can see photos of the new 2 Lp set of “The A’s, The B’s & The Monkees” above with it’s lovely large four-page pamphlet and groovy top-opening cover and great Colgems like record labels.

I hope your 2026 has started out well and it finds you healthy and sane.

Until next time be safe and see you back here soon!

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Monkees at 60 – “The A’s, The B’s & The Monkees” Set Celebrates The Monkees 60th with a Stellar Collection of All Their Singles from 1966-1970

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Happy New Year’s Eve!

This upcoming year of 2026 not only celebrates my own 60th birthday, two weeks from today in fact, but for Monkees fans it’s also the 60th anniversary of the “The Monkees” both as a TV show as well as a rock group.

Hard to believe, pardon the pun for those who know, that sixty years have passed since the wacky foursome of Mickey Dolenz, Davy Jones, Peter Tork and Mike Nesmith first romped around television screens and blared through radios all over the world.

My own personal introduction to the group came first with the music as my older brother, nine years older than me, had purchased the first four Monkees albums which I proceeded to make into frisbees by playing them over and over as a toddler (see photo below of me in 1968 listening to “More of the Monkees” on a vintage Magnavox stereo my parents owned).

I’m sure I watched the TV show in it’s first run along with my brother but I don’t remember it as well as I remember vividly listening to the first three Monkees albums on the floor as a toddler dancing and singling along to an old portable record player.

I do remember the show more from the Saturday morning reruns as well as collecting Monkees records from the back of cereal boxes circa 1969/1970 or so but by this time I was truly a Monkees maniac and had all of their albums (there is old 8mm silent film of me at my forth birthday party in 1970 opening both “Instant Replay” and “The Monkees Greatest Hits” Colgems albums) if you can believe it.

Okay, that leads us to today.

I just received the 2 CD set called “The A’s, The B’s & The Monkees” (love the “Birds and Bees” reference) which I ordered from the Monkees.com Website. It wasn’t supposed to be out until the end of January so I was quite pleased to see it so early and since I am off today I sat down and gave both CDs a listen and took a look through the groovy booklet.

I was really curious to hear this set as it was advertised online as needle drops of all The Monkees 1966-1970 singles featuring the original 45 mono and stereo mixes of both the A and B sides (thus the title). Of course that seemed really odd yet intriguing to me. I’m all for an authentic sounding collection of their singles and though it may be redundant I think it’s a cool idea.

Well after listening to the set I’m pleasantly surprised. Both CDs do seem to contain all of the original mono and stereo 45 mixes (The “Tear Drop City” mix is the original stereo 45 version not the promo version) and to my surprise they sound excellent!

They also sound like there are from the original master tapes as they are wonderful sounding – rich, warm and not fatiguing to listen to at all.

If any of these mixes is a mono album mix and not the true mono 45 mix I didn’t notice on first listen. While that would be unfortunate I must say everything sounds so good I could live with it. The second disc is especially a good listen and fun to hear all the b-sides together; a very strong disc with some of The Monkees best songs.

The booklet says this set was mastered by Bernie Grundman with digital mastering by Dave Schultz with Bill Inglot and I must say it’s probably my favorite sounding hits collection of Monkees material in my collection – it’s that good.

(Note: a 2 Lp vinyl version of this set comes out in January and will be available to buy at independent record stores)

I know a lot of Monkees fans online are ho hum about this set as they have all the material already but if you want this stuff with the original 45 mixes sounding better than ever then you might want to give this set a listen.

Of course being a physical media guy I love a new physical Monkees release and I hope Rhino Records does some other interesting releases for the 60th anniversary throughout 2026 – we shall see.

Both CDs are mono from tracks 1-8 and then stereo for tracks 9-12 and I believe all the correct mono 45 versions – I could be wrong but I think they are all correct. And if some of these came from need drops I would truly be amazed as they sound so damn good.

Anyway, there you go. I have included photos of the 2 CD set above and below. 

I hope you have a wonderful New Year’s Day tomorrow and truly wonderful 2026 as well.

See you soon here at this blog and hopefully they’ll be more Monkees releases to celebrate soon.

The Return of “The Beatles Anthology” – “Beatles Anthology 2025” is an Amazing Upgrade in Both Picture and Sound

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Let’s just say that for Beatles fans Christmas had indeed come early.

This past November, a mere couple of weeks ago in fact, The Beatles 1995 documentary “The Beatles Anthology” received a splendid upgrade in not only the picture and sound of the documentary itself but the accompanying CD sets of “Anthology 1, 2 and 3” (as well as a brand new “Anthology 4” 2 CD set) 
have also been upgraded and are truly gift to behold.

For anyone who remembers the then hotly anticipated Beatles Anthology documentary and CDs, the Beatles Anthology was not only a well-received project critically but it was also a blockbuster hit commercially.

The Beatles Anthology project spawned three Billboard Top 200 Number 1 albums (the Anthology 1, 2 and 3 2CD sets) that sold in the multi-millions which included the first two new Beatles songs in twenty five years (“Free As a Bird” from “Anthology 1” and “Real Love” from“Anthology 2”) as well as the hugely rated three part TV special of the documentary which was eventually expanded into a multi-hour DVD set that was also a best-seller.

Now, thirty years later, the whole Beatles Anthology project (both video and the accompanying audio CD sets) have been majorly upgraded on the video side by famed director Peter Jackson and on the audio side by original Beatles producer George Martin’s son Giles who is now the overseer of The Beatles audio catalog.

It’s apparent that the remaining Beatles and their company Apple, who release all things Beatles, are aiming to once again expand the audience for The Beatles with this sparking new Anthology project and I’m sure they hope to invite people into The Beatles story with the best looking and sounding Beatles Anthology that the technology of 2025 will allow.

As is the norm for the 2020’s there is a LOT of negativity about how this new The Beatles Anthology has turned out. There are of course a lot of older fans who are enraged at the things that have been changed in the video documentary and not impressed enough by the audio upgrade that they are simply trying to write the entire Anthology 2025 as a cash grab that serves no purpose other then making a buck.

I majorly disagree.

For starters I find both CD sets and the Anthology documentary a joy to listen to and watch and find the upgrades so well done that I personally will lean toward the 2025 versions as definitive.

Let me go case by case.

The Video Documentary:

Wow, what a massive upgrade. I find all nine hours of the new 2025 version of Anthology just glorious to watch. Yes, it’s not perfect. Things have been trimmed from the 2003 expanded addition but new things have been added as well and most of the video is simply stunning to look at – at least all the footage taken from a film source.

There was some funky AI enhancing done to some of the video footage that can smooth out the faces a bit much but overall 90 percent of the video is in my opinion a major upgrade – it’s mostly superb.

Now I don’t subscribe to Disney+ which is the only place you can stream the new 2025 Beatles Anthology so I thought it might be a while for me to judge the video upgrade of the new series myself.

Since this is the 21st century though there are other sources out there, and amazingly fast I must say, where one can find the new 2025 Anthology other than steaming.

I myself have come across a magnificent Blu-ray three-disc set of the entire series that has the same quality of picture as the Disney+ showing, I did see about an hour of it as a friend’s house, and in lovely 5.1 surround sound.

Unfortunately there’s no Atmos mix on this Blu-ray set but it’s a small price to pay to be able to enjoy the entire nine-hour series in this quality in a physical format. I doubt that the series will make it to a physical format as Apple chose Disney as the place to stream it and they don’t want physical formats anymore.

That’s not to say that after the Disney+ contract ends The Beatles couldn’t change their mind and issue it on DVD and Blu-ray I’m just not counting on it.

Don’t ask me where you can find the new 2025 Anthology but I will say that it is out there on the Internet in both DVD and Blu-ray – all you have to do is look.

The Audio CDs:

This is what I hear most fans complain about. A lot of fans don’t think the audio has been upgraded enough for them to buy this material again. Fair enough, to each his own, but the vitriol I hear aimed at both Giles Martin and Apple Records and The Beatles about how they are just cynically making a cash grab with this new Anthology project is just nuts.

Sure they want to make money, it’s a BUSINESS, but there was a lot of work put into the end product and I for one think the audio sounds great.

Take Anthology 1 for instance. Disc one of this set has the oldest and most dodgy sounding recordings from The Beatles pre-EMI years and even I have tended to skip most of disc one whenever I listen to this set.

I have to say though there has been a major upgrade to not only the acetate of “That’ll Be the Day” and “In Spite of All the Danger” (they both sound like new recordings to me) but the live stuff, especially the 1963 tracks live from Swedish radio which now explode from the speakers, is so much more listenable and fun that I want to play disc one again which is a major improvement to me.

And the cream on top of all the new Anthology CDs is the brand new Anthology 4 2CD set that has thirteen newly released outtakes that are a joy to listen to and enjoy. Are these early takes of “Tell Me Why”, “I Need You” and “If I Fell” for example revelations – no. Are they great to hear – yes!

I love how these early stripped down takes basically show how The Beatles would sound live in 1964/65 if they could be heard from the din of the screaming crowds that mare most of their live recordings. If new live songs were discovered fans would be losing their minds I’m not sure why the sound of The Beatles in an almost live fashion in great audio quality is a let down but it sure works for me.

Conclusion:

Anyway, I won’t go into what was cut and what was added to the new video of Anthology all I can say is that this presentation has the right pacing, the right sound and such a superb picture that it stands as the definitive version of The Beatles Anthology, and that goes for the CDs as well, that all I can say is … wow.

Above and below you can see photos of the new Beatles Anthology Collection 8 CD set as well as the Blu-ray of the 2025 Disney+ documentary that also includes screen shots of some of the video content.

As usual be safe and well and have a great Holiday Season if I don’t post before Christmas.

See you soon and have a Merry Crimble Beatle People!

Below is a comparison of the DVD from 2003 vs the new 2025 Blu-ray of the 2025 Beatles Anthology – the DVD is on the left and the Blu-Ray is on the right.