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In 1967, Monkeemania was sweeping the country. “I told people I would outsell The Beatles, and they laughed at me,” impresario Don Kirshner once recalled. “Then the first album sold four million.” That first album which led the television foursome of Davy Jones, Micky Dolenz, Michael Nesmith, and Peter Tork to outsell The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Beach Boys and, well, everybody else in 1967 is being revisited (again) with a new 3CD/1LP box set due October 30 from Rhino.

The basis of this set is Rhino Handmade’s long out-of-print 4CD box set from 2014.  The 60th anniversary version opens with the original stereo album on vinyl only.  It then continues with 3 CDs containing most of the material that premiered on the 2014 set.  The CDs open with the original mono album plus four rehearsals and demos.  That classic LP features seven compositions by Tommy Boyce, six with Bobby Hart and one with Steve Venet, including “(Theme from) The Monkees,” “I Wanna Be Free” and the No. 1 hit “Last Train to Clarksville.” The album also has tunes from Mike Nesmith (“Papa Gene’s Blues”) David Gates (“Saturday’s Child”), Carole King and Gerry Goffin (“Take a Giant Step,” “Sweet Young Thing,” co-written with Nesmith) and Goffin and Russ Titelman (“I’ll Be True to You”).

The second disc continues with eighteen TV Versions, Alternate Takes, and Radio Spots including an alternate vocal take by Nesmith on “The Kind of Girl I Could Love;” mono TV mixes of “I Wanna Be Free,” “You Just May Be the One,” “Saturday’s Child,” and more; two takes of Goffin and King’s “So Goes Love;” and two version of the famous “(Theme From) The Monkees.”  The third and final disc of the box, Backing Tracks and Demos, culls fifteen tracks from the earlier box including master backing tracks for “Let’s Dance On,” “This Just Doesn’t Seem To Be My Day,” “(Theme From) The Monkees” and “Tomorrow’s Gonna Be Another Day,” among other favorites.

What’s missing?  This iteration of the box has dropped a handful of then-new 2014 stereo mixes as well as two versions of “(I Prithee) Do Not Ask for Love.” Also missing is Davy Jones’ 1965 Colpix debut David Jones (in both mono and stereo) and its associated single sides, as well as six early singles from Michael Blessing, a.k.a. Nesmith.

The Monkees has been released multiple times before in expanded format on CD, in 1994, 2006, and 2016 as well as various vinyl editions including a 2021 deluxe vinyl set from Rhino’s Run Out Groove arm. Although this new 3CD/1LP version doesn’t present anything new, it’s a good catch-up for those who didn’t purchase the 2016 edition.  Micky Dolenz has penned new liner notes for this set.

You’ll find the pre-order link and full track listing for the 60th anniversary edition of The Monkees below. It’s available exclusively from The Monkees/Rhino webstore, and is due on October 30.

The Monkees, The Monkees: 60th Anniversary Deluxe Edition (Rhino, 2026)

LP 1: The Original Stereo Album (Colgems COS-101, 1966)

1. (Theme From) The Monkees
2. Saturday’s Child
3. I Wanna Be Free
4. Tomorrow’s Gonna Be Another Day
5. Papa Gene’s Blues
6. Take a Giant Step
7. Last Train to Clarksville
8. This Just Doesn’t Seem to Be My Day
9. Let’s Dance On
10. I’ll Be True to You
11. Sweet Young Thing
12. Gonna Buy Me a Dog

CD 1: The Original Mono Album (Colgems COM-101, 1966)

1. (Theme From) The Monkees
2. Saturday’s Child
3. I Wanna Be Free
4. Tomorrow’s Gonna Be Another Day
5. Papa Gene’s Blues
6. Take a Giant Step
7. Last Train to Clarksville
8. This Just Doesn’t Seem to Be My Day
9. Let’s Dance On
10. I’ll Be True to You
11. Sweet Young Thing
12. Gonna Buy Me a Dog

Bonus Material: Rehearsals and Demos

1. I Wanna Be Free (Rehearsal) (*)
2. I Wanna Be Free (Demo – Take 12) (*)
3. I Wanna Be Free (Overdubbed Demo – Take 2) (*)
4. Propinquity (I’ve Just Begun to Care) (Demo) (*)

CD 2: TV Versions, Alternate Takes, and Radio Spots

1. Monkees NBC Promo Spot (*)
2. (Theme From) The Monkees (TV Version) (from Missing Links, Volume 3, Rhino 72153, 1996)
3. You Just May Be the One (Mono TV Version) (*)
4. This Just Doesn’t Seem to Be My Day (Mono TV Version) (*)
5. Take a Giant Step (Mono TV Version) (*)
6. All the King’s Horses (Mono TV Version) (*)
7. I Wanna Be Free (Fast Version – Mono TV Mix) (*)
8. The Kind of Girl I Could Love (Alternate Mono Mix) (*)
9. Saturday’s Child (Mono TV Version) (*)
10. (Theme From) The Monkees (Second Version) (from The Monkees, Rhino 71790, 1994)
11. All the King’s Horses (Alternate Vocal Take) (*)
12. The Kind of Girl I Could Love (Alternate Vocal Take) (*)
13. I Don’t Think You Know Me (Stereo Remix – Micky’s Vocal) (*)
14. So Goes Love (Take One) (*)
15. So Goes Love (Alternate Vocal Take) (*)
16. Papa Gene’s Blues (Alternate Vocal Take) (*)
17. Kellogg’s Jingle (from Missing Links, Volume 3, Rhino 72153, 1996)
18. Monkees Radio Spot (*)

CD 3: Backing Tracks & Demos

1. (Theme From) The Monkees (Version One – Master Backing Track) (*)
2. Let’s Dance On (Master Backing Track) (*)
3. This Just Doesn’t Seem to Be My Day (Master Backing Track) (*)
4. Gonna Buy Me a Dog (Version One – Backing Track Take Five) (*)
5. Papa Gene’s Blues (Backing Track – Take One) (*)
6. I Won’t Be the Same Without Her (Backing Track – Take Six) (*)
7. Sweet Young Thing (Backing Track – Take One) (*)
8. I Wanna Be Free (Version Two – Backing Track Take Six (*)
9. I Wanna Be Free (Version Three – Backing Track Take Three) (*)
10. Jokes (Backing Track) (*)
11. Tomorrow’s Gonna Be Another Day (Master Backing Track) (*)
12. Gonna Buy Me a Dog (Version Two – Backing Track Take Two) (*)
13. Mary, Mary (Backing Track – Take One) (*)
14. Of You (Backing Track – Take One) (*)
15. You Just May Be the One (Rehearsal & Backing Track – Take Nineteen) (*)

(*) denotes track from The Monkees: 50th Anniversary Edition, Rhino Handmade R2 543027, 2014