Search - Monkees :: Pool It!

Not the best but certainly not horrible for 1987

T. LeBaron | NH | 11/05/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The Monkees earned their stripes on the 1986 comeback tour (I saw them twice when they swung through Florida) and i was absolutely spellbuond when I heard they had a brand new album coming out the following summer after all of their original albums charted the year before (in addition to a pretty decent showing on the charts for "That was Then, This Is Now"). The results, while not a totally 60s-sounding album, are not so bad for a band that had been apart the better part of twenty years. I was most impressed with "Heart & Soul" and felt they were totally robbed of a worthy hit single when MTV pulled a complete "sour grapes" move in retaliation for the Monkees not being able to make it to an MTV promotion in early 1987 and replaced "Heart & Soul" on their daily video countdown show (where it was getting extremely heavy voting) with "Honestly" by the Christian metal band Stryper. as a result, the single sank after charting somewhere around #80. "Heart & Soul" was easily as good as any single they'd recorded before and was actually similar to "Start Me up" by The Stones in style. there was no reason that song should have suffered the fate it was dealt. The rest of the album was a decent effort to bring their sound into the 80s, and while it wasn't always successful at doing so, it certainly wasn't anywhere near as unlistenable as some would have you believe. Take it for what it was, a chance to get some new material out there while the iron was hot, with a few pleasant surprises ("Midnight", "Gettin' In" and "Every Step of the Way" are definite high points) and the good sense to have Roger Bechirian produce the album. It might have been a different album with the participation of Mike Nesmith; but with him not in the picture save for one show of the '86 tour and not another appearcne from him until sometime in '89...not a bad effort. The live show was one not to be missed about this time either, with over three dozen songs in the set list and almost half of this album, a great mix of old and new...something for everyone. Judge for yourself and keep an open mind! My copy of the LP is autographed by all three of them from back then, so this holds an even greater memory for me!"

Best Reunion Album...Ever!

Mark Ebert | Lancaster OH | 11/06/2004

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The Monkees had a huge success with "Then & Now...The Best of the Monkees" and this follow-up project from Rhino Records has even more spirit and life.



What if MORE OF THE MONKEES had been made in 1987 instead of 1967--it would have been this album! Radio missed some awesome songs--including: "Heart and Soul", "Every Step of the Way", "Secret Heart", and "Don't Bring Me Down".



However, what makes it a great reunion album is that it is loaded with reunion songs, tunes that say "welcome back" to old Monkees fans, and introduce new listeners to this great group; examples: Davy's "Long Way Home" and "(I'll) Love You Forever" and Peter Tork's "Gettin' In".



If you are a fan of the Monkees, or just getting into them, I would recommend this as a must (moreso than some of their original albums like CHANGES)."

Good Come Back

Monkees (Johnny) | Staten Island NY USA | 04/21/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Very good try from Mickey,Davy & Peter. This CD came out in 1987 after there 1986 reunion tour. Good songs,Plus good vocals. Mickey and Davy did not play on it. Peter did played on one song. So if you are looking to buy this one, you won't go wrong. Enjoy it. I own five of this copy."