The Monkees : Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn, & Jones LTD CANADA STEREO pressing

Found a NM copy a few weeks ago of this LP, and it is very enjoyable. Never was a big fan of the Monkees (oh but how novel they were), this LP has some pleasant and diverse offerings. Recorded after the "headquarters" LP where-in they tackled the whole effort by themselves, writing and performing the instrumentation, here on Pisces, they meet their ideals half-way, hooking up with some studio musicians
and writing most of the material. More on this below...Paul Beaver appears here on the Mighty Moog modular system, suggested as one of the first on wax. Mr. Beaver hooks up again on the HEAD LP too. Sourced from a Clean canadian 1st press Stereo LP, a nice treat, true stereo too.





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From : http://www.monkees.net/DOCS/PISCES.txt

The Monkees (Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn, & Jones Ltd.)

Original Tracks
Salesman (Smith)
She Hangs Out (Barry)
The Door Into Summer (Douglas & Martin)
Love is Only Sleeping (Mann & Weil)
Cuddly Toy (Nilsson)
Words (Boyce & Hart)
Hard To Believe (Jones, Capli, Brick, & Rockett)
What Am I Doing Hangin' 'Round? (Lewis & Clarke)
Peter Percival Patterson's Pet Pig Porky (Tork)
Pleasant Valley Sunday (Goffin & King)
Daily Nightly (Nesmith)
Don't Call On Me (Nesmith & London)
Star Collector (Goffin & King)

Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn, & Jones Ltd. represents what Peter called "a
compromise." It was a compromise between the Monkees having control of
their music and the original production methods of their first two albums.
In a time of great Monkee-bashing, they felt this was the best move to
make. The end result remains excellent, with its strength in the always
reliable Nesmith songs and the album's big release, "Pleasant Valley
Sunday."

This follow-up to Headquarters remained quite experimental, introducing new
psychedelic instruments like the Moog synthesizer ("Daily Nightly" and
"Star Collector"). Also included is the original, but rarely heard,
lead-in to "Pleasant Valley Sunday"-- "Peter Percival Patterson's Pet Pig
Porky". It is often questioned why the producers held "Daydream Believer"
for the fifth album, but regardless of the reason, this album can stand its
own with any other Monkees record.

It becomes apparent that Sandoval and Inglot couldn't find too many extra
recordings from this time period, as the "alternate mix" bonus tracks are
hardly different than the original versions. Each has its own novelty with
more audible backing vocals in "The Door Into Summer," an absent Moog
synthesizer in "Daily Nightly," and an additional vocal fade in "Salesman."

Questions, comments, arguments, compliments, or general Monkee Talk
welcome at landsberg@alltel.net
- Mike Landsberg

Quotes taken from liner notes.
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From : http://parasitesandsycophants.blogspot.com/2007_07_01_archive.html

After their first successful release as a self-contained group, The Monkees decided the best route in making their latest LP (with time schedules, the show, concerts, etc) was to go back to the original formula - recording with studio musicians – but with The Monkees involvement musically and artistically. It would be the perfect mix, resulting in arguably the bands best LP: “Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn, & Jones LTD." (released at the end of 1967 and produced once again by Chip Douglas). The album would be previewed by a single release - the double-sided hit “Pleasant Valley Sunday” and “Words”. Michael Nesmith again took a high profile on the LP with the excellent cuts: “The Door Into Summer”, “Love Is Only Sleeping”, “Don’t Call On Me”, and the Byrdsy “What Am I Doing Hang’in ‘Round?” Davy Jones shines on Nilsson’s “Cuddly Toy” and on the snazzy “Hard To Believe.” A second recorded version of “She Hangs Out” appears but never quite measures up to the far superior Jeff Berry produced version. Micky Dolenz resurfaces on Nesmith’s psychedelic “Daily Nightly” complete with moog synthesizer - one of the first to be used on a pop record – showing you just how experimental The Monkees could be. The albums 13 original tracks played from top to bottom are by far The Monkees at their best.