"Circle Sky" (Justus version) -- 2/5 Let me first say that I am a big fan of Justus overall, but the album has some very glaring problems, and right out of the gate is one of its biggest. The album opens with its worst track, IMO. I love the song "Circle Sky", but this version is completely useless and is a fraction as good as either the original studio version or the live version from the film. The new lyrics are pointless, and the off-pitch "harmonies" are distracting. I was so thrilled that Mike was on board for this album and was producing. Unfortunately his head was in the clouds for the whole thing, unfortunately. He didn't seem to have a sense of the importance of his songs and his voice, and he had no interest in anything with a hint of a country twang at this point. The fact that this is his only lead vocal on the album is criminal. Disappointing and puzzling opening to this album.
I guess it's debatable how much Tropical Campfires and The Garden had used up Mike's creative juices by this point...
Circle Sky (Justus) 2/5. Love the instrumentation. Cannot stand the vocals. The processing of Nez's voice is atrocious. I do like the hard/grungy sound of the song though. I wish this was not the only Nesmith vocal on the album. What a waste.
Circle Sky - Justus I definitely would have preferred a new song as opposed to this remake of a classic. It is indeed a disappointing moment that this is the only Nesmith-sung lead to this album. Rocky starting track for sure. The heavy guitar sound is not really suited for the Monkees, however for a few other Justus tracks - I can dig it. Skippable track for me when playing Justus. 2/5
Circle Sky (Justus version) - 2/5 I like the song in its earlier form, but this is a crap rerecording in my opinion. I don't like the instrumentation here, particularly the grungy guitars, and I also think the singing is pretty bad, not just from Mike but from the others' backing vocals as well. It is ultimately the same song at the end of the day, but the whole thing just sounds sloppy in this form.
I think Circle Sky is used effectively from the standpoint of: this is how we sound now compared to then. Using a song people are already familiar with, it provides a good frame of reference of how the rest of the album will sound, for better or for worse. It definitely provides ammunition for this being the Monkees grunge album.
Circle Sky [Justus version] 1/5 I understand the reasoning to include it. Well played but those vocal effects and why the change in lyrics??? I just can't listen to it. Nothing beats the original.
I think this is a good idea for us diehard music fans - but with all Handmade CD Deluxe releases it seems unlikely such a release would happen. On the flipside - given all the Monkee comps that have been released maybe something like this could be in future AFTER all the Handmade album releases are finished??
I can't give this one star because it's Mike, Micky, Peter, and Davy playing "Circle Sky" and that alone prevents it from landing in the basement. But yeah, this was a pretty pathetic attempt at trying to sound current and "grunge" or whatever and, fairly or unfairly, it immediately set the tone for what was to come. 2/5
Makes me wonder - the backing vocals are sorta sung in a sarcastic tone? Maybe just having fun is all it is - their singing on Circle Sky Redux is a low point for Justus.
'Circle Sky' (Justus version) - 2/5. Good song, pointless version. The Head live version is the best, and the 1968 studio version is also okay. There was no need to revisit this.
In the minority here, but I really love Justus. Most of it anyway. Unfortunately it doesn't start out very well with this remake. The new lyrics were pointless and the vocals aren't the greatest in the world. But the guys sure do play the heck out of it. Really disappointed this was Mike's only lead vocal on the record. what the heck, 3/5. By the way, as much as I have been giving Davy lots of grief lately, he's due a little love for his contributions here.
Agree with pretty much everyone. Circle Sky live in the movie and then subsequent releases, is a nearly perfect song, showing the band could play with energy and excitement. To do it again seems odd. I think it is clever to redo some words but for me another song with the "update" may have been a better idea. I too, like Justus and as a huge Nesmith fan, see his individual song contributions as maybe his low point in Monkees releases (Christmas Party his two tunes are terrific). I know he mainly produced and I do like the overall sound and songs. I have always felt like Nez could produce many different genres and had - from his early Monkees work to Iain Matthews to Bert Jansch to the Prison , etc. I just wish for this project, he would have done two/three tracks with "regular" vocals and no remake.
"Circle Sky" I love this song but of the umpteen versions The Monkees did of it this is my least favorite. Not a huge fan of the lyrics change either. But, still not a horrible song. 3/5
I just assumed that the whole point of this remake was to have the four guys singing the "looks like we made it once again" line, a self-referential thing.
Circle Sky from Justus is 3/5 It’s enough that it features the 4 of them on it and Micky’s drum part is solid In some ways this whole album is like Pool It - they went for a contemporary sound, that in retrospect may not have been the best choice I like this album overall mostly because of the sense of collaboration and to hear Mike play lead guitar and Micky drum on every song
Circle Sky(Justus version)- Ok, so I went to the mall right after work to buy Justus. I had a long drive home ,so I figured that I would have time to listen to most of it. I tear open the CD in the mall parking lot, and throw it on my CD player in my car. My first thought was " oh, crap, they screwed up and put a Metallica CD in the Justus case. I actually ejected the CD to look at it. I put it back in, and thought "what the heck?". I was very disappointed on that first listen. Over the years, I have grown to appreciate what the intention was. However, it still has a lousy vocal due to the filter. So, this version gets a high 2/5. The original is SO much better,that I cannot rate it higher. Sort of reminds me of when Chicago did a remake of 25 or 6 To 4 in the 80's.
Circle Sky I've never heard the Justus album so I won't, as some are already doing, discuss the rest of the album. I love the sound of this song and the high guitar energy. Great clip too. Reminds me of when watching the Monkees was fun. 5/5
In my experience, "social media" started in the 90s with internet discussion forums. Not so different in content to the forum we are posting on today. Except it was all done by email and each forum had its dedicated topic. I went searching for a Beatles forum and, oddly, could not find one. However I did find a Monkees forum and joined. At the time it was still relatively small and I wound up making my first online friends, who I am still in touch with today. (It wouldn't surprise me if some of the members of that forum are following this very thread). We discussed and discussed the Monkees, but also we learned a lot about each other. And we arranged gatherings when members were "in town". We also got together as large groups to attend Monkees live shows - specifically the tour of 1996. So the Monkees were celebrating their 30th anniversary, a tour was announced as was a new album - the first to include Mike since the 60s. Anticipation was high within our group (whose member roll swelled considerably with the hype and activity). I was very much looking forward to Justus and really wanted to like it. With the benefit of another 20 plus years of hindsight, I think Justus was a failed experiment. Not because of its sound, production or approach. Because of its songwriting. It's a very middling album, with pretty forgettable songs. Personally, I liked the production choices very much. Does it sound like the Monkees? No. It sounds very 90s. But it did sound "good" to my ears. So I took it for what it was and did not bemoan the fact that it didn't sound like Take A Giant Step. I like the sound of Circle Sky. It's a great rock song and, I think, made the transition well to a modern sound. Unfortunately the vocals are uniformly terrible. It should have been a stand out track. But it isn't - for all of the reasons cited previously.
The “Justus” Circle Sky... Yeesh. The sound doesn’t bother me, although it does sound more cluttered than either the live ‘68 version or any of the studio mixes, I guess “grungy” is the word for it? It sounds fine. The vocals do kinda suck though. First, even though I know Mike changed the words I can’t tell what he changed them to. Second, the backing vocals are bad. Odd, given these guys had good harmonies in the 60s. Funny... on the live HEAD version, I always wished they’d jammed out a bit more and made it longer. It’s got the potential to be this really great Cream-like extended jam (I mean, it is great but I want more). Here, on Justus, it is longer as they repeat a verse or two again, but it doesn’t really work for me in this new arrangement. As for the video... Did Davy play guitar on the song? He sure overdoes it in the video, and he just looks out of place. And what is with the guy in the big, goofy dog costume? Haven’t seen the TV special since it aired. Is there a reason the “dog” is there? What was a very powerful scene in HEAD, with this heavy music playing and a lyric about “ a very extraordinary scene to those who don’t understand...” set to visuals of atrocities in Vietnam vs. a wildly screaming concert crowd, is reduced to a goofy, moderately embarrassing visual in the TV special and a lackluster performance on the album. I’ll give the whole album a listen, but I hope there’s at least a few better tracks than this pointless remake. Generous 2/5.
