The Mike and Mickey Show Live (2020 cd)

It's a good record with Tapioca Tundra being the standout. The Good Times tracks and rarities (St. Matthew, Auntie's Municipal Court) are also extremely cool. Having said that, Mike's vocal sounds very strange at times. Yeah, I know WHY it sounds that way but would have preferred a more natural and honest presentation. Another case of the cure being worse than the disease.

 

So the vocals were enhanced or made to sound better? Thought Sandoval said that'd be the only way to make GCF sound good? So what's the difference?

 

Me ‘n the lot went on a 2 day juicer with yer man Torkers
back in yonks at the public in Wenmuch
Proper lad he was too
Went well until Taffy swiped yer mans dosh off the bar of the Crunchy Vicar
The lads had us a proper laugh we done!
Them was the days my son!

 

Giving this a re-listen, again, because apparently there's a mandatory lockdown, I'm currently out of work, taking new psycho-meds blended with valium for anxiety and depression and besides, I've been a Monkees fan since around 1974. That said, this will be a short novel, so if you're tired of my mental meanderings please scroll on by or feel free to make use of the ignore feature. I will try to type quietly and just mention The Beatles now just because the name hasn't surfaced in a page or two. On to the cd..

It bears mentioning that the separation of the instruments and the utter clarity of each is astounding and, before this release I had grown accustomed to the noisy boot,so it really is great to hear the instrumentation in such a pristine form and to have the audience responses dialed down appropriately as to not be annoying.

So, flipping back and forth between the cd and the audience recordings from Sydney and Melbourne, it is becoming more apparent the patchwork done to get the best vocals and instrumental timings. There do seem to be some places where vocals sound "new" and perhaps over-dubbed for Nez as there's no phrasing match in the raw bits- at least none I could find to sample online. As best I could tell, "Door Into Summer" was a mashup, if you will, of Nez vocals from Sydney, Melbourne and, perhaps, some new bits punched in from studio. Any evidence of missing a cue or "riding" the time signature (Nez does like to come in way late after a beat these days!) is mitigated and it is all EQ'ed nicely to have a consistent feel overall.

Micky's vocals and the backing ones seem to be all as captured live, though re-timed, trimmed or flown in from separate occasions here and there, as evidenced when lined up against the unedited bits.

As far as new overdubs are concerned, I could be wrong and don't mistake that as blatant criticism, as I think it is brilliant how this record was mixed and tweaked to sound like it does. Still, some really fine twiddling of pots (though less pot than the recent live chat!) has gone on, alongside some sleight-of-hand (or ear, as it may be?) sweetening that you would likely never notice unless you had actually been there. Or watched a YouTube clip. Or had a thoroughly unauthorized.. well, you know.

Fortunately, I was able to pick this piece out because, simply, I have no life or job at the moment, and the meds do nothing for OCD which is currently running rampant along with a relentless bout with insomnia.

The track "Goin' Down" seems to be sourced mostly from the Sydney show as the vocals and phrasing are nearly identical with one small change or, rather, a large omission: the introduction of the band! Two minutes into the song, before the big finish, Micky takes a moment to introduce the band (as is quite commonly done) and this 1:48 is seamlessly omitted from the cd. This is where we hear a squeaky trumpet blasting out the familar "improvised" counterpart melody flown in from a different performance, presumably provided by Probyn Gregory . It is peppered in bursts throughout the song on the disc and, although the video below conveniently cuts off as the intros begin, it is a good reference and, as you can hear, there is no "horn" present:



Overall the cd is a pleasant (valley?) listen, and the immersive experience rivals that of the uncut Summer Tour dvd minus the Edith/Archie shenanigans which most of us would like to forget. Shame something comparable wasn't completed in the 90's with all 4 or in 2011 during that wonderfully expansive deep-cut catalogue tour-de-force --though the Niagra Falls 2-disc boot from 2011 is quite good, as is the later Dallas 2013 with Nez, so there's good to be had. But, dare I say, the backing band is better now: Christian, Coco, Circe, Wayne, Rich, Pete, John, Alex, Probyn.. Energetic. Tight.

Extra tracks? Bring 'em! Do some alt mixes with in between song chatter. Not sure what might have made it to the multis for Good Clean Fun, but from what I hear from the Sydney show it was a strong open, nothing seemed to go wrong, the audience loved it and it would have made a nice addition to the cd.

For the stuff left off..?

Target exclusive? RSD? Japanese bonus track? Steel book?

 

There have been conflicting reports about how much, if any, of the 2011-2013 tours was professionally recorded, with some claiming that Sandoval has the tapes but can't interest Rhino in releasing them.

I really hope they can put something out from those shows. Even just excerpts from the two tours. I'm not saying they should fly Nez into the 2011 material or waft Davy's ghost into the 2013 recordings, but highlights from the different tours could be tastefully interspersed. I didn't get to see the 2013 tour, but in 2011, they did most of the Head songs and "All of Your Toys"! The hits are the hits and there will always be a demand there, but I'd love to have a permanent souvenir of the band's last live efforts as a three-piece.

I've ordered the Mike & Micky Show CD, but I preordered another disc at the same time so I'm still waiting. The YouTube clips are tantalizing.

 

Great analysis. Personally, I think the new live disc sounds fantastic (beautifully mixed), and I'm perfectly fine (and assumed) there was editing/dubbing done to make this release ready-for-primetime. Fairly standard live album stuff.

One thing I didn't appreciate significantly when I saw this show live last year was how good/how much the backing vocal arrangements added to so many songs. Much easier to appreciate on the new disc.

And yes, I'd also love to see an expanded release with some of the "extra" songs... fingers crossed!

 

This is a great CD to play in the car. Today I visualized the "young" versions of Mike & Micky were singing and that was fun. I don't think this type of visualization would work with Macca or Dylan or many others of that era. Maybe the Stones. Either way though, older or young, I'm really enjoying the CD.

 

I have given this several listens before posting here. The CD really captures the tour well. Since Nesmith is a favorite both during the Monkees and solo, the CD was already starting with majority of cuts that I enjoy which also include the three Nez penned tracks that Micky was/is lead singer. The band sounds great especially was impressed with the bass playing, much of it is very close to the originals and it really jumped out for me. As far as one song that sounds nearly flawless I would pick Door Into Summer. Love the addition of St. Matthew, Accidental Hipster. Glad they did For Pete's Sake (and did it well) and glad they included both Daydream Believer and Little Bit Me. Nice alternate arrangement on Tapioca Tundra too. There is just enough banter included while introducing tracks to feel like you are at the concert but it is not over done. The playing, track list, banter, singing, mixing all grade an A. While the Mike and Micky Show may not be really The Monkees anymore, as 50% of them have passed: it is still Mike and Micky of the Monkees and it is really good stuff.

 

Does anyone know when Randy Scouse Git stopped being known as Alternate Title in the UK?

I doubt the Mike and Micky Show UK edition has the track listed as Alternate Title, or does it?

 

What are the official chart positions for the M&M show CD/LP?

 

178 debut on the Billboard 200...

Billboard 200 Chart | Billboard

 

I was hoping for a higher number but hey, it charted!

 

I enjoy the new Live! album and it was, like Good Times a few years ago, way better than I expected it to be. My highlights are definitely "The Door Into Summer", "Me & Magdelana" and "As We Go Along". I also really enjoyed that they did some Davy and Peter songs. Really sad I missed seeing them live.

 

#13 Billboard Top Albums
#178 Billboard Top 200
#2 Internet Albums
#3 Current Pop Albums
#45 Current Digital Albums

 

Sweet. Added it to Apple Music but I need to buy this not only to support the guys but to have a copy in the car and for the liner notes.

Suggested place to order the CD?

 

It's fairly cheap through Amazon. Fast delivery too, especially if you have Prime.

 

Not to dissuade you, I bought the CD - but there are no real liner notes.
A paragraph from Micky, and a picture of each musician and their names.
Extremely high quality recording - one of my favorite albums in quite some time, but the packaging (if that's what you're after) is disappointing.

 

Amazon has a delivery date of May 7th ..

 

Yeah, everything I've been ordering from Amazon lately gives me a month or so delivery date but most of them has shown up in a week or two at the latest.

 

To me, the packaging is like a mini version of those oversized souvenir tour programs that I always pick up at the merch table-- the ones with all the photo pages laid out perfectly to have personalized inscriptions that I never get because I always end up getting tickets or album covers signed, that kinda deal. While the cd artwork and package are visually appealing, it is clear that the most effort was put into the sound mix which doesn't just shine, it glitters!

Interesting thing about Amazon this time is that even before my account was charged, I already had the digital version dropped into my music folder. Getting to hear the album more than a week before release date was a fair trade for the extra time spent waiting for a physical copy.

Now, I just need the Micky in Japan cd/vinyl and, eventually, I'll find the unedited Nesmith Roundhouse tape and then I'll be content for at least a few days.

 

From Andrew Sandoval's Facebook page:

Many of you read about my 30 years of producing reissues. Well, as of today, I have a new distinction: the live album that I produced by The Monkees just made the Billboard chart. So, for first time in 30 years a new, non-catalog album that I produced is a chart record.

It made #13 Billboard Top Albums, #178 Billboard Top 200, #2 Internet Albums, #3 Current Pop Albums & #45 Current Digital Albums!

It is especially sweet to share this with my very talented family: Michael Nesmith, Micky Dolenz, Christian Nesmith, Gemma Dolenz, Circe Link, Rich Dart, Wayne Avers, John Billings, Probyn Gregory, Alex Jules & Pete Finney. As well John Hughes, John Sellards, Greg Brunswick, Allison Johnelle Boron, Sheryl Farber, Mark Pinkus & Sherri Hansen.

Take a bow!

 

I don't wanna open a can of worms but...damn that picture should be the cover. It's fantastic. All the emotion and excitement together in a single image.

 

"Auntie's Municipal Court" is surprisingly well done & mixed. Very glad that they performed that live, along with "St Matthew."

Also, "As We Go Along" is the best that I've heard Micky do that song live. He has a tendency to overdo it live, but not here.

Micky vocals sound so good on "Pape Gene's Blues." He and Mike, as always, go together very well.

Including such gems as "Tapioca Tundra" & "Me & Magdalena" make this more than worthwhile.

I guess "Last Train to Clarksville" is obligatory, but to be honest I've always hated Micky's live vocals on that classic and it's no different here--such a strong studio track that is always very weak when done live. Anyway, would have loved to cut that song out and include something like "Good Clean Fun" instead.

Beyond that, I'm just happy to have an album from an actual Monkees tour that I attended.

 

I was at the Beacon Theater show and I thought Nesmith sounded really weak on Good Clean fun but his voice seemed to get a lot stronger as the night went on. The Porpoise Song was as epic that night; I'm bummed it didn't make the cut.

 

Think I'm going to use that photo for iTunes