THE GREATEST SONGS OF THE 1960s THAT NO ONE HAS EVER HEARD
Cut the Monkee business! The greatest version of this “fabulous statement of lost love and melancholy” (Matthew Greenwald, https://www.allmusic.com/song/i-wont-be-the-same-without-her-mt0011528006) by Carole King and Gerry Goffin was released by a garage band out of Peoria, Illinois, as a “reverb-equipped . . . folk-punker”. (Jeff Jarema, liner notes to the CD comp Oh Yeah! The Best of Dunwich Records) The second best version was the demo recorded by Carole King herself. Don’t just believe me, listen to ratfinkie62: “The Warner Bros. recorded the best Version. The demo is #2.” (https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=FigZ38Ut46A&list=RDFigZ38Ut46A&start_radio=1&pp=ygUpQ2Fyb2xlIGtpbmcgd29uJ3QgYmUgdGhlIHNhbWUgd2l0aG91dCBoZXKgBwE%3D&ra=m)
2,146) The Warner Brothers — “I Won’t Be the Same Without Her”
Jeff Jarema writes that:
[The Warner Brothers were] Peoria, Illinois’ only Dunwich-produced combo . . . . Previous to working with [the Chicago label] Dunwich, The Warner Brothers released several 45s, among them a minor Chicago hit, “Please Mr. Sullivan” . . . in 1965. While strictly a novelty record, the group’s move to Dunwich resulted in a wild, double-sided uptempo blast (and arguably the label’s most continually overlooked single). The single . . . was an ace pairing of a reverb-equipped Goffin-King folk-punker on the plug side with an equally great (though measureably more depraved) flip. . . . [They] releas[ed] singles on a host of other labels . . . over the following year. Though unconfirmed, the band’s personnel supposedly included brothers Larry and Al Warner and two mysterious cats known only as Kenny and Crazy Tommy . . . .
liner notes to Oh Yeah! The Best of Dunwich Records
2,147) Carole King — “I Won’t Be the Same Without Her”
“This demo could have been perfect as a release on its own, the quality was great!” (adventuresinwhatever7203, https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=FigZ38Ut46A&list=RDFigZ38Ut46A&start_radio=1&pp=ygUpQ2Fyb2xlIGtpbmcgd29uJ3QgYmUgdGhlIHNhbWUgd2l0aG91dCBoZXKgBwE%3D&ra=m) Indeed — it sends a chill down my spine.
Oh, and as to the Monkees, Tim Sendra calls their version “the kind of melancholy Goffin and King ballad Nesmith was always able to knock out of the park.” And Matthew Greenwald writes:
A true lost Monkees classic, this excellent Gerry Goffin/Carole King song was originally cut in 1966, yet didn’t surface until 1969’s Instant Replay. A fabulous statement of lost love and melancholy, the overall atmosphere is strongly reminiscent of a cross between Buffalo Springfield and the Beatles. The pop sensibilities crossed with a slightly country/Tex-Mex element is brought out even more by Michael Nesmith’s tasteful production and sensitive vocals.
https://www.allmusic.com/song/i-wont-be-the-same-without-her-mt0011528006
I love Michael Nesmith, but I didn’t go bananas for the Monkees’ version.
Tim Sendra tells us of Instant Replay:
The year 1969 was a tough one for the Monkees. Their TV show was long canceled, their special 33⅓ Revolutions Per Monkee was kind of a disaster (running up against the Academy Awards), and Peter Tork left the band. Despite all this, Instant Replay, the album they released in February of 1969, is actually quite good. Made up of a couple older songs they dug out of the vaults and newly recorded tracks done separately by each member, there are moments of pop brilliance sprinkled throughout and each of the remaining Monkees truly shines (some more brightly or oddly than the others). . . . When you add up the catchy pop tunes, the weirdness, the heartfelt emotion, and the overall sound of the record, it stands with the group’s best work. Too bad it was ignored at the time and the band quickly splintered afterwards.
Here are the Monkees:
Here are the Twilights from Down Under (see #563, 1,667):
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