Spanky and Our Gang

I just received my online purchase of a Spanky and Our Gang 4-CD set called The Complete Mercury Recordings released by the Hip-O Select label, which encompasses all of the group's album and single output. (I presume Pat doesn't list any CD titles from Hip-O Select in the database because these are limited edition reissues and are not sold at traditional retail outlets.) The first three discs consists of all of Spanky's albums in their entirety, plus some rarities on the second half of Disc Three. I purchased this set mainly for Disc Four, which contains the mono single mixes of all of the group's Top 40 hits as well as their B-sides.

I will say that the remastering on these CDs is overall excellent and probably the best Spanky and Our Gang has sounded to date from a sonic standpoint. On the downside, the Complete Mercury Recordings box set is way overpriced and HORRIBLY packaged. The CDs are jammed so tightly into overly-snug cardboard sleeves that it's impossible to remove the discs without scuffing and scratching them! Given that this box set retails for a whopping $80 (I paid closer to $54 for mine, though I still think that's a bit much!), I'm going to e-mail Hip-O Select and see if there's any way I can replace my discs with ones that aren't scratched. I mention all this for the benefit of anyone here who may be contemplating purchasing this set.

Ok, I've made some observations regarding a few of Spanky and Our Gang's Top 40 hits...

Sunday Will Never Be the Same - Pat, you distinguish all stereo CD appearances of this song in the database as the "LP mix" and the lone mono CD appearance as the "45 mix". Is this because of the reverb present on the LP that's not found on the 45? I just want to be sure I understand the basis for your comments.

Also, based on the box set, the 45 mix runs 2:55 and plays at a faster speed than the LP mix which runs 2:59. Perhaps someone can help me verify if these run times accurately reflect their actual vinyl 45 and LP counterparts. If so, then the speed difference should be noted in the database.

Makin' Every Minute Count - All CD appearances in the database denote "LP mix". I compared the stereo LP and the mono 45 as they're presented on the Complete Mercury Recordings box set, but I don't really detect any mix differences other than the standard mono/stereo channel separation. Are you hearing other mix differences, Pat?

I do notice a difference in the fade-outs and run time length on the box set... The LP begins fading out at 2:22 and ends at 2:34, while the 45 doesn't start fading until 2:27 and finishes at 2:36. Again, I don't know if this all matches up with their vinyl 45 and LP counterparts.

Lazy Day - All stereo CD appearances of this song in the database are listed as the "LP mix", while the lone mono CD appearance is shown as "45 mix". Again, I'm not really detecting any unique mix differences between the two other than the standard mono/stereo separation. Meanwhile, the song appears on the box set in both its original LP version and in its Spanky's Greatest Hits LP incarnation. On the latter version right after the lyric: "Blue skies, sunshine, flowers bloom and children saying hello", there are overdubbed voices saying stuff like "hello, how ya doin', how are ya" from 1:20 to 1:23. These overdubbed voices however do not appear on the 45 or LP version. Can anyone verify if these "Lazy Day" voices appear on the CD version of Spanky's Greatest Hits (Mercury 832584), or on any of the other CDs in the database?

Like to Get to Know You - According to the way the mono 45 is presented on the box set, the run time is 3:02. It is different from the version on the group's Like to Get to Know You LP in two major ways. 1) The song's intro during the LP version consists of campy dialog involving a highly flirtatious male who approaches a woman at a party and coyly tries to get her name and number after asking if she's lost a pink slipper in the back room. The 45 version does not contain this dialog during the song's intro. 2) The LP version runs 2:14 before seguing into the next track called "Chick-a-Ding-Ding" (run time: 2:23), which transitions into the next album track called "Stardust" (run time: 3:33), and then segues to the "Like to Get to Know You (Coda)", which runs :59. The coda is heard toward the end the 45 version.

Now, some bad news... It looks like all stereo CD appearances of "Like to Get to Know You" in the database should have the comment: (neither the 45 or LP version). The reason for this is because at approximately the 2:02 point, a low trumpet sound is heard as the song transitions into the slow, soft coda. This trumpet sound is not heard on the 45 version. Also, an acoustic guitar begins playing at the 2:08 mark on the 45 version, yet doesn't kick in until the 2:12 point on every stereo appearance of the song I've heard on CD to date.

One final thing... All of the Top 40 hits representing the Spanky's Greatest Hit(s) LP on the Complete Mercury Recordings box set are slightly remixed compared to the original stereo LP versions. I'm not sure if this is the case on the CD version of Spanky's Greatest Hits on Mercury 832584, but it's probably worth checking out.

Edited by Todd Ireland

Todd, I was planning to pick this collection up next month, so thanks for the "tight packaging" tip. (BTW, where'd you get it for that great price, old buddy old pal???) I just timed my commercial 45 for "Sunday Will Never Be The Same" for you, and it has both a listed and actual time of (2:55), so a sped-up 45v would seem to be the likely culprit there. As for "Lazy Day", 5-7 years ago, old buddy of mine "Smokin' Tom Gary" had told me he distinctly remembered hearing those overdubbed voices played on his AM radio when it was a current. But I have both a promo and commercial 45 for "Lazy Day", and the voices appear on NEITHER of them. But Todd, I DO own the version you refer to on a reprint 45. I've listened to it several times closely, however, and I've determined that it is actually the band members themselves sort of "screwing around", half-heartedly trying to sound like innocent children playing, in a tongue-in-cheek way. I can easily hear the hint of sarcasm in their voices, and personally I think it's highly unlikely those voices would've been included by the producers, as part of a "final take", despite my friend Tom's normally stellar memory for such details. But - that version had to come from somewhere, though. The question is "Where?" Finally, as for "Making Every Minute Count", my commercial 45 has a listed time of (2:30), but an actual time of (2:36), with the fade starting right at the (2:27) mark, Todd, so your Box Set's "mono single mix" for that one appears to check out OK with my 1967 45. Thanks for your many details, sir. Hope I've been able to address at least a couple of your inquiries.

Not sure how long this will last, but if you don't want to pay the whole enchilada just to get the mono single mixes, they are available piecemeal on iTunes.

I say that because on occasion iTunes will pull something that had been made available previously (doesn't happen often, but it did happen with a Carly Simon compilation).

I don't have access to other services like Rhapsody to find out whether the mono mixes are available there, but it might be worth checking out.

In response to Todd's question about "Lazy Day," the "hellos" do not appear on the CD of "Spanky's Greatest Hits" (Mercury 832584) nor do they appear on the version of the song contained in the "Lost Hits Of The '60s" CD (Warner Special Products OPCD-4673). I remember the "hellos," however, and I'm wondering if I just heard them on the radio or if they did appear on the LP version of "Spanky's Greatest Hits," an LP which is no longer in my collection.

Dan

jimct wrote: Todd, I was planning to pick this collection up next month, so thanks for the "tight packaging" tip. (BTW, where'd you get it for that great price, old buddy old pal???) I just timed my commercial 45 for "Sunday Will Never Be The Same" for you, and it has both a listed and actual time of (2:55), so a sped-up 45v would seem to be the likely culprit there. As for "Lazy Day", 5-7 years ago, old buddy of mine "Smokin' Tom Gary" had told me he distinctly remembered hearing those overdubbed voices played on his AM radio when it was a current. But I have both a promo and commercial 45 for "Lazy Day", and the voices appear on NEITHER of them. But Todd, I DO own the version you refer to on a reprint 45. I've listened to it several times closely, however, and I've determined that it is actually the band members themselves sort of "screwing around", half-heartedly trying to sound like innocent children playing, in a tongue-in-cheek way. I can easily hear the hint of sarcasm in their voices, and personally I think it's highly unlikely those voices would've been included by the producers, as part of a "final take", despite my friend Tom's normally stellar memory for such details. But - that version had to come from somewhere, though. The question is "Where?" Finally, as for "Making Every Minute Count", my commercial 45 has a listed time of (2:30), but an actual time of (2:36), with the fade starting right at the (2:27) mark, Todd, so your Box Set's "mono single mix" for that one appears to check out OK with my 1967 45. Thanks for your many details, sir. Hope I've been able to address at least a couple of your inquiries.

Jim, I knew I could count on you to come through with valuable run time info! We've established the 2:55 commercial 45 run time for "Sunday Will Never Be the Same"... Now we just need to confirm if the vinyl LP runs 2:59 and plays at a considerably slower speed than the 45, as is the case on the Spanky and Our Gang Complete Mercury Recordings box set.

I would have guessed that those few seconds of overdubbed voices on "Lazy Day" that you very eloquently describe, Jim, had first appeared on the Spanky and Our Gang Greatest Hit(s) LP, except that doesn't gel with your friend Tom's claim that he heard this version on the radio at the time the song was on the charts. This leads me to think that an additional promo 45 of "Lazy Day" must exist out there somewhere that contains the tongue-in-cheek "hello, how are ya" voices.

As for "Makin' Every Minute Count", I'm wondering if the perceived differences between the 45 and LP has more to do with EQ than with mixes. The same goes for the 45 and LP of "Lazy Day". I'd like to hear Pat's take on the "45 mix" and "LP mix" comments currently denoted for both songs in the database.

Oh, as far as the price I paid for the box set, I purchased it at CD Universe's website (www.cduniverse.com) at it's current retail price of $58.05 (you need to do an artist search under "Spanky McFarlane" to find the box set). As of right now, you can also sign up for a Google check-out account and save $10 off your total order. Once shipping charges were figured in and the discount was applied, my total price came out to approximately $54. Now, Doug is absolutely correct that you can download most of the tracks from the Complete Mercury Recordings box set on I-Tunes. Of course, bear in mind that I-Tunes downloads do not presently carry the same audio quality resolution as a CD. But for the steep price of the box set, I imagine most folks would probably rather download the tracks on I-Tunes with little or no concern regarding the slight difference in sound quality.

Edited by Todd Ireland