not top 40 hit but...The Monroes...

Has anyone ever found the full length EP version of "What Do All The People Know" by The Monroes on a compilation, domestic or import? Living in Oblivion 3 and Just Can't Get Enough New Wave Hits 4 both contain the radio edit. The full length version runs about 4 minutes and 3 seconds (that's the counter time on the vinyl burn I did).

Yeah, i also noticed the 6th volume mentioned in the notes, i was simply told they cancelled the series (obviously) before the 6th volume ever appeared.
I always wondered what tracks were planned for it, altho by volume 5 it seemed more top 40 material was being used...
Re: Monroes, yes i also was disappointed that both its CD appearances used the 45 edit. It may just be 30 seconds, but it's 30 secs of the one of the greatest, catchy "hook" tunes of the 80's. My dub from the vinyl EP is still my default copy as well.
-MM

budaniel wrote: Has anyone ever found the full length EP version of "What Do All The People Know" by The Monroes on a compilation, domestic or import? Living in Oblivion 3 and Just Can't Get Enough New Wave Hits 4 both contain the radio edit. The full length version runs about 4 minutes and 3 seconds (that's the counter time on the vinyl burn I did).

Have always loved this EP since I first picked it up on cassette back in the late '80s - not a bum track on it! I didn't recall hearing "What Do All the People Know" on the radio back in the day, but I definitely wasn't disappointed...

I, too, have the CDs from the Living in Oblivion and Just Can't Get Enough series w/ the song on it. There is a third U.S. CD that includes "What Do All the People Know", a 2-CD set by Time-Life from 2000 titled Modern Rock: Lost Hits of the Early '80s; I don't have that one, but I assume it's also the (shorter) 45 version (couldn't find a timing for it on-line). So unless it's on that Time-Life collection, I'm not aware of the full-length EP version ever appearing on an "official" CD, domestic or import...

However, I just thought I'd mention that back in the mid to late '90s, there was a "gray area" CD re-issue of The Monroes' original 1982 5-song EP. I still lived on Long Island at the time, and I vividly remember heading into "the city" on one of my music-buying trips circa 1998-99, and running across it in the racks at one of my favorite stores in Greenwich Village. Having never seen anything by The Monroes on CD before, I inspected it closely, and could tell from the back artwork that it likely wasn't "legit" (it matched the original vinyl LP exactly). However, it was new & reasonably priced (less than $10), so I gave it some serious thought, knowing that the EP would probably never see the light of day in any other form on CD. Ultimately, though, I put it back - but later I regretted it, and of course, the next time I visited the store, it was gone! And alas, even when I checked there a couple more times over the next 2-3 years, I never saw it again...

So over the last ten years or so, I've occasionally searched for that "gray area" CD on eBay, and have seen it pop up there a few times. Of course, it's long out-of-print, and now fetches upwards of $30-$50. However, I finally got my hands on one about six months ago, although this time, it did cost me a little more than $10, lol. It's on Metro Records F-CD-15001. The label has a NYC address, but the CD itself says "Made in Canada" (in two places, actually). It's a silver CD, and the group's name is actually given as "The Metros" on the disc itself, lol. "What Do All the People Know" has an actual time of (4:01) on this CD, which does sound like it was mastered from vinyl, but to be fair, I've seen and heard worse. Bottom line: If you're a stickler for absolute perfection and mastering of the Bill Inglot or Steve Hoffman variety, then this "gray area" CD isn't for you. But if you want some great music and don't feel like buying the original vinyl EP, mastering it on CD yourself, and then going through the trouble of reproducing all of the original artwork on top of that, then this "gray area" CD is certainly worth considering - because w/ physical CDs now dying, if you're still waiting for a legit CD re-issue of this EP (domestic or import), you can probably forget about it! I noticed another eBay seller in NYC acquired three sealed copies of this same "gray area" CD, and recently offered them at $35 a pop, all of which he sold. He had decent photos of both the front & back artwork, so if you've never seen this CD, here it is: CD on eBay

That song got tons of airplay in the Minneapolis/St. Paul market. In fact, it hit #2 on WLOL's weekly survey back in late 1983/early 1984, a full year-and-a half after it "hit" nationally.

Here's my "unofficial" opinion: I think you're onto something, Ron. Both my 45 and EP needledrops have more high end to them than the Just Can't Get Enough Vol. 4 track. There aren't any obvious sibilance issues, but that missing high end raises a red flag.

I don't have the Living In Oblivion Vol. 3 CD for comparison. Is it as compressed as the JCGE track?

Might as well pile on with what's already been said about what a huge hit this record was in the Twin Cities. When I returned to the market in 1985, I was very pleasantly surprised to find the Monroes still in recurrent rotation on both WLOL and KDWB. It sounded great alongside Limited Warranty's locally-released "Never Enough" 12-incher.

The beat in "What Do All The People Know" always reminded me of Chuck Francour's 1980 "Under The Boulevard Lights" on EMI America, which had also gotten some airplay in the Cities.