They weren’t really a bubblegum group, but they were manufactured (for their TV series), and their early songs shared a core simplicity with much bubblegum pop of the era. Headquarters has The Monkees leaving that early, formative phase, and stretching out – you’d not have the stream-of-consciousness ramble of “Randy Scouse Git” on the Monkees’ debut album. It’s also the first album where the Monkees really wrestled creative control from management and record label and played on their own albums. Here, they’re joined by heavyweights like producer Chip Douglas and the great Jerry Yester on an album that aligns the group’s formative songwriting efforts with a few songs from the Boyce and Hart duo, who were closely aligned with the Monkees. It may not feature their best-known songs, but it’s a gem from a time when the Monkees were beginning to realise their potential as artists, and not as real members of a fictional band.