The early Bonzo singles were covers of songs the band found on 78s in second-hand sales. By the time they recorded Gorilla, they had started to evolve. "Jollity Farm" and "Mickey's Son And Daughter" were taken from 78s, and match the very early style of the band. Neil Innes began to blossom as a songwriter, and "The Equestrian Statue" and "Piggy Bank Love" are wonderful 60's pop gems. Much of the band's reputation was built on their chaotic comedy concerts, so demented takes on "I Left My Heart In San Francisco" and "The Sound Of Music" show that side of the band. Gorilla's most famous track, however, is "The Intro And The Outro" which kicked off side two of the original album. The song starts with Vivian Stanshall introducing each of the band members in turn who add their specific instrument to the evolving vamp. Viv hits his own intro about 30 seconds in and just keeps going - adding more and more and more "musicians" to the lineup including John Wayne on xylophone, Princess Anne on sousaphone, Eric Clapton on ukelele, and the Count Basie Orchestra on triangle.

The box set includes both the mono and stereo mixes of the album, although I don't hear many dramatic differences. No bonus tracks are added. Heavily recommended as a starting point. You get a little of everything.

For the second album the band shortened their name, dropped bassist/banjo player Vernon Dudley Bohay-Nowell and percussionist/spoon player Sam Spoons, ditched the songs from 78s, and steered fully into the 60s (while keeping their sense of humor intact). The album's opener "We Are Normal" is a jarring change from Gorilla, starting with sound effects and man on the street interviews before erupting into full-blown 60's psychedelic rock about the 1:45 mark. "Can Blue Men Sing The Whites" is a killer blues number that completely skewers the British white blues boom. "Hello Mabel" is the only call back to the early days, although this one shows that Neil Innes can write a 20s parody very effectively. A big part of the band's live show was Roger Ruskin Spear's various robots and other contraptions. "Trouser Press" gives the first taste of this on record with Spear playing the solo on a mic'd up trouser press (lots of squeaky hinges and rattling wood). "My Pink Half Of The Drainpipe" is a charming little ditty about dealing with a boring, droning neighbor ending with Viv's bizarre monologue telling off the neighbor. "Rhinocratic Oaths" couples a charming little piano piece from Neil with a comic monologue from Stanshall, foreshadowing the "Sir Henry" character that would end up being the centerpiece of his solo career.

Overall, a very different album from Gorilla musically, but the same sentiment otherwise. If the thought of 20s music and trad jazz makes you want to pass on Gorilla, then try this. It's more of a "conventional" sixties rock album. Well, as "conventional" as the Bonzos could manage. This album has one bonus track, "Launching Of A Piano", a minute-long bit of weirdness that probably would have been slotted in as a link between other songs. Interesting, but not essential. Like Gorilla, The Doughnut In Granny's Greenhouse also comes with the stereo and mono mixes. And as before, there's not a ton of difference. However, Doughnut is better in stereo.

Shortly before releasing Gorilla, the Bonzos accepted a weekly slot on the BBC "children's show" called "Do Not Adjust Your Set". It aired in the early afternoon for kids but became a favorite for people of all ages. The show included future Pythons Eric Idle, Terry Jones, Michael Palin and Terry Gilliam. Along with the sketches, the Bonzos would play one song a week as a sketch of sorts showing off the band's sense of humor. Tadpoles was a freshly recorded collection of songs performed on the show, so the album mixes the feel of their first two albums. "Hunting Tigers Out In 'Indiah'", "Dr. Jazz", "Ali Baba's Camel", "Laughing Blues" and "By A Waterfall" were taken from 78s, and Roger Ruskin Spear's "Tubas In The Moonlight" could pass for a 20s standard. The album isn't a complete regression though. "Shirt" couples another man-on-the-street segment with another bizarre Spear solo, this time on "electric shirt collar". The final two songs are complete left turns from the rest of the album. "Mr. Apollo" is terrific pop with occasionally heavy guitar and a long Stanshall recitation parodying the body builder ads of the time. "Canyons Of Your Mind" is a hilarious Elvis parody complete with Neil Innes playing an intentionally horrible guitar solo. Tadpoles also contains the Bonzos' most famous song, "I'm The Urban Spaceman", but it's crossfaded in after "Monster Mash" which spoils the opening of the song. More on "Urban Spaceman" on the singles set.

The bonus track is the US Radio Spot for the album which is interesting to hear. The Bonzos tried to break the American market, but it never really worked out. If you like Gorilla, you'll like Tadpoles.

Keynsham is the most conventional of the band's first four albums, and it's an excellent pop album (although it's certainly not serious). "You Done My Brain In", "Keynsham", "Quiet Talks & Summer Walks", "I Want To Be With You", and especially "We Were Wrong" are some of the band's best straight songs. "The Bride Stripped Bare By 'Bachelors'" is the band's best rock song with a lyric about life on the road, name checking most of the band, several roadies, and still mocking club owners and the general mangling of the band's name at the same time. "Mr. Slater's Parrot" is a 20s style song in tribute to Rodney Slater's pet parrot. Stanshall's "Sport (The Odd Boy)" is a dramatic anthem for anyone who prefers art to sports by mocking the attitudes of the time. Roger Ruskin Spear also works in one more gadget number ("Noises For The Leg"). He equipped a mannequin leg with a theremin so he could play "electric leg".

Keynsham has the band's best straight music, and it's a great follow-up to The Doughnut In Granny's Greenhouse.

Let's Make Up And Be Friendly is a textbook example of a contractual obligation album with all that implies. The Bonzos broke up in 1970 after a disastrous US tour and the failure of Keynsham. However, contracts being what they are, another album was required. Innes and Stanshall had been building a new band and essentially used that lineup on this album. "Legs" Larry Smith plays on only two songs, Roger Ruskin Spear plays on one, and Rodney Slater is listed as being there "in spirit".

The album starts out with a cool rock groove and Viv using a new growly lead vocal on "The Strain", which unfortunately turns out to be a song about straining on the toilet. "Don't Get Me Wrong" and "Fresh Wound" are the big highlights and are really the only songs on the album worthy of the band's legacy. "Rawlinson End" starts out with a bouncy little piano piece from Neil Innes as an intro but becomes an eight-minute monologue from Stanshall talking about the Rawlinson family. These characters would make the up Stanshall's most celebrated solo album, Sir Henry At Rawlinson End. It's charming and kind of weirdly funny, but it's very out of place here.

Bonus tracks include another US Radio Spot and an interesting "interview" with Neil Innes and Vivian Stanshall. You only hear Neil and Viv, and they basically walk through the album one song at a time. It's a cool listen.

For once, an album titled The Singles that actually is what it purports to be. The album runs down the band's UK singles from their debut "My Brother Makes The Noises For The Talkies" to their 1992 reunion single "No Matter Who You Vote For, The Government Always Gets In (Heigh Ho!)" in release order then adds some stereo versions and such at the end.

The first two Bonzo singles, "My Brother Makes The Noises For The Talkies" b/w "I'm Gonna Bring A Watermelon To My Girl Tonight" and "Alley Oop" b/w "Button Up Your Overcoat" give you a great feel for the early band. They're playing the songs moderately faithfully with a little extra wackiness thrown in. They're charming as hell.

"I'm The Urban Spaceman" was the band's lone hit. You may recognize it from "Monty Python Live At The Hollywood Bowl" where Neil performed the song on banjo accompanied by Carol Cleveland as a tap dancer who doesn't seem to know the song very well. Produced by Paul McCartney (as "Apollo C. Vermouth") and recorded between Gorilla and Dougnut, the song is a perfect encapsulation of the band. It's super-catchy sixties pop with witty lyrics and goofy sound effects mixed in. If you don't like "I'm The Urban Spaceman", give up on the band.

The other classic B-side is "Ready-Mades", which would have fitted in nicely on Keynsham. "Music For Rawlinson End" is also what it appears to be - it's simply Neil's bouncy little tune without Viv's monologue. The band reunited for a one-off single, "No Matter Who You Vote For, The Government Always Gets In", aimed at the 1988 British election. It didn't come out until the 1992 election. The songs that also appear on albums aren't very different, but the non-album tracks make this a terrific album.

The meat of the rarities, Demos & Outtakes couples acetate recordings, alternate takes, and unreleased studio recordings. "On Her Doorstep Last Night" is a perfect fit for their 78 years. The song was a live favorite, and it's a shame this wasn't released before now. The 1966 version of "Ali Baba's Camel" is played at a much faster pace than the version on Tadpoles. It's fun. The uncut "Rhinocratic Oaths" was a surprise. The song begins exactly as it does on Doughnut. However, the released version suddenly stops at the end of the monologue. The uncut version continues for a further four-minutes plus just playing the main melody. "Boo!" is the highlight of the set: it's a nice little shuffle with spooky, but touch-in-cheek lyrics. The song should be a Halloween staple.

The alternate mixes on this CD have more noticeable differences and the outtakes are top-notch. The highlight of the box.

The weirdest part of the album, Madness At The Manor captures a 1971 rehearsal at The Manor recording studio. They careen from song to song mostly playing unreleased songs, presumably intended for Let's Make Up And Be Friendly. I'm glad it's included because it's an interesting listen, but it's not a CD you'd pull out very often. The Marquee Club part consists of the band running through a song on stage with volunteers from the audience, and then the final performance. Probably a blast at the time, but not a great listen in retrospect.

When bands appeared on TV in the 60s, they would commonly mime playing instruments to a backing track of the song and have vocals performed live. This album collects a bunch of these backing tracks. Lots of fun if you fancy taking a stab at the lead vocal. Interestingly, a few of the songs also have a lead vocal included but recorded much lower. Not sure if that was intended a reference to sing along with, but you certainly can.

The Bonzos were frequent guests on various BBC Radio programs, and they didn't disappoint. Along with live-in-the-studio recordings of songs from albums and singles, you get stuff like "The Craig Torso Show" (a mini radio experience with monologues and snatches of songs) and two excerpts from "The Brain Opera". complete with dialog and music. A terrific cross-section of what the Bonzos do. This is the longest part of the set (3 CDs worth) and extremely enjoyable. About the only criticism is that several songs get two or three plays. Best listened to in small pieces like they were broadcast.

Live collects three performances from 1969. The first is at Studio Bellevue in Amsterdam and relies quite a bit on the backing tracks mentioned above. It's fun, but it doesn't feel truly "live". The second is from the Paradiso in Amsterdam is definitely live but recorded for a radio broadcast. Unfortunately, this means that the announcer speaks between almost every song. And if you don't happen to speak Dutch, it can be a little distracting. A few interviews with Viv are interspersed along the way. The performance is terrific though. The third bit is a bootleg recording from The Fillmore East in New York. The sound is the worst of the three, and you frequently hear the taper (or someone near them) enthusiastically commenting on the show. But the performance itself is great and presents a more complete picture of the band live. There's not a lot of live Bonzo material out there, so hearing this is a real treat, even with the sound issues.

The first DVD couples Neil Innes' art school film (starring Viv Stanshall and Roger Ruskin Spear) with various TV performances. The movie is silent using an early take of "Rhinocratic Oaths" along with other music as backing. It's charmingly weird. The footage from Blue Peter is the band's first TV appearance and shows an earlier lineup of the band with band members who wouldn't be around by the time they started recording. The Starparade performance shows the second edition of the band live with short-time bassist Dave Clague. The live performances are a treat and are a better representation of the band live than is captured on the Live CD.

The Main Course disc collects all the saved recordings of The Bonzos on "Do Not Adjust Your Set". It's a mix of lip sync and live performances. The version of "The Intro And The Outro" uses the backing track from the original, but with live vocal so Viv can account for band member changes and to add in the cast of the show (Michael Palin, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, David Jason and Denise Coffey) to the band. The live footage on the first DVD is better, but this is still top-notch.

Dessert includes the band's uncut appearance on "Colour Me Pop", which is an odd experience. The full soundtrack was found, but not all the video was. As a result, the video reuses footage from various parts of the show along with some odd animation to cover the musical numbers where there isn't any video available. The existing footage is fascinating though: a mix of a band profile and a short performance. It's unfortunately live vocals over backing tracks. It's nice that they took a stab at recreating the show, but it's hard to know if we're seeing what really aired. "The Adventures Of The Son Of Exploding Sausage" is a short film starring the Bonzos that culminates with a live instrumental performance at a farm. The non-performance bit is a little slow, but the performance is charmingly weird enough to make it worth a watch. The Jazz Bilzen Festival is a wonderfully chaotic performance that shows off the band's music and comedy at the same time. Superb.

The book in the box set is a terrific retrospective on the band. It's loaded with pictures and includes a biography of the band, profiles of each of the band members, and testimonials from fans including Pete Townshend, Stephen Fry, Eric Idle and Geoff Downes. The book also discusses the lawsuit that arose in 2017 over the name of the band. Someone trademarked the name without the band's knowledge, then sued when the compilers of this official box set went to register it. The 8x10 prints of the original lineup have autographs from the three surviving members of the band, plus Vernon Dudley Bohay-Nowell who passed away during the long gestation of the project.

The only criticism I have on the book is that I would have appreciated more details on the demos, outtakes, and the manor rehearsals. Seems like there's a story to tell there, and I would have enjoyed reading it. An excellent read overall, however.