The Zombies are something of an enigma amongst 1960s rock groups. Although they were putting out quality music that could rival that of the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, the Kinks, the Who, etc., the public either didn't know they existed or simply didn't care for the Zombies. Why was this? It's hard to say, but despite putting out so many singles, the group was never allowed to release a follow up to Begin Here until 1968 with Odessey and Oracle, which ended up becoming regarded as one of the classics... long after they'd broken up. So yeah, it was a classic case of too little, too late, and it wasn't until 2019 that the Zombies were finally inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and as recent as last year, they put out a new album.
But did it really have to end this way for the Zombies? By doing some research concerning which songs were recorded during which sessions, as well as how to arrange them, I've reworked the Zombies' pre-Odessey and Oracle discography and compiled the new(ish) albums based upon recording sessions.
Side A (15:22)
1. She's Not There - 2:20 (Begin Here)
2. Summertime - 2:17 (Begin Here)
3. It's Alright with Me - 1:49 (Begin Here)
4. Kind of Girl - 2:09 (Begin Here)
5. You Make Me Feel Good - 2:36 (Begin Here)
6. Sometimes - 2:05 (Begin Here)
7. Leave Me Be - 2:06 (Begin Here)
Side B (15:51)
8. Tell Her No - 2:09 (Begin Here)
9. Sticks and Stones - 2:56 (Begin Here)
10. Woman - 2:25 (Begin Here)
11. I Don't Want to Know - 2:07 (Begin Here)
12. I Remember When I Loved Her - 2:00 (Begin Here)
13. What More Can I Do - 1:38 (Begin Here)
14. Walking in the Sun - 2:36 (Odessey and Oracle)
Surprisingly enough for a British band, the Zombies' debut album was released in America first, with a different track listing coming out three months later in their home country. Given that it had "She's Not There" and "Tell Her No" on the track listing, I used the American eponymous album as a basis for the revised Begin Here, focusing on the sessions that took place between June and November 1964. I've no idea why "Walking in the Sun" wasn't released at the time, but I bet that its inclusion would've helped to prove to the world that the Zombies were not to be underestimated!
Recording sessions: June 12 (Tracks 1-3, 5), August 31 and September 5 (Tracks 4, 6, 7 and 10), and November 24 (Track 9) and 25, 1964 (Tracks 8, 11-14)
Side A (14:26)
1. She's Coming Home - 2:33 (Begin Here)
2. I Can't Make Up My Mind - 2:37 (Begin Here)
3. The Way I Feel Inside - 1:28 (Begin Here)
4. Work 'n' Play - 2:07 (Begin Here)
5. You've Really Got a Hold on Me/Bring It On Home to Me - 3:39 (Begin Here)
6. Come On Time - 2:02 (Zombie Heaven)
Side B (14:03)
7. I Want You Back Again - 2:15 (The Zombies)
8. Can't Nobody Love You - 2:15 (Begin Here)
9. I Must Move - 1:55 (Begin Here)
10. Just Out of Reach - 2:06 (Begin Here)
11. Remember You - 1:57 (Begin Here)
12. I Got My Mojo Working - 3:35 (Begin Here)
Unlike my revision of Begin Here above, the second reworked Zombies album, subtitled Again, is only twelve tracks long, and comes up less than thirty minutes long. This was mainly because I didn't want to resort to using covers that were recorded during that period, focusing instead on original material written by Rod Argent and Chris White (with the odd contribution from Colin Blunstone like "Just Out of Reach"). Again, I've taken inspiration from the OTL track listing of Begin Again, replacing any pre-December 1964 recordings with an equivalent track.
Recording sessions: December 10 (Tracks 3, 5, 8) and 12, 1964 (Tracks 2, 4), and March 2, 1965 (Tracks 1, 6, 7, 9-11)
I don't know exactly when "I Got My Mojo Working" was recorded, only that it was in December 1964 at one of the two sessions that month.
Side A (18:26)
1. Whenever You're Ready - 2:42 (Begin Here)
2. Don't Go Away - 2:33 (Begin Here)
3. She Does Everything for Me - 2:14 (Odessey and Oracle)
4. How Were We Before - 2:04 (Begin Here)
5. I Love You - 3:20 (Begin Here)
6. Indication - 3:00 (Begin Here)
7. I'll Call You Mine - 2:33 (Odessey and Oracle)
Side B (17:18)
8. Gotta Get a Hold of Myself - 2:26 (Odessey and Oracle)
9. If It Don't Work Out - 2:26 (Odessey and Oracle)
10. Nothing's Changed - 2:29 (Odessey and Oracle)
11. I'll Keep Trying - 2:30 (Zombie Heaven)
12. I Know She Will - 2:32 (Zombie Heaven)
13. Don't Cry for Me - 2:13 (Odessey and Oracle)
14. Is This the Dream - 2:42 (Begin Here)
Bonus tracks
15. One Day I'll Say Goodbye - 2:52 (Zombie Heaven)
16. I Don't Want to Worry - 2:31 (Zombie Heaven)
17. A Love That Never Was - 2:17 (Zombie Heaven)
18. Out of the Day - 2:22 (Zombie Heaven)
While the above two albums were based upon the different track listings for the Zombies' debut album on both sides of the Atlantic, The Dream was more or less created from scratch, with the second side being adapted from the 2000 album R.I.P.. As you can tell from the sessions below, there wouldn't be enough original material to make a complete album for a late 1965 release, so I stretched out the sessions into May 1966 so that the Zombies were able to release at least one album per year. Still, it's all good stuff they recorded, so I don't think it matters too much if it was delayed or not. I've also tacked on four bonus tracks at the end, all demoes.
Recording sessions: March 31 (Track 10), June 24 (Tracks 1, 2, 11), July 8 (Tracks 4, 5, 9, 12, 13), November 10, 1965 (Track 14) and May 1966 (Tracks 3, 6-8)
All four bonus tracks were recorded in 1966, albeit full dates are not known; "A Love That Never Was" was recorded in October that year, and "Out of the Day" in November.
Side A (17:15)
1. Road Runner - 2:06 (Begin Here)
2. Early One Morning - 1:42 (Zombie Heaven)
3. Soulville - 2:19 (Zombie Heaven)
4. Sitting in the Park - 2:22 (Zombie Heaven)
5. Will You Love Me Tomorrow - 2:42 (Zombie Heaven)
6. You Must Believe Me - 2:18 (Zombie Heaven)
7. It's All Right - 3:46 (Zombie Heaven)
Side B (15:51)
8. Goin' Out of My Head - 3:00 (Odessey and Oracle)
9. For You My Love - 1:59 (Zombie Heaven)
10. When the Lovelight Starts Shining through Her Eyes - 2:40 (Zombie Heaven)
11. Rip It Up - 3:28 (Zombie Heaven)
12. This Old Heart of Mine - 2:55 (Zombie Heaven)
13. I'm Going Home - 1:49 (Begin Here)
Bonus track
14. The Look of Love - 2:20 (Zombie Heaven)
Now this album, which I've named Zombie Heaven after the box set in which many of their songs are sourced from, is what I would consider to be a stop-gap release while the Zombies were preparing for material that would eventually become Odessey and Oracle. Being a collection of covers that were left off of the previous three, the track listing is pretty random, and honestly, I feel like all the songs could be played in any order. "The Look of Love", as it was recorded in 1967, is a bonus track due to it being recorded too late for inclusion. However, I could see it appearing as the final track for future re-releases.
Recording sessions: September 29 (Track 2) and November 24, 1964 (Tracks 1, 13); January 26 and February 2 (Tracks 3, 9), February 26, (Track 11), April 20 (Track 6), and September 20, 1965 (Tracks 5, 7, 10); January 8 (Track 4), October 23 (Track 8) and November 1, 1966 (Track 12); October 10, 1967 (Track 14)
I won't be including the track listing for Odessey and Oracle as I can't really see it being any different from what we got, so it will still be released in 1968 in its original form. But what about the Zombies' material post-1968? By that point, they were pretty much dead, and any attempts at revitalizing them for R.I.P. fell through, leaving it unreleased for three decades. However, supposing that the group had played their cards right, what with "Time of the Season" being the first single outright instead of "Friends of Mine" and Colin Blunstone never quitting, the Zombies could have continued into the 1970s, essentially taking after the trajectory of Argent (the group) and Blunstone's early solo career. I've not decided upon track listings, but I'd imagine that this is what the Zombies' post-1968 career would've looked like:
1969: World of Glass
1970: One Year (with tracks from Argent and One Year)
1971: Ring of Hands (with tracks from Ring of Hands, One Year and Ennismore)
1972: Ennismore (with tracks from All Together Now and Ennismore)
1973: In Deep (with tracks from In Deep, Ennismore and Journey)
1974: Journey (with tracks from Nexus and Journey)
World of Glass would mark a transition from Zombies Mk1 to Zombies Mk2; Paul Atkinson and Hugh Grundy both leave the group and are subsequently replaced with Russ Ballard and Bob Henrit on guitar and drums, respectively, with Jim Rodford taking over from Chris White on bass guitar, while the latter remains involved with songwriting and producing. Essentially, it's Argent, but with the Zombies name. The lineup continues until 1974 with both Chris White and Colin Blunstone leaving, as well as Russ Ballard, so Zombies Mk3 introduces John Grimaldi and John Verity on guitar, leaving Rod Argent as the last remaining original member. This lineup is more negatively received, and after Circus and Counterpoints (both released 1975 in the same way as OTL) both flop, the Zombies break up before reuniting in the late 1980s with the Mk1 lineup.
At least, that's how I imagine things would've gone for the Zombies had they not fallen through the cracks...
