'A' vs. Monkey Kong

'A' vs. Monkey Kong
Studio album by A
Released	September 9, 1999
Recorded	October 1998–February 1999
Genre	Alternative rock
Length	50:29
Label	Tycoon/London
Producer	Al Clay
A chronology
How Ace Are Buildings (1997) A vs. Monkey Kong (1999) Hi-Fi Serious (2002)

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[1]
Q	[2]

'A' vs. Monkey Kong is the second album by the British alternative rock band A, released via Tycoon Recordings/London Records on September 9, 1999.

Track listing

No.	Title	Length
1.	"For Starters"	2:33
2.	"Monkey Kong"	3:45
3.	"A"	3:31
4.	"Old Folks"	3:55
5.	"Hopper Jonnus Fang"	4:32
6.	"Summer On The Underground"	4:52
7.	"Warning"	1:41
8.	"If It Ain’t Broke, Fix It Anyway"	2:23
9.	"I Love Lake Tahoe Also known as Here We Go Again (I Love Lake Tahoe)"	3:56
10.	"Don’t Be Punks"	0:52
11.	"Down On The Floor"	3:46
12.	"Jason’s Addiction"	5:36
13.	"Miles Away"	3:24
14.	"Getting Around"	5:37

US Bonus Tracks
No.	Title	Length
15.	"She Said"	3:41
16.	"One Day"	3:36
17.	"If it Ain’t Broke" (Live)	2:31

• Track 1 is an alternate version to the one which originally appeared as a b-side on the "Summer on the Underground" single.

Singles

A vs. Lake Tahoe (I Love Lake Tahoe)

• CD1:

1. "I Love Lake Tahoe" (Radio Edit) – 3:26
2. "I Love Lake Tahoe" – 3:57
3. "Monkey Kong Jr." – 3:11

• CD2:

1. "I Love Lake Tahoe" – 3:11
2. "Turn It Down" – 1:20
3. "Old Folks" – 3:57
4. "Old Folks" (Video)

A vs. Old Folks (Old Folks)

• CD1:

1. "Old Folks" – 3:55
2. "One Day" – 3:44
3. "Don't Be Punks" (Acapella) – 1:28

• CD2:

1. "Old Folks" – 3:55
2. "She Said" – 3:38
3. "We're Equal" – 2:37

Summer On The Underground

• CD1:

1. "Summer On The Underground" (Radio Edit) – 4:02
2. "I Can't Wait Until Morning" – 3:21
3. "Owner Of A Lonely Heart" – 4:36

• CD2:

1. "Summer On The Underground" – 4:51
2. "For Starters" (Alternate Version) – 2:57
3. "Charlie Jordan" – 3:33

"Monkey Kong" and "A", were also each released as singles.

Sleeve Notes

'A' vs Monkey Kong's album sleeve notes incorporate a large amount of Japanese script, mostly Katakana representations of English words. Credibly, these mostly read accurately, although there are some mistakes and some obscured humour within the Katakana.

For example, each band member is pictured next to their thanks along with their name in katakana the abbreviation 'vs' and the katakana for Monkey Kong (モンキーコング). Jason (ジェイソン) and Dan's (ダン) katakana names are written correctly, while Mark (マーク) and Adam (アダム) have had their names accidentally switched, and Giles' name is replaced with Farmer G (ファーマーG), a reference to his nickname among the band and fans.

One of the centre pages of the booklet features a mock poster for a theoretical movie featuring the titular Monkey Kong character, and carries, among others, the joke warnings "Warning" (ウォーニング), "Very Scary Compact Disc" (ベリー　スケアリー　コンパクト　ディスク) and "Huge" (ヒュージ) all of which are English words merely written in katakana script. However, not all is as self-explanatory or accurate as text down the mock poster's side reads "Colour yacht product average English band" and writing next to smaller band member mugshots on the same page has such arbitrary readings as: united, amnesia, of, anthem, states.

References

1. Sheridan, Tim. "Review: A vs. Monkey Kong - A". Allmusic. Retrieved 29 June 2009.
2. Elliott, Paul. "Review: A - Monkey Kong". Q (EMAP Metro Ltd) (July 1999): 104.