Editing Manfred Mann (section)

=== Mike d'Abo years (1966–1969) ===
[[File:Manfred Mann.png|thumb|The band in 1966. Left to right: [[Manfred Mann (musician)|Manfred Mann]], [[Mike d'Abo]], [[Klaus Voormann]], [[Mike Hugg]], [[Tom McGuinness (musician)|Tom McGuinness]]]]
[[File:ManfredMannAmsterdam.jpg|thumb|Manfred Mann & the Beatgirls on the Dutch TV programme ''Moef Ga Ga'' on 22 March 1968]]
Jones was replaced by [[Mike d'Abo]] in July 1966,<ref name="NME Rock 'N' Roll Years 2">{{cite book |last=Tobler |first=John |title=NME Rock 'N' Roll Years |publisher=Reed International Books Ltd. |location=London |edition=first |year=1992 |page=160 |id=CN 5585}}</ref> and the group switched labels to [[Fontana Records]],<ref name="NME Rock 'N' Roll Years 2"/> where they were produced by [[Shel Talmy]].<ref name="NME Rock 'N' Roll Years 2"/> Their first Fontana single, a version of Bob Dylan's "[[Just Like a Woman]]", released in July, scraped into the UK top ten and reached number one in Sweden. Their new long-player, ''As Is'', followed in October; the group's increased studio technique sidelined their jazz, soul and blues roots. The next two singles, "[[Semi-Detached, Suburban Mr. James|Semi-Detached, Suburban Mr James]]" and "[[Ha! Ha! Said the Clown]]", both reached the [[Top 40|Top 5]]. Another EP set of instrumentals, ''[[Instrumental Assassination]]'', was released in December.<ref>{{cite web |title=Manfred Mann – Instrumental Assassination – Fontana – UK – TE 17483 |url=http://www.45cat.com/record/te17483 |publisher=45cat |date=24 June 2011 |access-date=18 July 2011}}</ref> This featured original member Dave Richmond on double bass, but not Mike d'Abo, suggesting the sessions dated from a little earlier in 1966.

An instrumental version of [[Tommy Roe]]'s "[[Sweet Pea (song)|Sweet Pea]]" only reached No. 36 when issued as a single, and the follow-up, [[Randy Newman]]'s "So Long, Dad", with its intricate keyboard arrangement, missed the top twenty altogether. Thus, 1967 was for the group largely an unsuccessful year in the charts, besides "Ha Ha Said The Clown" which reached the UK singles chart early in 1967. There was no album, as Mann and Hugg explored other avenues of their career, although their record company did compile the UK budget-priced album ''What A Mann'' (Fontana SFL 13003), a predominantly instrumental set gathering together a few recent singles' A-sides, B-sides, and instrumental EP tracks.

The following year, 1968, brought two albums: the [[Up the Junction (soundtrack)|Mann–Hugg soundtrack]] to the film ''[[Up the Junction (film)|Up the Junction]]'' in February, from which an edited title track coupled with the rare B-side "Sleepy Hollow" was issued as an unsuccessful UK single; and ''[[Mighty Garvey!]]'' in July. They had a resounding success with "[[Mighty Quinn (song)|Mighty Quinn]]", their third UK No. 1 and third hit Dylan song,<ref name="British Hit Singles & Albums"/> which also peaked at No. 3 in Canada and No. 10 in the US.

In June 1968, the following single, [[John Simon (record producer)|John Simon]]'s "[[My Name is Jack]]", was recalled when the US company [[Mercury Records]] complained about the phrase "Super [[List of ethnic slurs#S|Spade]]" in the lyrics, which referred to a [[Haight-Ashbury]] drug dealer. The release was delayed by a week until the offending name was re-recorded as "Superman",<ref name="NME Rock 'N' Roll Years 3">{{cite book |last=Tobler |first=John |title=NME Rock 'N' Roll Years |publisher=Reed International Books Ltd. |location=London |edition=first |year=1992 |page=185 |id=CN 5585}}</ref> but the UK hit single version retained the original lyric. Their December 1968 release, "[[Fox on the Run (Manfred Mann song)|Fox on the Run]]", reached No. 5 in the UK.<ref name="The Great Rock Discography"/>

Frustrated with the limitations and image of being seen purely as a hit singles band (their last two albums failed to chart), the group split in 1969.<ref>{{cite news |title=104.5 Classic Rock – Biography – Manfred Mann |url=http://player.listenlive.co/34491/en/artist/df_9c6d95f9-5101-49d9-ae1c-cff73b9e3317/biography |work=104.5 Classic Rock |access-date=12 July 2018}}</ref>