The BMG Heritage budget series Platinum & Gold Collection works best when it covers those artists who have a short discography of prize-winners, since 12 songs may be all that most listeners need to hear of the Real McCoy or the Verve Pipe. The Lovin’ Spoonful, of course, enjoyed a long, fruitful career and easily fill up a compilation with more than two dozen excellent songs. Their edition of the Platinum & Gold Collection may satisfy a few listeners who need the most basic introduction available, but a true appreciation for the group necessitates something on the order of Buddha’s Greatest Hits volume of 2000. Here, alongside the group’s biggest hits — “You Didn’t Have to Be So Nice,” “Do You Believe in Magic?,” “Daydream,” and “Summer in the City” — appear a bare few more of their standards: “Didn’t Want to Have to Do It,” “Six O’Clock,” and “Younger Girl.” – John Bush