Michael Nesmith with Red Rhodes 1974 Roundhouse Concert

One and Twenty- Michael Nesmith

This early-1960s track by Mike is a musical recitation of a poem by Alfred Edward Houseman. It's among Mike's most folk-flavored tracks.

Mike Nesmith - Don't Call On Me

This is a 1965 version of Mike's co-composition with John London.
Credit to Ashley Gabrys for the creation of this video.

Mike Nesmith - How Can You Kiss Me

Grand Ennui- Michael Nesmith Live at the Roundhouse 1974

Mike's April 1974 concert in the UK includes this superb acoustic performance of Grand Ennui mixed with humorous banter with the audience.

Some of Shelly's Blues- Mike Nesmith Live at the Roundhouse

From Mike's 1974 concert.

Michael Nesmith - Lamppost - BBC Radio - 1975

Michael Nesmith - Marie's Theme - BBC Radio - 1975

Michael Nesmith - Dance Between The Raindrops - BBC Radio - 1975

Michael Nesmith's 1975 performance on BBC Radio.

Nashville Needs Nesmith

The CMA Awards went down and not everyone was pleased with it. That modern country is basically MOR pop with twangy guitars and occassional fiddle is true enough, but what makes it such a frustrating subject among fans is that the overall quality of its biggest groups, and some of its lesser-known stars, is at best debatable. Certainly, listening to Lee Ann Womack or Sugarland or Keith Urban et al doesn't bring that much pleasure - Sugarland in particular is a textbook case of MOR country and the blandness contained within; their biggest hit to date is Love, Your Baby Girl, a vocal letter from the song's subject matter on her quest to make it in music. It's not a bad song, it's just not inspired - blandly sung, lacking any kind of interesting hook, bereft of what makes songs great.

SheDaisy, to date empty handed in CMAs, is an even worse example - sporting a tough veneer, SheDaisy isn't very tough at all. The Utah-born Osborn sisters have pretty harmonies but dreadful material, all of it composed or co-composed by eldest sis Kristyn. Their first album The Whole Shebang had freshness to it, but their follow-ups have been boring.

And it appears lead songwriter Kristyn Osborn is a little thin-skinned. SheDaisy's most recent hit, the I'm A Believer rip-off Passenger Seat, was the subject of an incredibly stupid article on the Slate website that accused the song and its accompanying album of promoting female passivity - as though the song's subject, enjoying friendship and also life when in love, somehow can be equated with condoning anything resembling a belligerent dominating relationship by a man toward a woman.

Well from the group's new single "I'm Taking The Wheel" it appears such criticism got to Kristyn - which isn't the first time feminazi whining kowtowed a pop singer into concocting a PC follow-up to a mildly racy single. Sheena Easton scored a hit in the late 1970s with Morning Train but came under fire from feminazis who claimed the song promoted passivity and dependance on a husband - and it kowtowed Easton into recording Modern Girl, which made a point of emphasizing its subject lady's independance but still stayed within believable parameters.

Not that I'm Taking The Wheel is a bad song - it actually covers the same ground as Passenger Seat. All the same, Kristyn should have stood up to such critics and pointed out that Passenger Seat contains a positive outlook on life that most people can associate with.

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One can trace the MOR-ization of country to the late 1960s and the fusion of California country with rock music. It is here that we find the unheralded pioneer of this fusion, Michael Nesmith. Unlike modern MOR country, Mike Nesmith had strong qualities that remain superior today - a baritone mixing tenderness with genuine force, innovative lyrical content, strong musical hooks, and innovative studio production. Mike's Monkees-era country-rock anthem Sweet Young Thing is an intoxicating fusion of fiddle and fuzztone, a level of quality he maintained throughout his stint with Micky Dolenz and pals and on through his 1970s solo efforts.

Nashville has recently begun mining old MOR pop tunes as covers for modern country songs - here are some song ideas -

Little Red Rider
The Crippled Lion
Silver Moon (Martina McBride would be perfect for this song)
Grand Ennui
Nevada Fighter
Tomorrow & Me
Two Different Roads
Keep On Keeping On
Roll With The Flow
Some Of Shelley's Blues

And there are more - Nashville needs Nez.

The Monkees And Robert Moog

With the passing of synthesized keyboard designer Robert Moog, numerous retrospectives have noted how music groups of the latter 1960s made use of his revolutionary compact Moog synthesizer. Virtually all these retrospectives note how The Beatles used the Moog synthesizer in 1969 and how it got substantial usage in the early-70s' progressive rock phase.

And I have yet to find a national retrospective that notes the group that introduced the Moog to pop records - The Monkees. In 1967 Micky Dolenz was among the first people to purchase a Moog synthesizer, and he integrated it into the making of the group's fourth long-player album, Pisces Aquarius Capricorn & Jones Ltd. Micky played the Moog for the album's cryptic exploration of 1967 rioting on Sunset Strip Daily Nightly while Moog retailer Paul Beaver handled the keyboards for the group's rip-roaring put-down of groupies Star Collector. The use of the Moog on the album was a mixed blessing; Micky's random Moog riffing on Daily Nightly is ultimately a distraction despite showing some cleverness, while Beaver's perfectly synched riffing on Star Collector (other than on the song's admittedly overblown and prolonged ending) adds enormously to the song's power.

It was the first time a Moog synthesizer found use on a mainstream pop album, and yet this fact goes unmentioned in media retrospectives. As Michael Nesmith once put it about media coverage of the Sunset Strip rioting, it is one of the goofball moments in press coverage.