 The Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville, Tennessee is presenting a brand new exhibit, Western Edge: The Roots and Reverberations of Los Angeles Country-Rock, and items from the collection of Michael Nesmith are being featured as part of the various displays. According to the Hall of Fame's website, the exhibit "traces communities of visionary singers, songwriters, and musicians who set about reinvigorating the sounds of pop and rock by infusing elements of country, bluegrass, and folk music." Michael's legendary Nudie suit and one of his guitars help pay tribute to Nez in the exhibit, which runs through May 2025. Tickets and more information about Western Edge are available on the Country Music Hall of Fame's website.  (Photo courtesy of Julea Thomerson - click image to enlarge)
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  Michael Nesmith in 1977 In 1977 Michael Nesmith enjoyed a moderate worldwide hit with "Rio," the lead-off track from his eighth post-Monkees album, From a Radio Engine to the Photon Wing. During this period, Nez produced a promotional video for the song with director William Dear. That experience helped spur Michael's creation of the first music video television program, PopClips, which originally aired on the Nickelodeon cable network. In 1980, PopClips was sold to Warner/Amex Satellite Entertainment Company, who ultimately developed PopClips into MTV.
After leaving The Monkees in 1970, Michael's interest in production later resulted in the formation of his own corporation in 1974, Pacific Arts, to manage and develop various media projects. In the post-PopClips era, Nez released Elephant Parts on VHS and Betamax, a collection of comedy skits and music videos that won the first-ever Grammy Award for Music Video in 1981. Later in 1985, Television Parts, a comedy-variety series featuring Jerry Seinfeld, Jay Leno, Whoopi Goldberg, Gary Shandling, and many others debuted on NBC. Both productions were hosted and produced by Nesmith. Pacific Arts continued to flourish and by the late 1980s had become a leader in the burgeoning home video market. As MTV celebrates its 40th anniversary this week, take a look back at the history of the channel and Michael's influence: In 1979, Micky Dolenz partnered with Chrysalis Records to release "Love Light"/"Alicia" as a single in the United Kingdom. According to The Monkees: A Manufactured Image, the first 1,000 copies were pressed with a picture sleeve, and the B-side happens to be a Dolenz original. Both songs were featured on the 7a Records CD edition of Micky Dolenz - The MGM Singles Collection, and they are now available to stream or download on most major media platforms:  (Courtesy of Monkee45s.net) Micky's early 1970s singles, originally released on the MGM label, were collected for the first time ever in 2015 courtesy of Iain Lee and Glenn Gretlund of 7a Records, both longtime Monkees fans and co-producers of Micky Dolenz - The MGM Singles Collection. The set, originally available as a gatefold vinyl and digital download but later released on compact disc, featured the A and B-sides of Micky's tenure at MGM as well as his collaboration with Michael Lloyd (Starship) that yielded the 1972 single "Johnny B. Goode"/"It's Amazing to Me." The CD version contained a plethora of bonus tracks, including Micky's late '70s/early '80s singles and collaborations with Christian Nesmith and Circe Link. Micky placed his stamp of approval on the project, and conducted several interviews in support of it. "It's really a great package," Dolenz told Examiner.com. "Over the years, I've had versions of those songs, one on a tape here, on a disc here, on a demo here," he said. "It's nice to have them all in one package." The MGM Singles Collection is a stellar release that is highly recommended by the Live Almanac. Bolstered by the photography of Henry Diltz and superb liner notes (by Mark Kleiner Biggar) and mastering, the set is available on Amazon US and Amazon UK and is also downloadable on iTunes. You can take a look inside the compact disc package below, thanks to Ben Belmares, and read more about Micky's career at MGM in the archives of the Live Almanac. Gatefold Sleeve      Liner Notes by Mark Kleiner Biggar  (Click on liner notes to enlarge)                   Updated Liner Notes for Compact Disc Release by 7a co-owner Glenn Gretlund    The Compact Disc Thanks to Written In Our Hearts on Facebook for sharing this photo of Micky Dolenz and Davy Jones taken circa 1976 or 1977:   (From the program for Micky's 1982 tour of Japan)  L to R: John London, Red Rhodes, Michael Nesmith, and John Ware in 1970 (Photo courtesy of Ultimate Classic Rock)  (L to R: John Ware, John London, Red Rhodes, and Michael Nesmith in 1970) Michael Nesmith & The First National Band: "Nevada Fighter"/"Tantamount To Treason" compact disc3/23/2018 In 2000, after issuing Michael Nesmith & The First National Band's first two RCA albums on compact disc, BMG/Camden continued to highlight Michael's solo career when they released both Nevada Fighter and Tantamount To Treason as a two-in-one CD package:  (Front cover of booklet)  Liner notes (Click each image to enlarge)    (Back cover of the CD booklet)  (Back of the compact disc) The BMG/Camden reissues of Michael's RCA albums are readily available on Amazon:
Magnetic South / Loose Salute Nevada Fighter / Tantamount to Treason And the Hits Just Keep on Comin' / Pretty Much Your Standard Ranch Stash Ever since Michael Nesmith reconstituted the First National Band for a series of exclusive concerts last month, I have received many inquiries asking where to find the music of the First National Band, and in particular, which releases were best to seek out. For my money, the late 1990s/early 2000s compact discs by BMG/Camden are the superior representations of Michael's RCA work. The label released the albums as two-in-one reissues. Below are scans of the Magnetic South/Loose Salute CD from 1999.  (Front cover of booklet)   Liner notes (Click each image to enlarge)     (Back cover of the CD booklet)  (Back of the compact disc) The BMG/Camden reissues of Michael's RCA albums are readily available on Amazon:
 (Ad from Village Voice, August 1, 1977 issue) On July 31, 1977, Peter Tork played a show at CBGB, the legendary Manhattan music club that featured rising stars of the punk and new wave genres in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Lester Bangs, who wrote for both Rolling Stone and Creem, delivered a wholly negative review of the show for the Village Voice:  (Click to enlarge) Rolling Stone, of all publications, reported about Peter's appearance at CBGB in its September 22, 1977 issue:  Audio from the show has been bootlegged over the years: The reviews and pieces above are courtesy of Dangerous Minds, which published an article about Peter's appearance at CBGB in 2016.
Micky, Mike, and Davy filmed a Kool-Aid commercial in February 1970 at a San Diego amusement park. Photos of Micky and Davy driving bumper cars will later appear on the back cover of Changes.  (Photo by Henry Diltz)  Here's a photo of Davy Jones from my collection that is dated 1973. I'm not sure of the location or the event. Anyone have any clues?  This photo is making the rounds, and it's currently being auctioned on eBay. I've never seen this one before!  (Photo courtesy of eBay) |
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