“A key figure is often left out of this story. The omission might seem odd, given that he was a member of one of the decade’s most successful bands: the Monkees, assembled by television producers for the comedy show of the same name. It made no odds that Michael Nesmith, like fellow Monkee Peter Tork (who died in February), was a product of the folk-music scene. His five-year tenure as a teen idol in a “manufactured” pop group (a dismissive phrase which overlooks how all groups are manufactured in one way or another, as well as Mr Nesmith’s revolt against that interference) would define him in the mind of the public, while his subsequent recording career would go overlooked.”
and
“Mr Nesmith became notably less prolific as other interests intervened: it took him two decades to issue as much music as he did in those first three years. The video clip he made for ‘Rio’, one of his better-known songs, led him to devise a show called ‘PopClips’ for Nickelodeon, a children’s cable channel. Acquired by TimeWarner, ‘PopClips’ became the basis for MTV, the standalone channel that transformed music, and the music business, in the 1980s.” [WOW! Ed.]
Michael Nesmith’s back catalogue is a long-hidden treasure trove, The Economist, April 12, 2019
I was more of a Davy girl, but, Mike… well, okay.
Aw, and RIP Peter Tork.
