Michael Nesmith - "Magnetic South."

And you thought that he was just a Monkee, huh? Well, you're wrong! Good old Papa Nez practically invented a little genre in music called Country Rock, and certainly made it a hell of a lot more tuneful than Dylan could ever hope to. And no question that he made it far less boring than that snore-fest known as The Eagles. Michael Nesmith is the high priest of the Yodel and Southern Drawl backwards hipness to this very day, but I like totally digress or something. We all know the very best and most enduring cuts by The Monkees weren't penned by Neil Diamond, hell no! Cuts like "Sweet Young Thing" and "You Just May Be The One" are what it's all about, my babies. What I am going to do for you at this particular juncture is take the time to give you a brief overview of Mike's second record that was given the title of "Magnetic South," his first record is not really legit in my mind, since it was just some little Country leaning side project deal he recorded while still very much a Monkee Man.

Check it, can you believe that this chap used to refer to himself as Michael Blessing? 'Tis true as all get out, but his short-lived existence as the Jesus of the '60's Folk revival was not destined to last, and so, the rich Texan creep, the son of the woman who invented Liquid Paper got bit by the acting bug real horrorshow upon his relocation to Los Angeles, and a Monkee was born. His background in music was quite useful, with Mike being a more than apt rhythmic guitarist, songwriter and vocalist. And so, The Monkees did in part play at least some of the instrumentation on their records, and by the time that 1967's "Headquarters" saw the light of day, they were very much in full control of their unique blend of Bubblegum Pop and Country-tinged Psychedelia. Even before Papa Nez was a Monkee Man, he had some success in the songwriting department in the mid '60's when a tune he penned called "Mary, Mary" became a hit for a chap named Paul Butterfield. Later, the Stone Poneys had a big-ass hit with a tune Mike penned called "Different Drum."

Now that you have a better idea of this underrated talent, let's discuss "Magnetic South" in some detail. Graham Parsons don't mean a thing to me, see? Michael Nesmith is diverse as hell, and here comes the REAL Country Rock! Do you remember 1970? Dig, after tiring of being a Monkee and being forced to use the restroom after Davy Jones and all the goofy episodes of the TV series that ruled late '60's teenage life; Mike was then more than damn ready to put on the cowboy boots and a shit-eating grin to match, while making clear to all listeners that we would be going for a little ride in the motherfuckin' country, playa! This groovy little opus opens with the Jazzy Acoustic Rock vibes of "Calico Girlfriend." Keep in mind that Mike has a smooth vocal delivery and a top-notch backing band of veteran Country players referred to on this and subsequent albums as The First National Band. Track one blends seamlessly into the trippy Folk ballad stylings of "Nine Times Blue," and right from there we are transported to the fun little Rocker called "Little Red Rider." One musician in particular on this album is just astounding, and I am referring to a steel guitarist by the name of Red Rhodes. This is not typical steel guitar playing by any stretch that one might hear on a George Jones record, as with Mike and his music, the instrument is put to great use in terms of creating a majestic quality and it is almost as if it is actually used at times as a replacement for what would normally be a lead guitar break on a traditional Rock song.

Mike even landed a bit of chart success as a solo act with the somber Folk of "Joanne." To make clear, this is not some novelty artist. And it is especially by this point that Mike knew his way around a recording studio. In fact, it is quite likely that Mike essentially produced this record himself in his deluxe home studio, of which, the late Folk Pop artist Judee Sill recorded most of the tracks for her unreleased third album. Michael Nesmith and his First National Band would go on to produce critically enjoyed Country Rock variations until the end of the '70's, at which point Mike focused upon motion picture and video production, and quite probably invented a little something called MTV as well. Since his days as a big cheese wearing the goofy cowboy garb, Papa Nez has kept more than busy creatively as well, as he produced the hilarious cult film of the '80's called "Tapeheads," and promoting his own unique musical humor with the curious "Elephant Parts" video extravaganza (Now available on DVD!). In more recent years the occasional album has been released for apparently just the hell of it and PBS has been sued, most recent updates on the Brainy Monkee can be found here: Video Ranch.

Zappa meets Papa Nez:



It's all good...