Michael Nesmith

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Michael Nesmith
Born December 30, 1942
Houston, Texas

Robert Michael Nesmith, born December 30, 1942 in Houston, Texas, is an American musician, songwriter, actor, producer, novelist, businessman, and philanthropist. His mother was Bette Nesmith Graham. He has two sons, Christian Nesmith and Jonathan Nesmith, and a daughter, Jessica Nesmith, by his first wife Phyllis Barbour, and son Jason Nesmith by photographer/socialite Nurit Wilde.

Contents

[edit] Biography

In his teen years, Nesmith was an indifferent student, and an occasional prankster. An urban legend told about him is that one such prank with a firecracker went bad on Nesmith, who suffered a hand injury. It was suggested that he learn to play an instrument to help his dexterity, and music became his new interest, through guitar lessons. This is, in fact, false. See here: Snopes It was a different accident that injured his hand, and he did not learn guitar until his 20's.

After a tour of duty in the Air Force, Nesmith decided to try making a living with music, bought a better guitar with his parents' help, and joined a series of working bands, playing folk, country, and occasionally rock and roll. Another teen pastime, writing poetry, became the basis for original song lyrics, and after moving to Los Angeles with Phyllis and friend John London, he published a number of his own songs. Nesmith's "Mary, Mary" was recorded by the Paul Butterfield Blues Band, while "Different Drum" was recorded by Linda Ronstadt and the Stone Poneys. "Pretty Little Princess", written in 1965, was recorded by Frankie Laine and released as a single in 1968 on ABC Records. Later, "Some Of Shelly's Blues" and "Propinquity (I've Just Begun To Care)" were made popular by the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band on their album Uncle Charlie and His Dog Teddy in 1970.

Nesmith began his recording career in 1965, with a one-off single released on Edan Records. He followed this with two singles recorded under the name "Michael Blessing", released on Colpix Records – coincidentally also the label of Davy Jones, though they had not yet met.

[edit] The Monkees

Nesmith (far left) with the Monkees in a 1966 photo.
Nesmith (far left) with the Monkees in a 1966 photo.

From 1965 to early 1970, Nesmith and Jones were members of the pop rock band The Monkees, created for the television situation comedy of the same name. The only Monkee to learn of the audition from the famous press advertisement (asking for "four insane boys"), Nesmith won his role largely by appearing blasé when he auditioned, as if he were considering the studio, and not the other way around. He further distinguished himself by carrying a bag of laundry to be done on the way home, and wearing a wool cap to keep his hair out of his eyes, riding his motorcycle to the audition. Producers Bob Rafelson and Bert Schneider remembered "Wool Hat", and called Nesmith back. Once he was cast, Screen Gems bought his songs from their publishers, so they could be used in the show. Many of the songs Nesmith wrote for The Monkees, such as "The Girl I Knew Somewhere", "Mary, Mary", and "Listen to the Band" became minor hits for The Monkees.

As with the other Monkees, Nesmith came to be frustrated by the "manufactured image" and role imposed on them by the whole project, and wanted a bigger hand in matters. He was permitted to write and produce two songs per album, and his music was frequently featured in episodes of the series. However, Nesmith wanted a shot at making singles with the band – and to play on his own productions, which he had not been allowed to do.

While the Monkees did succeed in ousting supervisor Don Kirshner (with Nesmith punching a hole in a wall, to make a point with Kirshner and attorney Herb Moelis), and took control of their records and song choices, sales dipped. The band never overcame the credibility problems they faced when word got out (at Nesmith's instigation, calling the band's first non-studio press conference, where he called More of The Monkees "probably the worst record in the history of the world") that they had not played on their first records.

Nesmith also found Monkees concerts dissatisfying as a performer, with audiences made up largely of children and their parents, who expected to hear their hits first and foremost.

Nesmith had fought hard to have his songs featured more prominently, and the Monkees to really play, but years later seemed to discount both: "I wasn't the only musician, and I wasn't much of a musician. What I was able to do was write tunes; I could just sort of pull them out of a hat." He particularly trashed The Monkees 2nd album More of the Monkees as being "badly recorded, badly sung, marginally played, and they're weak tunes." He did not regret his Monkees days though, for the most part, continued to praise his band-mates (although not always getting along with them), and tended to like the fans that he met.

Nesmith's last Monkees commitment was a Kool-Aid commercial, early in 1970. With the band's fortunes continuing to fall, Nesmith asked to be released from his contract, and had to pay a default: "I had three years left...at $150,000 a year," which he had to pay back. He continued to feel the financial bite for years afterwards, telling Playboy in 1980 "I had to start telling little tales to the tax man while they were putting tags on the furniture."

[edit] Later career

Michael Nesmith in Nudie suit, circa 1971.
Michael Nesmith in Nudie suit, circa 1971.

Nesmith went on to record a number of critically acclaimed record albums. His first was with the First National Band, then the Second National Band, and finally as a solo artist. His earlier albums had a distinctly country music feel to them, anticipating the "alt-country" movement of the 1990s, and included such hits as "Silver Moon" and the perennial favorite, "Joanne". His 1977 album, From a Radio Engine to the Photon Wing, included the song "Rio", for which he created a very influential music video. In the mid-1970s he briefly collaborated as a songwriter with Linda Hargrove, resulting in the tune "I've Never Loved Anyone More," a hit for Lynn Anderson and recorded by many others, though Nesmith has yet to record the tune himself.

Exploring the world of video production further, he created a television program called Pop Clips for the Nickelodeon cable network. The concept was sold to Time Warner/Amex, who developed it into the MTV network. Nesmith won the first Grammy Award (1981) given for Video of the Year for his hour-long Elephant Parts and also had a short-lived series inspired by the video called "Television Parts". He founded a company, Pacific Arts Video, which was a pioneer in the home video market, producing and distributing a wide variety of videotaped programs. Pacific Arts eventually ceased operations after an acrimonious contract dispute with PBS over home video licensing rights and payments for several series, including Ken Burns' The Civil War. On February 3, 1999, a jury awarded Nesmith $46.8 million in compensatory and punitive damages, prompting his widely-quoted comment, "It's like finding your grandmother stealing your stereo. You're happy to get your stereo back, but it's sad to find out your grandmother is a thief." PBS appealed the ruling and a settlement was reached with the results kept confidential.

He was the executive producer for the movies Repo Man, Tapeheads, and Timerider, as well as his own solo recording and film projects. In 1998, Nesmith published his first novel, The Long Sandy Hair of Neftoon Zamora. His new album, Rays was released on April 4, 2006.

Since 1990, Nesmith has hosted the Council on Ideas, a gathering of intellectuals from different fields who are asked to brainstorm solutions to world problems.

Nesmith spent a decade as a board of trustees member and nominating member of the American Film Institute and is currently President and chairman of the board of trustees of the Gihon Foundation.

[edit] Trivia

  • Nesmith's mother, Bette Nesmith Graham, invented and patented opaque typewriter correction fluid, commonly known by the brand name "Liquid Paper" or "Wite-Out", in the 1950s. When she died, Nesmith inherited about half of her $50+ million estate.
  • Nesmith was good friends with late author Douglas Adams, whose body of work includes The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.
  • Nesmith is an avid archivist of early music videos, the bulk of which comprised the rotation of Video Concert Hall and early MTV.
  • The Tragically Hip took their name from a skit in Nesmith's long-form video Elephant Parts.
  • Nesmith is also known as 'papanez'
  • The back sleeve of "Tantamount to Treason.." contains the papa nes home-brew recipe (for beer). It also contains a warning and a line with the text "autoclaving turns this line brown".
  • Nesmith is exactly three years older than fellow Monkee Davy Jones

[edit] Discography

[edit] Albums

[edit] Compilations

  • Best Of Michael Nesmith (RCA), (1976)
  • Compilation (Pacific Arts/Island), (1978)
  • Complete (Pacific Arts/Island), (1993) (the first three "First National Band" albums)
  • Listen To The Band (BMG) (1997)
  • The Masters (Eagle) (1998)
  • 16 Original Classics (Collectables Records), (1999)
  • Silver Moon (Audiophile Classics), (2002)
  • Best Of: Original Hits (Paradiso Records), (2002) (same tracks as "Silver Moon")

[edit] Video

  • Rio and Cruisin' (1981)
  • Elephant Parts (1981) (released on DVD 2003)
  • The Television Parts Home Companion (1985)
  • Dr. Duck's Super-Secret All-Purpose Sauce (1986)
  • Nezmusic (1989)
  • Live At The Britt Festival (1992) (released on DVD 1999)

[edit] Bibliography

[edit] Books

    • n.b. books proper - not including The Prison and The Garden
  • Long Sandy Hair Of Neftoon Zamora (2004)

[edit] Audio Books

  • Long Sandy Hair Of Neftoon Zamora (2004) (with Michael reading the story)

[edit] External links

The Monkees
Micky Dolenz | Davy Jones | Michael Nesmith | Peter Tork
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