Michael Nesmith - Rarities

I'd be grateful for any information on these tracks (especially recording dates) that I got from a friend.

Wanderin'
Well, Well
Jump Down Turn Around (live)
Pretty Little Princess (sounds like demo)
Pretty Little Princess
Looks Like Rain
Color Of A Skin
Sleep, My Child
Don't Call On Me (not the Monkees version)
One And Twenty
All The Kings Horses
I've Been Searchin'
How Can You Kiss Me
Just A Little Love
Curson Terrace
The New Recruit
A Journey With Michael Blessing
Until It's Time For You To Go
What Seems To Be The Trouble, Officer?
Go Somewhere And Cry
Don't Cry Now
The First National Dance
Rose City Chimes
Silver Moon (3:51)
Cantata & Fugue in C&W
Smoke Smoke Smoke (That Cigarette)
Joanne (live - radio)
The Candidate (live - radio?)
Roll With The Flow (different mix)
Roll With The Flow, Propinquity (live, full band)
The World Is Golden Too (6:02 and 4:30)
Rio (four alternate mixes; 3:16, 4:33, 5:24, 3:25)
Rolling, Walking In The Sand (Infinite Rider outtakes?)
Flying, Grand Ennui, Capsule (live)
Joanne (radio?)
Baby Called, What's so Dusty About The Dustbowl, One Ton Tomato (TV? One Ton Tomato is a spoof of "Guantanamero")
Dr Duck's Super Secret All-Purpose Sauce
Some Of Shelley's Blues (radio)
Hills Of Time (4:40)
The Crippled Lion, Listen To The Band (live)
January (16:18, synth instrumental)

I was amazed that there's so much in the Nez Vault that I hadn't heard. And there's obviously more. If you have any information - thanks in advance!

 

That's a whole lotta requests on tracks of which that not much info exists.
I'll be happy to tackle a few.

Mike's first appearance on record. Plays guitar and whistles on friend/fellow Texan Denny Ezba 45. Later compiled on an Ezba compilation LP - 1980-ish.

Mike's first single on Highness Records. Probably less than 200 copies pressed. Circa 1963

There are 2 separate live sets from a San Antonio broadcast, one of which this is from. Each set had 3 songs. This song is actually called "Pick A Bale Of Cotton."

It is a demo performed in his bedroom. This comes from a much longer tape where Mike spills his thoughts into a microphone and talks about life, dating, politics & such. It's the only song he performs. Date unknown- between 1963 & 1965.

Stereo demos from a reel to reel tape commissioned by 40's - 00's crooner, Frankie Laine. There was a 5th song recorded, the folk classic, The Fox. It exists only as a partial track drums/bass (left channel?) and the last few notes the right channel comes in. Shame it's not complete.

Also commissioned for Frankie Laine. These come from musty dusty acetates. There are several very different mixes of How Can You Kiss Me & Just A Little Love, two of which became Mike's 2nd 45. Released on Laine's Omnibus Label. Laine recorded Nesmith's Pretty Little Princess on the ABC label, released as a 45. There is also a mix of I've Been Searchin' as an instrumental.

B-side of the semi-legit Edan label 45 from 1965. A Side is Just A Little Love, the B-side is credited to Mike & Tony. Mike has said in an interview that this is him, but doesn't know who Tony is.

Both are performances from Dick Clark's American Bandstand, taped off TV.
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Thank you for your time! Very interesting. Do you think my guess is right as to the Infinite Rider outtakes?

 

Those are outtakes from 'Infinite Rider' , you'd right about that. Those popped up a while back as offered by Videoranch.com. Sound quality is so, so. I was really hoping that these would end up on the Demon Edsel remasters released last year - but no bonus tracks were available on those.

The World Is Golden Too (6:02 and 4:30) - this is from a 1975 soundtrack album 'Blue Angels' - I believe. Lp version and single edit. I recently sent this Mp3 to Nez because I had asked him about it during chat in VR3D but he didn't know what I was talking about. So his wife Victoria got the email and played the song for Nez. She said at first he said 'I've never heard that, don't know who it is singing' - LOL. He then noticed that it was undeniably him singing. He still didn't recall recording it but had a good ideal who the songwriter was - and he was right.

Flying, Grand Ennui, Capsule (live), The Crippled Lion, Listen To The Band (live)
-These were bonus tracks from 'Live At The Palais' from Videoranch. Live from Armadillo World Headquarters concert. I'd have to re-read the liner notes for any further info. Flying is a separate mp3 available on Videoranch.com, not on 'Live At The Palais'. http://www.videoranch.com/Merchant2/merchant.mv?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=VRS&Product_Code=100-035

The First National Dance, Rose City Chimes, Cantata & Fugue in C&W,
Smoke Smoke Smoke (That Cigarette)
-These were available as bonus cuts on the Camden two-fers from the UK.

Roll With The Flow (different mix)
Roll With The Flow, Propinquity (live, full band)
-These are just live versions found on 'Live At The Palais'

Baby Called, What's so Dusty About The Dustbowl, One Ton Tomato (TV? One Ton Tomato is a spoof of "Guantanamero"),
Dr Duck's Super Secret All-Purpose Sauce
-These are straight from TV/Video from 'Television Parts' and 'Dr. Duck's Super Secret All-Purpose Sauce'

Some Of Shelley's Blues (radio)
-This is from 'Later with Gregg Kinnear' - late night talk show

Hills Of Time (4:40)
-This is from a CD single, same as on 'The Garden' - just maybe edited slightly at the beginning and the end, since the songs on 'The Garden' all run together.

January (16:18, synth instrumental)
-This was offered on the Videoranch site. Just Nez experimenting. I think it is from 2001.

Silver Moon (3:51)
-This is from the QUAD 8-track. Extended version.

Don't Cry Now
-I believe this is just from 'Wichita Train Whistle'. Should be instrumental.


I believe I have the same exact set. As for - Rio (four alternate mixes; 3:16, 4:33, 5:24, 3:25) - not sure if there really are that many alternate mixes. There is the one from the album 'From A Radio Engine To The Photon Wing', there is one from 'Newer Stuff' CD (also 'Pacific Arts' CD/DVD - same version) and there is a itunes exclusive remaster from a few years back (just heavier bass) - but I dont think this set has that itunes version.


Hope that was helpful in someway.

Be neat to take this thread further and have people list any other rarities that are available or at least known to exist. I know some where mentioned in Andrew Sandovals 'Monkees' book ....

 

Is "Dr. Duck's Super Secret All-Purpose Sauce" really from the same TV show as One Ton Tomato? The sound quality is much better. It's a great track, isn't it? Got a lot of that Monkees good-time humor in it.

It would be very useful if this thread became a definitive Nez Rarities listing. I'd be prepared to do some editing and collating, but my knowledge is next to zilch.

 

Another Nez mystery is a recording circa 1968 called "My Community." Supposedly it's a demo for another artist that Nez was working with. Tiny Tim recorded it too!

 

I like this thread a lot. For those wondering if they should seek out underground "rarities" CD's like this for the pre-Monkees material: I asked the guys at Videoranch about these early tapes (to see if Mike had his own copies of any of them) and learned that A) he does have quite of few, and B) he has no plans on releasing them. Mind you, this was five years ago when I asked, but....

 

There's been a lot of debate about that song -- last I remember, consensus was that it's not Nesmith. It was found among Peter Tork's acetates.

 

The Dr. Duck's theme is a full studio recording. "One Ton Tomato" is just the soundtrack from a sketch from Television Parts, filmed on a soundstage, not a recording studio, which accounts for the difference in sound quality.

Sandoval said in an earlier thread here that it's not Nez.

 

Positively not Nez. Kinda sounds like him, but it's clearly not. Anyone who thinks it is Nez, needs to brush up on Nezmusic cuz ya apparently don't know him as well as ya think ya do. Cool tune, tho!

 

Nez in his teens

While I realize the rarities of the thread are "audio" oriented, I needed to find an existing Nez thread to post these high school yearbook photos. Enjoy!


1961

1961
1959

1960

 

Photo rarities are fine, too!

 

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Came across the soundtrack he did for the film TIMERIDER, which is interesting.

 

I realize this is not a new thread, but I enjoyed reading about the Nesmith rarities. It sure would be nice to get the soundtrack for the "Northville Cemetary Massacre". I know there was never an official release, but the music is great. I understand Nesmith did it for free.

Here's one for the experts out there: I have a friend who knows the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band and they gave him a box of tapes to sort through (I guess they couldn't be bothered). Among the assorted outtakes etc...was a Michael Nesmith gem called "Joys Of Your Youth". He must have done it when the Dirt Band did those Nesmith songs around '69 or '70. The Nez would later reshape this tune into "In the Afternoon" on "Tantamount To Treason". I've never heard of it circulating in any form and I'm probably only one of two people who has a copy of it.