I wrote this guide because I realize that such a massive catalog from a versatile musician can be daunting and I think people have wrong impressions of Nez's music based on some of his later, more technologically-driven music (which can be crap). Before you think that Michael Nesmith's solo stuff is all robots, jacuzzis, and chow mein, please read on because although some of his shit is out there, there is some amazing music to be had. The real dilemma is what genre to categorize his music as. Nez is credited with being the father of country rock, and most of his early post-Monkees music reflects this. However, in the late 70s and 80s, Nez got into experimenting with samba, techno, and even rap. Michael himself always said he was uncomfortable with the term "country" at all to describe his music (for the record, he likes Ford pickups, but he hates the twang), but it's undeniable that his music was greatly influenced by Hank Williams and other country greats of the 40s and 50s.

But before we get into cataloging his entire collection, let's subdivide it into his early, early stuff, early stuff and his later stuff.

Early early stuff - Before Nez was Mike the Monkee, he was a struggling guitarist called Michael Blessing (if you don't know how he got the name, watch any interview Mike's ever given and be enlightened). After releasing a single under Mike & John (London) & Bill (Sleeper) called How Can You Kiss Me, Mike got a record deal on the Colpix label and released a single called Until It's Time For You To Go (1966), which sounds like a more melodic version of something you might have heard by Bobby Vinton. Mike didn't score too greatly with that, but it kind of sums up his pre-Monkees days in which he was a self-described failure. There's a great album of rarities out there that has a bunch of home recordings and demos from his early days. I can't advise you on where to buy it though because I myself obtained it though completely legal means.

Early stuff - If you love Mike's Monkees music (Papa Gene's Blues, Sunny Girlfriend, Tapioca Tundra), you need to listen to his music from 1968-1975. (Or if you're a big fan of over-pronouced "a's" and "the's," this shit is for you.) The only exceptions to this era are The Wichita Train Whistle Sings (1968) and The Prison (1975), which are both instrumental albums. (Wichita is bizarro-world because it's stuff you've heard before, but done in unrecognizable instrumental form.. not for the faint of heart.) The highlights of this era are definitely the three albums Nez made as Michael Nesmith and the First National Band, Magnetic South, Nevada Fighter, and Loose Salute. Much of the music on these three albums was previewed in the Nez-Monkees material and some demos are even included as bonus tracks on Monkees reissues and the Missing Links series. The sound of these records is definitely responsible for the country rock title that Nez holds, and it's his finest sound, in my opinion. He is doing what comes naturally to him.

Later stuff - Unfortunately, Nez all but retired from music at the end of the 70s, meaning he stopped putting out albums until 1989's The Newer Stuff, which will be discussed later. Subsequent albums include The Garden (1994) a sequel/companion to 1975's The Prison, Tropical Campfires (1992) and Rays (2005). To be honest, I'm not 100% familiar with his later catalog, frankly because I think a lot of it is dated and crappy. As much as I love Nez's solo stuff, I like to stay in the "Early Stuff" range. However, I will say that what I've heard of Rays is sort of a melding of his early and later stuff, but it's still not up to the high, high bar he set for himself with the FNB albums. If you want a good experience with some of Nez's later/newer stuff, I recommend Tropical Campfires, which is by and large a quality chunk of work.

A NOTE ABOUT THE LATER STUFF - One reason why Nez's later solo stuff is kind of spotted and crappy is because he was busy inventing MTV in the 80s and early 90s and didn't do too much of his own stuff (for you youngsters, MTV was once a place to watch music videos as opposed to "Tila Tequila Collect STDs Like Trading Cards"). He was highly involved with the pioneering of music video production and technology. If you're a newer fan, I highly recommend you check out Elephant Parts, which is a great film and won the first long-form music video Grammy. If you want to check out the music in it, some of the tracks are on Infinite Rider on the Big Dogma (1979) including Cruisin' which I affectionately call The Sunset Sam Song haha.

I'm going to add another category on here for Live music just so I can talk about how awesome Live at the Britt Festival (1990) is. It was the first Nez solo record I purchased outside of Videoranch when I was about, oh, 13 or so I guess. I played that thing CONSTANTLY for a long time, and although I haven't listened to it in forever, I remember it having incredible sound and it's Nez playing his hits at his finest. Definitely worth checking out. I think hearing Micheal Nesmith live always reminds me that he was above all a brilliant musician, and it's sometimes hard to remember that when you focus on The Monkees.

To sum up this section, I will say that if you want just the basic good stuff, Nez released two different compilation albums simply titled The Older Stuff and The Newer Stuff, which both contain material that's kind of self-explanitory. The Older Stuff, unfortunately, is not available on iTunes (get it from Videoranch), but The Newer Stuff is. Even though the material from The Newer Stuff isn't the greatest, it does include the song Tahiti Condo, which never fails to make me LOL.

Okay, now that we've done that, we can do something that's perhaps a bit more abridged for those of you who have stuck with me this far and don't want to gouge out your eyes with a blunt instrument. This is kind of an iTunes shopping list if you will. Although you should just go buy The Older Stuff and Magnetic South AT LEAST, these are, in my opinion, the highlights of Nez's solo stuff.

FOR THE BEGINNER

Until It's Time For You To Go and How Can You Kiss Me- Obviously a good place to start, at the beginning.

Some of Shelley's Blues - A great jumping-off point for those of you who are only familiar with Mike's Monkees stuff because a demo of it was included in a Missing Links album and it sounds very late-Monkees.

Nine Times Blue - Same reason as Shelley's, and a demo of it was included as a bonus track on the Headquarters reissue. But this version has a creepy whispering voice in it, or am I the only one who notices this? Haha

The Crippled Lion - Also included on a Missing Links compilation.

Harmony Constant - Country-Nez at his finest.

I Fall to Pieces - If you grew up coloring on your babysitter's kitchen floor with markers and listening to K-Country on the radio like I did, this song will forever be nostalgic for you.

Mama Nantucket - You can almost picture the Monkees romping around to this little ditty.

Joanne - Obviously, Nez's biggest hit post-Monkees.

Roll With the Flow - Kind of an acoustic sequel to Oklahoma Backroom Dancer.

Release - Simple song, but oh so beautiful.

Total Control - A way to say you've heard Nez's later music without having to be subjected to the worst of it.

ADVANCED LISTENER

Grand Ennui - A track about Nez drunk driving. Early hints of what is to come in his later career.

Nevada Fighter - Title track to the FNB's second album. Great song.

Texas Morning - Gorgeous, melodic song that sounds very Carpenters-esque.

Beyond the Blue Horizon - Nez belts his guts out on this Magnetic South closer.

Silver Moon - Falsetto, sighing Nez. Hot. However, this is the point where his pronounced "the's" is going to reaaaally begin to grate on you.

Continuing - One of my own personal favorite Nez songs. So good. This is the kind of song that reminds you that he has a truly beautiful and pure voice.

Two Different Roads - Another song that is semi-throwback to late-Monkees.

Mama Rocker - If you're a big reverb enthusiast, boy, are you in for a treat.

Rio - Dipping your toes into the extremeties of Nez's late career. Basically a song about a man who can't make up his damn mind. After you see Elephant Parts, you won't be able to listen to this song without seeing the video.

Cruisin' - You have to at least hear it once.

Tahiti Condo - Because it's a souped up novelty song, haha.

So in conclusion, I'm going to summarize this up for those of you who have skipped to the end hoping for a summary (you got lucky this time, fools):

1. Buy every track that I listed above.

2. Anything by Michael Nesmith and the First National Band is good stuff.

3. Magnetic South will change your life.

4. Nez's newer/later music isn't for every one but if you can grow to love it, I'm convinced you can achieve level 5 on Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs.

5. If you hate country in all of it's forms, run away now.

I hope you all enjoyed that and found it enlightening. I'm sure I'll update it from time to time and if you want to add something to this, feel free to email me. And if you don't think Nez's later stuff is total ass, don't flame me because I can make you cry. Trust me.