He writes BBC.
The Monkees achieved smashing success in the 1960s with a number of hit songs, as well as a popular TV series.
Michael Nesmith, of Texas, is now dead at the age of 78. A statement to the family of the 78-year-old said that he died on Friday morning at his home of natural causes.
– We ask that you respect our privacy at this time, and we thank you for the love and light you have shown him and us, as stated in the family statement.
Nesmith is behind songs like Mary and Mary, Circle Sky, Listen to the Band, and The Girl I Knew Somewhere.
Monkeys: Michael Nesmith with bandmates David Jones, Mickey Dolenz and Peter Turk. Here from California in November 1969. Photo: Chris Pizzello/AP/NTB
creative control
In 1967, Nesmith led a successful revolt against record producer Don Kirshner to give the group creative control over their albums, writing rolling stones.
The album’s headquarters and other albums were created by the group largely on their own.
In an interview with the magazine in 2012, Nesmith explained why he was so concerned about the group writing and recording their material despite the fact that they had already been a huge hit.
He said at the time: – We were children with our own taste in music, and we were much happier to sing the songs we liked and/or write, than the ones we were given.
– She gave better performance. It was more fun. Having this become a battlefield seemed strange to me, and I kind of think, what’s the problem, why don’t you let us play the songs we sing ourselves?
When The Monkees disbanded in the late 1960s, Smith debuted his first national band. But despite recording three classic country rock albums, it was difficult for the musician to break out of the shadow of his former band’s success.
new adventures
Nesmith spent the rest of the 1970s recording his solo albums. In 1977 he was promoted with Rio’s single. The music video, which was filmed in Europe and Australia, among other places, the song was a minor success.
In the 1980s, Nesmith was set to try his hand at the new waters, as he inherited a large sum of money from his parents which he invested in various companies and films such as Repo Man and Tapeheads.
He did not attend The Monkees’ reunion in the ’80s, leading to speculation that Nesmith was embarrassed about his pop past, something he himself denied to the Rolling Stones in 2013.
Reunion
However, Nesmith was due to return to The Monkees, and in 1996 he was with bandmate LP Justus on a short tour of the UK.
Reunion: Monkees during a UK reunion in 1996. Photo: Chris Pizzello/AP/NTB
The doors opened for him in 2012 to agree to return to the band permanently, when surviving band members toured in the wake of the death of bandmate Davy Jones.
The Monkees began their farewell tour earlier this year, giving their last show at the Greek Theater in Los Angeles on November 14.
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