Michael Nesmith: Movies of the Mind

7.5

This was going to be a better package, but the vinyl that came with the super deluxe box set was cut in half. Side Two is live, and terrific. Side One is new material from Mike Nesmith, and falls short of a successful comeback from such an iconic songwriter. The new songs are lackluster, with his voice straining high notes over what sounds like elevator Muzak. I think the fans expected some country rock from Papa Nez, but got something closer to Barry Manilow. As stated, the live portion is great, and the set comes with a double live disc compilation of recordings from various shows of his recent tour. I would say, the CD should have been pressed to vinyl, and the new songs to CD. It's really a let down for Nez fans. And for the price, well... Mike Nesmith was always a sneaky cash cow. It's one of his true gifts, along side his unique talent for songwriting, of which he has seemed to fall from, or rather he's just not in a country rock zone anymore.