| And the Hits Just Keep on Comin' | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | August 1972 | |||
| Recorded | March 1972 | |||
| Genre | Country rock | |||
| Length | 33:26 | |||
| Label | RCA Victor | |||
| Producer | Michael Nesmith | |||
| Michael Nesmith chronology | ||||
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And the Hits Just Keep on Comin' is an album by Michael Nesmith. Recorded for RCA Records, it was his fifth solo album after leaving The Monkees. The album was recorded and released in 1972; all ten tracks had been composed by Nesmith prior to and during his time as a member of The Monkees.
The album features Nesmith on vocals and acoustic guitar and long-time accompanist Red Rhodes on pedal steel guitar. Nesmith has stated that the title of the album is a reaction to the record label repeatedly asking him to write more hit songs and features Nesmith's own version of his tune "Different Drum", a hit for The Stone Poneys featuring Linda Ronstadt in 1967. [1]
The version of "Different Drum" found here features four verses as opposed to the three in Linda Ronstadt's version; the verses in the Ronstadt version are the song's first, the second, the bridge, and then the fourth. "Different Drum" made a brief unofficial debut on The Monkees episode "Too Many Girls" when Mike, posing as a folk singer suffering from stage fright, butchers its lyrics while playing the guitar.
Nesmith and Rhodes recorded an instrumental, "Cantata & Fugue In C&W," for the album but it was left off.
Several songs (notably "Keep On") reflect a theme common to Nesmith's country-flavored tracks — the theme of never letting fear get the best of you. The liner notes to the album are signed "Papa Nes".
Reflecting on the album in 2019, Nesmith said, “It was at a time when we were all fast and loose and playing music as hard as we could. It was a time of altered states and new ideas, and in a new way, we’re in that time again. Politics have gone askew, like they did then. This was in 1972, and things were absolutely crazy then, and they’re absolutely crazy now.” [2]
And the Hits Just Keep on Comin' was later re-released on the Pacific Arts label and also reissued on compact disc by RCA/BMG in 2000 coupled with Pretty Much Your Standard Ranch Stash . [3]
Nesmith performed the album on tour with Pete Finney playing pedal steel guitar in 2019. [2]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [4] |
In a retrospective review for Allmusic, critic Mark Deming called the album "truly inspired" and wrote "Nesmith and Rhodes use the album's spare instrumentation to their advantage, with the performances both empathetic and intimate, and Rhodes' masterful steel gives these songs a graceful resonance few full bands could muster... modest in approach but very satisfying in execution, practically defining the phrase "happy accident."" [4]
All songs by Michael Nesmith.
Robert Michael Nesmith was an American musician, songwriter, actor, producer, and novelist. He was best known as a member of the pop rock band the Monkees and co-star of the TV series The Monkees (1966–1968). His songwriting credits include "Different Drum", which became a hit for Linda Ronstadt and the Stone Poneys.
Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn & Jones Ltd. is the fourth album by the Monkees. It was released on November 6, 1967, when the Monkees were exerting more control over their music and had started to play many of the instruments themselves, something that their record company had previously forbidden. Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn & Jones Ltd. sold more than three million copies and was also the band's fourth consecutive album to reach number one on the U.S. Billboard 200.
Headquarters is the third album issued by the Monkees and the first with substantial songwriting and instrumental performances by members of the group itself, rather than by session musicians and professional songwriters. After a struggle for creative autonomy with their record label, the group had been allowed, to a degree, to record by themselves. Headquarters reached No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart and was certified double platinum in the United States with sales of more than two million copies within the first two months of release. It peaked at No. 2 on the UK charts. It is included in the 2006 book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.
Instant Replay is the seventh studio album by the Monkees. Issued 11 months after the cancellation of the group's NBC television series, it is also the first album released after Peter Tork left the group and the only album of the original nine studio albums that does not include any songs featured in the TV show.
"Different Drum" is a song written by American singer-songwriter Michael Nesmith in 1964. It was first recorded by the northern bluegrass band The Greenbriar Boys and included on their 1966 album Better Late than Never!. Nesmith offered it to the Monkees, but the producers of the TV show, who had wide control over the group's musical output early on, turned him down.
Loose Salute is the second solo album by American singer-songwriter Michael Nesmith during his post-Monkees career. Released by RCA Records in 1970 and dedicated to Tony Richland, it peaked at No. 159 on the Billboard Pop Albums charts.
Nevada Fighter is the third solo album by American singer-songwriter Michael Nesmith during his post-Monkees career. The album is also the third and final album with the First National Band. Released by RCA Records in 1971, the LP failed to chart in the top 200 but bubbled under at #218. The lead off single "Nevada Fighter" peaked at No. 70 on the Billboard charts and No. 67 in Canada.
Tantamount to Treason Volume 1 is Michael Nesmith's fourth solo album during his post-Monkees career. Released in 1972, Tantamount To Treason is the only album Michael Nesmith recorded and released with the Second National Band. An assumed sequel was said to have been recorded but was never released. Even so, Nesmith has personally stated that a follow up 'never happened and all rumors are false'.
Magnetic South is the first solo album by American singer-songwriter Michael Nesmith during his post-Monkees career. Released by RCA Records in 1970, the album peaked at Number 143 on the Billboard Pop Albums charts and Number 49 in Canada. Magnetic South is considered an early example of country rock. A single, " Joanne/One Rose" was taken from the album and reached Number 21 on the Billboard singles charts and Number 6 on the Adult Contemporary charts, and also reached #5 on the Australian chart. It was the highest position of Nesmith's solo career.
Pretty Much Your Standard Ranch Stash is American singer-songwriter Michael Nesmith's sixth album of his post-Monkees career. Released in September 1973, it was his final album for RCA Records and did not chart.
Missing Links is a compilation album of rare and previously unreleased songs by the Monkees, issued by Rhino Records in 1987. It is the first volume of a three-volume set, followed by Missing Links Volume Two in 1990 and Missing Links Volume Three in 1996.
Missing Links Volume Three is a compilation album of rare and previously unreleased songs by The Monkees, issued by Rhino Records in 1996. It is the third and final volume of a three-volume set, preceded by Missing Links in 1987 and Missing Links Volume Two in 1990.
Missing Links Volume Two is a compilation album of rare and previously unreleased songs by the Monkees, issued by Rhino Records in 1990. It is the second volume of a three-volume set, preceded by Missing Links in 1987 and followed by Missing Links Volume Three in 1996.
The Wichita Train Whistle Sings is the de facto first solo album by Michael Nesmith, although the artist credited on the initial release is actually "The Wichita Train Whistle". It was recorded while Nesmith was still a member of the Monkees, and peaked at No. 144 on the Billboard Pop Albums charts.
Orville J. Rhodes, better known as Red Rhodes or O. J. Rhodes, was an American pedal steel guitarist. His mother taught him to play the Dobro at the age of five, but at the age of fifteen he switched to the steel guitar. He was a boxer and an oil company engineer before he settled into music. He moved to Los Angeles in 1960 and became a session musician.
Live at the Britt Festival is a live album by Michael Nesmith, released in 1999. It was recorded live at the Britt Festival in Jacksonville, Oregon, on June 19, 1992. To prepare for the concert, Nesmith conducted a limited U.S. tour which featured a similar set list as the Britt Festival.
Linda Ronstadt, Stone Poneys and Friends, Vol. III is the third and final studio album by The Stone Poneys, released on April 29, 1968. Singer Linda Ronstadt would release her first solo album the following year.
"Joanne" is a song written and performed by Michael Nesmith, his only hit song as a solo artist. The single was issued by RCA Records in mid 1970, from the album Magnetic South, the first album released by Nesmith and The First National Band after he left The Monkees. In the United States, the song peaked at No. 21 on the Billboard Top 100 on 3 October 1970. It went to No. 4 in Canada, No. 3 in Australia, and No. 1 in New Zealand. In the U.S., it was the most successful solo chart hit for any member of The Monkees.
Movies of the Mind is a live album from Michael Nesmith. The album documents Nesmith's 2013 2-month tour of the United States.
John A. Ware is an American drummer and percussionist known primarily for his session and live performance work.