Label Review.
Recorded at McCabe's in Santa Monica, CA, on August 18th, 1973. The CD edition has 1 bonus track not on the vinyl. 7a Records. Also available on vinyl picture disc.
Our Overview.
Recorded at McCabe’s in Santa Monica, CA, on August 18th, 1973, “Cosmic Partners – The McCabe’s Tapes” is a rare and previously unreleased concert recording featuring Nesmith and a small coterie of fellow musicians, including long time recording partner and pedal steel player Red Rhodes.
This recording is from a mini concert tour that was in support of what was to be Nesmith’s final record on the RCA label, ‘Pretty Much Your Standard Ranch Stash’. The dates would reunite him with the remnant players from Nesmith’s Countryside label, under Elektra. Consisting of a rhythm section featuring Danny Lane on drums and Colin Cameron on bass, and the legendary O.J. “Red” Rhodes on pedal steel, this would be the last performance of its kind and the beginning of an almost Homeric journey for Nesmith.
On the heels of an inordinately successful Monkees TV show, the hangover from overnight celebrity, and the disappointments that so often follow such ascents, this forgotten and almost lost board mix in all its unvarnished glory (remastered here by Christian Nesmith, Michael’s oldest son) stands as a ready witness to the spirit of a man full of heartache, a performer bruised by the claws of the star- maker machine, and an artist whose songs have become touchstones for our lives. What you hear is exactly as it happened with no overdubs or audio mumbo jumbo. The perfection you hear is totally for real.