Biography
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Years Active
1970 – 1972 (2 years)
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Members
- Joe Osborn
- Michael Nesmith
The First National Band was an American country group led by singer-songwriter Michael Nesmith, formerly of The Monkees. TFNB was an important early proponent of country rock, adapting an idiosyncratic, genre-busting aesthetic. The group consisted of Nesmith (guitar, vocals), Red Rhodes (steel slide guitar), John Ware (bass guitar), and John London (drums). The group had two successful singles, "Joanne" and "Silver Moon", peaking at #21 and #42 on the Billboard Hot 100, respectively.
By the time of The Monkees' dissolution, Nesmith had amassed a considerable backlog of original songs; some songs had been recorded by The Monkees, such as "Listen to the Band" and "Propinquity (I've Just Begun to Care)", with an eccentric touch of genre experimentation added to traditional country sounds. Eager to experiment further, once he had bought his way out of his Monkees contract, Nesmith founded the First National Band in 1970; in their brief existence, they released an album trilogy – Magnetic South, Loose Salute (both in 1970), and Nevada Fighter (1971) – each bearing one of the colors of the flag of the United States.
This trilogy saw TFNB tackle Nashville standards such as "The One Rose (That's Left in My Heart)" and "I Fall to Pieces", alongside Nesmith's original compositions, filled with impressionistic lyrics and ironic humor. Each new album was progressively more eclectic in its approach than the last. Despite the singles success of "Joanne", TFNB did not attain much commercial success due to playing in the United Kingdom at the time; the reason for this was to avoid the label of still being a "Monkees guy" in the United States.
Harmony within the group began to break apart during the recording sessions for the final trilogy installment, leading to London and Ware leaving the group before the album was released in 1971. Nesmith would later form a Second National Band which retained Red Rhodes as a member alongside members of Elvis Presley's band at the time; their sole release, Tantamount to Treason, Volume One, was a critical and commercial flop. Subsequently he would also record a few solo albums with Rhodes as his lone accompagneur.
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