Mike Nesmith*Long Black Veil*

[wl825510]

I tell you Don Kirshner was full of crap saying this man did not have the talent to make it

[SpiceyMcHaggis1]

@hardtimes9, I love this song. And I really like a song I research it to know all about it. I probably have or 8 versions on my iPod. On a another note my brother swear up and down that this is an old Irish Ballad a traditional song he says. even tho I try to educate on the real origins.

[ArashiFan4Ever]

I like this. STILL like Johnny Cash's version better, but this is cool.

[Rcksaltnnails]

I have always loved this song, and loved most versions of it. I still have found that John Anderson's and The Country Gentlemen's versions are my favs.

[Trace631]

I recognized the Nesmith name, I really didn't know what this would sound like; I am patial to J. Cash's on this song; but Nesmith holds his own with his interpretation. Glad I listened too it!

[wdchefdave56]

Sounds like an older tune... but, even Mick sang it like a proud country boy some time back... you'd think it came from the "Old World"... but, it is "homegrown" indeed!

Not a fan of "Lefty", yet "Amazing Grace" and "Just As I Am" do come to mind.

[terrisonb]

Wow, I did not know that Mike had ever recorded this great old ballad. He really does a good job on it. I just recorded an amature version of this song. Stop by and check it out sometime.

[STP43FAN1]

@joe01979 Huh?

[Zepster77]

@joe01979 huh?

[bgrass11]

Great Version and I am sure He was listening to Bill Monroe back then. Bill's High Lonesome version to this day still pierces the soul. I also loved the Johnny Cash version.

[primigravida]

I can't help but notice the lack of Peter Tork in the group shots... :(

[caerphillykid]

This is a most reverential song,and this version might even trump The Band's version. I still treasure the evening we had with Nez at the Palmerston North Opera House (NZ) circa 1975. An evening that he and the audience, by an enduring spoken agreement, vowed would never be forgotten!

[TheCurrencyLass]

Thats how I like folk music ! Chills down the spine. I can all but hear that trapdoor open.

[dandamagetoo]

I used to write with a guy named john hurley. He introduced me to marijohn a time or two. It was a songwriting education just listening to them talk

[kookes100]

shite version wolfetones is better

[coomason5]

Never heard this version until now. Very good video. Thanks for sharing.

[RebelStangII]

Rock-On!

[flinch1911]

I first learned this song on guitar as a teen after hearing johny cash's version. But man this one sends chills up my spine. God bless ya Mike!

[ChrisDan915]

The wonderful stuff I come across on youtube!

[idiotic76]

I first heard this song for the first time in 1983. I bought an old Johnny Rivers album at a Salvation Army store. I had never heard of any of the songs on the album. The Johnny Rivers version of this song blew me away, man! LIKE, FAR OUT!

[IStoleYourPotatoes]

Lefty Frizzell did this song better than anybody ever has or ever will. Chill bump raising, plaintive performance. It will make you believe he is the man that has been hung and is speaking from the grave.

[ERB4511]

"Long Black Veil" is NOT an "old folk tune". It was written by Danny Dill and Marijohn Wilkin in 1959, and first recorded by Lefty Frizzell that same year. It was a deliberate attempt by Dill and Wilkin to write a song that sounded as if it were a traditional folk song that had been around for generations. They obviously succeeded, since only a few years later artists like Mike Nesmith were referring to it as "an old traditional tune".

[IStoleYourPotatoes]

Bravo! It looks like Nesmith would know this if we do!

[jodimelville]

Anyone know when this performance was recorded? Wikipedia (reliable source, I know :P) has it listed circa 1992.

[akf2005]

I would have given anything to have sit and watched this live!

[pacatrue]

This bluebird cafe recording has really gotten around.

[basserase]

I hated that song; until now. That was the best version I've ever heard. It really felt right.

[HorrorSecurityGuard]

Great song! Better than Cash's IMO.

[KOOLDAVE1953]

I met the Monkees back in '68 when they came through my city..matter of fact, we all went out to supper together & had a good time. Nice fellas.

[DMMP28]

I heard Johnny Cash sing this song and liked it better. But Mike did a really good job singing it too. :)

[snufulufikus]

Wow, i just heard this song for the first time 2day. What a track!!!

[norski54]

I first heard Burl Ives sing this in the early 60's , but this still my favorite version.

[texican1950]

Kinda of tells you the depth of Mike Nesmith dosen't it. More than the cartoon that was the Monkees

[STP43FAN1]

@texican1950 Indeed. The Monkees succeeded because they had the youthful charm of a classic cartoon but also the flavor of adult sophistication.

[Dixie1947]

Great song by Mike, thanks for posting this.

[almadora]

"...in all great art, there's a little murder.." very true.

[JigsawDiva]

Where did this come from? I've always liked this song, and of course I love Mike. I would love to have recordings of that gorgeous man singing bluegrass

[KitsunegariBlu]

It's a cover of an old folk tune I'm sure, the 1st time I heard it was a week ago by Lefty Frizzell (look to the left to find a version to hear).

I've always been fond of MN's voice & guitar playing, I like the way he did this, but I'm partial to Lefty's & prefer it because he had more time to devote to the storey & his was a more haunting/melancholy rendition. Both are good though.

Thier styles are just different, even though they're C&Wish.

[kraftymomma1979]

Thanks for sharing! I didn't realize how many people had recorded this song. My first memory is hearing The Band's version. Awesome! I like the photos too.

[ismilealot1973]

Thanks for making this video! You have some wonderful pics of our hero Mike. Way to go!!! :)

[UkieOli]

Thanks for the posting! very cool

[racheljlc]

I've heard Jagger and the chieftains, but this is awesome! GReat song

[akf2005]

now thats good.

[almadora]

a little murder never hurt anybody.

[HardTimes9]

Great version of a great song. However, it is not "an old bluegrass hit." It was written in 1958 or 1959 by Danny Dill with music by Marijohn Wilkin. First recorded by Lefty Frizell and later covered by many, many artists. It is one of those songs that just sounds like it's been around forever. Thanks for posting this version, it's great!

[cscmonkeefan]

Nez's version is awesome. I really don't know where it first came from, I just know it as an old bluegrass hit. Thank's for letting us know. And thank's for looking!!!!

[Barefootlarry]

[I just know it as an old bluegrass hit.]

It's an old Bluegrass Hit, recorded by The Country Gentlemen, but that was an attempt at doing a C&W song as Bluegrass. They did a good job of it, but even with the addition of Bluegrass harmonies and instrumentation, it was still a stretch even calling it Bluegrass. It's an old Lefty Frizzell hit which was later covered by dozens of major artists, The Country Gentlemen among them.

[Rcksaltnnails]

This is correct. The Gentlemen covered it in a bluegrass style. Bill Monroe also did it and really did it as grass. I prefer both the Country Gentlemen's and Monroe's versions to any other I heard.

I do like this simple guitar singing version by Nes.

[rmstudio]

This really is one of my all time country folk songs. Lefty I think did it best as so did the Lilly brothers... Such a great song so simple so real and life like.. A testiment to the great lyrics of country and folk music.. They just dont make stuff like this anymore. Or the music companies dont let us hear stuff this good anymore. You have to dig back in the past to enjoy it.

[sweetyoungthing91]

were can i get this?? <3

[sweetyoungthing91]

this song is very beautiful,sad and haunting, mike is an amazing person.

[grumpyturtle1971]

and I love The Monkees but never heard this one before.

[sunnygf]

This was so good - I've never heard it. What cd is this from? Great pics, too. Nez is awesome!!

[bat115]

I never heard this one before... good version. Thanks for putting this up. cscmonkeefan

[Skippygddss]

Nothing like a hot headed southern man.

[lovsmusic43210]

thats great...i love that song....mike sings this so well....great picture...would u be able to tell me where u found them

[cscmonkeefan]

Thank's so much. It is a great song. I wish I could tell you where I got them all. I've just collected them here and there. Im sure they are easy to find, though. Thank's again!!

[ilovegingercats]

WOW that was great.

[cscmonkeefan]

Thank's so much!!!