Mike's amazing prolific release of albums had resulted in this being the fifth album he had released in just two years.  Despite the quality of the recordings and the variety of music found therein, Mike hadn't scored as a solo artist, and RCA reportedly came to him and asked him to write more "hits".  While this album didn't signal a change in his sales trend, it spawned the humorous title and the most intimate, grounded album Mike had released yet.  Mostly recorded with just himself on guitar and vocals, and Red Rhodes again returning on pedal steel guitar, the songs speak for themselves with a  quiet elegance and grace; from the intropective "Tomorrow and Me" to the irony apparent in the sad humor of "The Upside of Good-Bye".  The weariness of "Lady Love" is perfect, giving the song a resigned mood fitting the lyric.  "Listening", on the other hand, is brighter, with chiming accompianment and Mike's spot-on delivery giving the album a lift.  "Two Different Roads" sounds a little too close in it's construction to "Blowin' In The Wind", but is a fine folk song.  "Candidate" is bleaker, with Mike letting his voice crack and grumble on the "spiritual bereavements" the song so perfectly encapsulates, .  The entire album feels somewhat hopeless in spirit, like a man who's been kicked when he's down, and the country flavor of the album, which is stronger here than on Tantamount To Treason, is the perfect vehicle for conveying these heart-worn cries.  Mike then pulls his biggest hit out of his trunk, "Different Drum" which was a hit for Linda Rondstadt years before; but Mike doesn't copy the hit arrangement, recasting the song as a folksy backwoods ballad, simpler and sparer in the arrangement, but the new interpretation works well.  "Harmony Constant" is also brighter, helping to lift the album out of the blue rut it seemed stuck in, while "Keep On" is a soaring melody tied to a hopeful lyric, as Mike seems to be telling himself to continue on with his dream, despite popular rejection.  "Roll With The Flow" is a pick-yourself off the floor battle cry, and the perfect closer to what appears to the listener to be a cathartic album; a cleansing of the soul, and a true hidden gem among Mike's solo works.  Avaliable on CD paired with Ranch Stash.

Mike's final album for RCA is a brief, seven-song affair, (despite the presence of the eight-minute-plus "Back Porch..." track), but it signals a return to a larger sound, with Mike bringing on six-piece band consisting of Red Rhodes, Jay Lacy and Robert Warford on guitars, and Dany Lane on drums.  Ranch Stash is also one of Mike's most relaxed albums, both in regards to tempos and attitude; it just seems to sway from song to song in an easy-going manner.  The album begins with the bright, bell-like chiming of "Continuing" with it's easy, rocking-horse rhythm and poetic lyrics signalling a fine album.  Mike then digs out the Monkees-era "Some Of Shelly's Blues" which is remade with Red Rhodes fine guitar work and a fiddle giving the new version a much more country edge than was found on the Monkees version.  "Release" has a far more pop flavor than anything else of the album, with the drums laying down an easy, insistant rhythm, and the pedal steel guitar playing a sweet counter melody.  "Winonah" is one of Mike's most successful story songs, about a alchoholic who takes "whisky for her wages" in a seedy barroom.  The country-swing of "Born To Love You" is also pure relaxation, with the ardent declarations of love overlaid by the lazy summer days arrangment.  The most adventurous track follows - "The Back Porch and a Fruit Jar Full Of Iced Tea" has an Appalachian backwoods flavor to it, as Mike tears into the traditional folk stylings with ease.  The album closes with the pastoral imagery of the "Prairie Lullaby" - ending the album, and Mike's contract with RCA, on a countrified prayer.  Availalable on CD paired with Hits Keep on Comin'

Salting this release with a few unreleased/alternate takes, this Rhino sampler, following on the heels of the Newer Stuff release, this is a fine sampling of Mike's early RCA albums, taking well-chosen songs from Magnetic South (1970), Loose Salute (1971), Nevada Fighter (1971), Tantamount To Treason (1971), And The Hits Just Keep On Comin' (1972), and Pretty Much Your Standard Ranch Stash (1973).  While this "best of" really doesn't take the place of the fine original albums, it's a great starting place for folks who have no idea what Mike has been up to since his Monkees days.  You'll find his fine re-recordings of Monkees-era songs "The Crippled Lion", "Listen To The Band", "Propinquity" and "Some Of Shelly's Blues"; his hard-country reveries: "Silver Moon", "Tumbling Tumbleweeds", and "Prarie Lullaby"; and the incredibly lovely ballads he penned: "Joanne", "Born To Love You", "Here I Am", and even his take on the one hit with he had with Linda Rondstadt, "Different Drum".  Mike's unique country-rock sound was perhaps a little too revolutionary for its time, but even decades after their release, they sound fresh and interesting.  Of course, by listening to the tracks this way, you miss the building sadness of And The Hits Just Keep On Comin', or the amazing quality of Magnetic South which is evident from beginning to end.  But this CD is a great introduction, and with the previously-unreleased material present, even long-time fans will want to consider this for their collection.

A thicker slice of Nez's early album cuts, Silver Moon manages to duplicate most of the cuts off of Rhino's Older Stuff compilation, but adds some very good tracks that didn't make it onto that disc, including "Grand Ennui", "Mama Nantucket" "First National Rag", "The Keys To The Car", "Bonaparte's Retreat", "Little Red Rider", "Conversations", "Beyond The Blue Horizon", "Hollywood", and "Bye Bye Bye".  Of course, Silver Moon doesn't manage to get ahold of the rare, unreleased stuff that Rhino was, but that's allright, because everything here is pure gold.  If you still can't decide whether or not to purchase Nez's early albums on RCA, this excellent sampler will give you a sizable chunk of the better stuff for much less than you would have to pay to purchase all the albums separately, plus you get the excellent cuts like "Harmony Contant", "Propinquity (I've Just Begun To Care)", "Nevada Fighter", "Calico Girlfriend", and the heavenly "Joanne".  The unfortunate choice of photograph on the cover might lead some to think that this CD contains tracks from Nesmith's Monkees period, which is misleading - this is ALL songs taken from 1970-1973; but with that in mind, this is music very worthy of discovery, much of it equalling anything Mike did with the pre-fab four.