"Elephant Parts"

-created by michael nesmith, bill martin, and william dear
1981
Let's call it saget syndrome...the urge for ex-stars of bloatedly successful but horribly shallow TV shows to turn to subversive, edgy material as a catharsis for their sins against culture.
I'm not sure who the first saget syndrome sufferer was, but few have done it as gracefully as nesmith, former wool cap-wearing Monkee. And not just smoothly, but brilliantly, both musically and conceptually. Many performers get their feet inside the Hollywood door, but few have the talent to make a contribution that goes beyond their single-faceted initiation. This hour-long program, winner of the first grammy for "Video of the Year" is a thoroughly deserving delight. A mix of sketch comedy and songs (and nesmith's first post-Monkee return to the airwaves), it holds up very well in its entirety...no small feat, as sketch comedy is probably the least-lasting form of funny (indeed, the all-comedy sequel "Television Parts" hasn't aged nearly so well).
But of far greater note is the music, particularly "Rio" and "Tonite" (with "Cruisin" not far behind). Exceptionally well-crafted, just pure aural delight. This shouldn't be entirely unexpected...even though michael was the Monkees' george in terms of lead vocals, his one contribution that slips onto anthologies, "Listen to the Band", is strikingly better written and performed than most of their fare.
"Rio" is usually given the title of first music video ever, and it's hard to argue against that claim. The Beatles may have been the first to "film" their music, but that was in a purely self-contained and unintentional context. Nesmith got a request for a "promo clip" of his new song, with the studios expecting nothing other than a single-shot live performance like every other artist, and instead handed in a video that's strikingly sophisticated, even by today's standards. Before anyone else, he saw where music was headed. One dreams of every video being classy as the first...but that's probably just greedy. Enjoy...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WnpcTsy10dE