Wednesday, January 22, 2014

Nick Drake

Preamble: No, this is not Powerpop. It's just brilliant music.

A critic once wrote Nick Drake can change your life. This may not be right for everyone, but he may have a point there.

Nick Drake was an English singer-songwriter and musician.
When he was 20 years old he signed to Island Records and released three records there: Five Leaves Left (1969), Bryter Layter (1970) and Pink Moon (1972).


Nick Drake suffered from depression (you'll recognize by his lyrics), especially the last years of his short life.
Nick didn't like to perform live or be interviewed. There is even no known picture of the adult Drake. All that wasn't very helpful for his commercial success. None of its records had more than 5000 buyers at first release.

After finishing his third record (Pink Moon), he stopped all musical work and  moved to his parents in Warwickshire.
Nick Drake died from an overdose of a antidepressant on 25 November 1974 - he was only 26 years old (it's still not sure if it was accident or suicide).

One may find his music depressing, others spiritual or relaxing.
Interesting fact: it's really hard to guess that its music is from the late 1960s / early 1970s. It's kind of timeless.

A good start to listen would be Way to Blue - An Introduction to Nick Drake or just one of his three records.


Discography (studio records):
  • Five Leaves Left (1969)     
  • Bryter Layter (1970)     
  • Pink Moon (1972)
Discography (compilations): 
  • Fruit Tree (1979)
  • Time of No Reply (1986)
  • Way to Blue - An Introduction to Nick Drake (1994)
  • Made to Love Magic (2004)
  • A Treasury (2004)
  • Family Tree (2007)
  • Tuckbox (2013)

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