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lemonade kid
Old Love
USA
9876 Posts |
 Posted - 20/11/2009 : 23:54:41
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SO great. Here is a thread for us to share articles, music,
thoughts and emotions about an artist whose popularity grows everyday....
Here is a great local column that revisits great albums of the
past.
really any past...5 to 50 years ago. Quite enjoyable, This
was in yesterday's paper...
RECORD REWIND, great albums revisited
by Jim Musser
"Bryter Layter"
Nick Drake 1970
Sounds like: Achingly beautiful sadness massaged
and shaped into an art form. (I like that image!!..lk)
Hits/highlights: "Hazy Jane II", "One of these
things first", Bryter Layter, Poor Boy, Northern Sky.
By the way: Born in 1948 in Rangoon, Burma, as the
empire's sun was setting, Drake died in England of an
anti-depressant overdose in 1974.
What's so great about it: Wether or not Drake's
death was suicide, it's clear that genius and melancholy
were constant companions.
On the second of his three utterly perfect (and disparate)
albums, Drake forged an elegant merger of folk, jazz and classical
that echoed the textures of Van Morrison's song cycle,
"Astral Weeks".
Driven by Drake's reedy, uniquely muted vocals (recalling
Miles Davis' blue-toned reveries), acrobatic acoustic guitar
and sublime melodic gifts, "Bryter Layter" saddled up the ace
rhythm section of Fairport Convention, and Fairport's
Richard Thompson sits in for an unforgettably exhilarating acoustic
lead on "Hazy Jane II".
Ex-VU iconoclast Jon Cale adorns two beauties, Robert Kirby's
string and horn arrangements are exquisite, and Joe Boyd's
production is (as always) spot-on.
The 10 originals include three gorgeous instrumentals. It's
an all-time rainy day classic.
--Jim Misser
(you can find more of Jim Musser's column online for many great overviews of your favorite or obscure albums. I always enjoy them)
So I guess we ought to have a listen...
"Northern Sky"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S-UnlVKEIZY
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Everybody's got something to hide 'cept for me and my monkey. |
Edited by - lemonade kid on 05/05/2010 22:06:38 |
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John9
Old Love
United Kingdom
2154 Posts |
Posted - 21/11/2009 : 00:48:24
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This is a great thread, LK. I think that when push comes to shove, Bryter Layter is my favourite one of his. I find it both pleasant and strange that those haunting melodies still reach out to us across the years. Whenever I listen to him, I am especially reminded of that lovely poem about death being nothing more than going into another room.  |
Edited by - John9 on 21/11/2009 00:48:53 |
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John E
Fifth Love
United Kingdom
322 Posts |
Posted - 21/11/2009 : 00:52:10
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It's always good to see Nick Drake's name appear. I disagree with the description of "Bryter Layter" as a rainy day classic. For me, it is more suggestive of a warm summer evening. Personally, I would have to include "Fly" among the highlights.
"Bryter Layter" was the first of Nick's albums to really blow me away.
(in 1971). Ironically, I didn't realise his greatness when I saw him play live at the Royal Festival Hall the previous year (where he played on the same bill as Fotheringay and the Humblbums).
All the best, John E
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lemonade kid
Old Love
USA
9876 Posts |
Posted - 21/11/2009 : 05:39:49
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Thanks to John(s)..I agree!  Also for me, not a rainy day classic, but rather an anytime classic. It knows no limit for my listening enjoyment....we've had a lot of rain, so Messer may have been saying NOW is the time for this classic..it's raining outside! I love "Fly" (the only Drake song I know featured in a movie soundtrack..."Royal Tenenbaums"..what a sound track!)
I would add "At The Chime Of A City Clock"! Those strings and that SAX! We may end up realizing there is not a throw away track on this LP. I love the instrumentals too!
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Everybody's got something to hide 'cept for me and my monkey. |
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Joe Morris
Old Love
3492 Posts |
Posted - 21/11/2009 : 16:02:37
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was just rereading the Trevor Dann biography on Nick - its a sad story, his fame didn't really come about until after his death and I don't think theres much there for a film on the young man, if Gabrielle were to allow it to happen (Crazy Diamond, a film on Syd Barrett (a similar story of artists fading out before prematurely) was blocked by Roger Waters
what is there to say of Nick? he went to Cambridge, left before finishing his last year, went to record Five Leaves Left & Bryter Layter with Joe Boyd for Witchseason, and they both failed
and went in for a couple late nights with John Wood to record the bare bones Pink Moon (not PYNK Moon, the fanzine!) - a reaction (I guess) to Bryter Layter (which had female backing singers, guitars and even a brass section!)
Went in to the studio for cutting some tracks for a new album a couple years after (when he was in a VERY bad way: dirty, unkempt)
and then passed in 1974, by accidental overdose
Drug abuse: more difficult to pin down.. He did smoke a lot of the weed, but was that what caused his withdrawal from the world, playing gigs, doing tv?
Its a very sad story. At least Syd had some commercial success (which seems to have done him in, unfortunately, what with the pressure for the follow up hit single to "See Emily Play"
what EMI must've thought of "Apples and Oranges" can only be guessed! |
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lemonade kid
Old Love
USA
9876 Posts |
Posted - 03/12/2009 : 17:27:35
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I finally saw another movie besides Royal Tenenbaums" with a Nick Drake tune in the sound track...and it's one of my favorites--
>>>Joe..you might be interested to know that thsi track was also udes in the movie "Garden State", which I haven't seen yet.
"Seven Pounds" with Will Smith....in a nice scene, Drake's song "(Could Have Been) One of These Things First" played. Nice.
It had the most contemporary sound of all the tracks...timeless. Drake's following keeps growing.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dv7qXijwvzc
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Everybody's got something to hide 'cept for me and my monkey. |
Edited by - lemonade kid on 03/12/2009 17:33:35 |
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bob f.
Old Love
USA
1308 Posts |
Posted - 03/12/2009 : 22:35:26
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"Poor Boy" (Bryter Layter) gets me everytime. The backing vocals are some of the most beautiful I have ever heard, bringing me to tears.
...what the world needs now... |
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Joe Morris
Old Love
3492 Posts |
Posted - 04/12/2009 : 03:57:25
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the most recent Record Collector mag (UK publication)(Morrissey cover - Christmas issue) has a (quite) good article on Nick (9 pages) and what his records go for these days
Worth checking out for the pictures especially. Keith Morris's, natch! |
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Joe Morris
Old Love
3492 Posts |
Posted - 04/12/2009 : 03:59:00
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I actually have the Garden State songbook for the chords to "One of these things first" (the song is in Eflat, the songbook is in E, best just to tune down the guitar LOL!
shame about the film of course  |
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Joe Morris
Old Love
3492 Posts |
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boombox
Old Love
United Kingdom
548 Posts |
Posted - 04/12/2009 : 12:51:00
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Hard for me to pick a favourite song or album - depends on the mood at the time. Fruit Tree is always a fave tune - spent hours with a transcription trying (and failing) to play that. I used to love Northern Sky, but it has been so overplayed on UK TV shows set in the 60s, ie whenever anything sad happens in The Royal, Heartbeat etc - death, break-up or whatever - it's spoiled it a bit for me. I have areally nice double CD boot of home demos etc, not all of which has been released, which gets played a fair bit too.
Of note perhaps to ND fans is that Bridget St John, who does a beautiful rendition of One Of These Things First, is doing a thirty date UK tour in 2010, again with Michael Chapman as support/second guitarist. |
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Kula John
Old Love
United Kingdom
756 Posts |
Posted - 04/12/2009 : 22:38:04
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I have to admit I don't know as much about Nick Drake as I feel I probably should. But 'Joey' is one of my favourite songs by any artist. I'll make a greater effort to fully explore his work in future.
This is the time and this is the time and it is time, time, time, time, time, time, time.....
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Joe Morris
Old Love
3492 Posts |
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lemonade kid
Old Love
USA
9876 Posts |
Posted - 11/04/2010 : 07:26:36
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Pulled Nick up again...he is always on my playlist.
Just watched Will Smith in "Seven Pounds" again...a 2008 movie about life, death and redemption, I guess.
...so I'm repeating myself again, as I posted above.....any excuse to get "Nick" active ...
.... it features a Nick Drake song half way thru the movie..any Nick Drake song gives a movie validity for me. It was "One Of These Things First". One of my favorites by Nick..that piano line is brilliant.
It's good to find more and more Drake music out there for those that have never had the great pleasure of hearing him.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jds-tmn8v5g&feature=related
...with some nice pics of Nick from the documentary "A Skin Too Few"
I listen to Nick often...we all should-- for a greater appreciation of the life that Nick seemed to find so precious, even in his lowest moments...otherwise how could he have written such beautiful music?
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Everybody's got something to hide 'cept for me and my monkey. |
Edited by - lemonade kid on 11/04/2010 07:46:43 |
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lemonade kid
Old Love
USA
9876 Posts |
Posted - 05/05/2010 : 22:13:39
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Has anyone seen the new AT&T TV ad.....it features images of the artist that drapes anything he can with "millions" of yards of fabric...which is unimpressive for me.....
But the theme music used for the commercial is Nick Drakes "Day is Done"...those great first notes, the strings.....
Then the first lines....but with closed captioning it says--
"When the is day dawning..." which if course Nick never sings.
I'll have to listen again to see if they doctored it! Maybe it's on youtube.
So anyway...finally some more big time recognition of Nick....we're seeing a lot more lately.
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Everybody's got something to hide 'cept for me and my monkey. |
Edited by - lemonade kid on 05/05/2010 22:16:48 |
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lemonade kid
Old Love
USA
9876 Posts |
Posted - 05/05/2010 : 22:20:26
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Has anyone seen the new AT&T TV ad.....it features images of the artist that drapes anything he can with "millions" of yards of fabric...which is unimpressive for me.....
But the theme music used for the commercial is Nick Drake's "From The Morning"...those great first notes.....
<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q2JjJPDz3EE>
Now that's "beautiful"...
So anyway...finally some more big time recognition of Nick....we're seeing a lot more lately.
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Edited by - lemonade kid on 05/05/2010 22:34:20 |
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Nick Drake is getting his due....better late...
