anyone else like Nick Drake? (1 Viewer)

[Rob-Gr]

Anyone here think that Nick Drake is an underrated artist? His three albums from the 70's are great, but almost nobody has heard of him and he gets no radio play. If you guys have seen that Mitsubishi (I think thats the one) car commercial where the kids go out to look at the stars or a party outside or something, that is Nick Drake singing in the background. He has a great James Taylor/Bob Dylan folk acoustic sound. It's relaxing and smooth. Kinda a 70's male version of Norah Jones.
Rob

 

[Angelo.M]

Underrated? I'm not sure I agree. Among those in the know, Nick Drake is very highly regarded. I might agree that he has somehow been forgotten among the other singer-songwriter types of the 60's/70's, but I wouldn't say that he's been underrated by listeners who've discovered his stuff.

I think it was a Volkswagen commercial, and the tune is "Pink Moon."

"A 70's male version of Norah Jones"? Hmmm. I'm not sure that comparison is fair to either Nick Drake or Norah Jones, and I see many, many more differences than similarities.

If you like Nick Drake, try Duncan Sheik, particularly his last 2 records, "Daylight" and "Phantom Moon". Both are evocative of Drake, particularly "Phantom Moon". Sheik covers Drake's "River Man" on his "Humming Along" EP, which is no longer available. And, Sheik has been known to do a Nick Drake miniset in his shows. He covered a couple of Nick Drake tunes when I saw him in New York last year.

So, I guess that Sheik is "kinda a 90's also-male version of Nick Drake!"

--AM

 

[KrisM]

I love Nick Drake's albums. I guess he was underated as far as sales are concerned. I think I read somewhere that his top selling album sold only 10,000 to 15,000 during his lifetime. But like Angelo said he is admired by alot of musicians,such as REM, The Black Crowes, Elton John and many others.
I think Pink Moon is a masterpeice.
He also has four albums, not three. Bryter Later, Pink Moon, Five Leaves Left and Time Of No Reply, which was not a '70s album exactly, but featured outakes from the '70s and late '60s. It is worth buying for Black Eyed Dog alone as far as I'm concerned.

Regards
KrisM

NP - Stones - Beggars Banquet

 

[chung_sotheby]

I think that Nick Drake is to today's singer-songwriters as Donnie Hathaway is to today's soul artists: He was an immensely talented musician whose work is well known by those who know good work, but not very well known to the masses.
I, for one, really really like Nick Drake stuff. But I think that the Norah Jones comparison is just someone trying to impress others by throwing out the fact that they are both good musicians and they both sing soft.

 

[Rob-Gr]

All I meant by the Norah Jones comparison is that they both have smooth haunting voices, with subdued acoustic guitar. Norah has more of a jazz sound, and Drake has a folk sound that I would compare to somebody else, if not for fear of repercussionsI guess I just think Nick Drake does some great things in his music and both he and Norah know how to put emotion in their voices without being over dramatic. It was just a comparison for Christ's sake. What if you had never heard Nick Drake and you wanted to know what he sounded like? Does he sound like Chuck Berry? NO. Does he sound like JOhn Lennon? No. Although there is some similar introspection. Does he sound like James Taylor? Maybe. Same soft guitar and soothing vocal. Does he sound like Norah Jones? Maybe if you put her in the 70's and make her a guy. Maybe not. It was just a name to throw out to give people an idea of the sound.
Thanks
Rob

 

[chung_sotheby]

Rob, I was in no way trying to debunk your comparison, but I have heard this comparison too many times from certain wannabe "in-the-know" teen culture gurus who try too hard to connect present artists with great artistsof yesterday.
As for musical comparisons, they tend to sing with a relaxed, soft voice, and their instrumental arrangements are almost always simplified (one to three accompanying instruments, at the most). But I think that while both are soft vocalists, their styles are completely different. As you said, one is more jazz oriented and one is more folk oriented. I may have overreacted, but I hate it when people (not you, but others) compare artists just for the sake of comparison.

 

[Paul D Young]

Count me in on Nick Drake. I've got all his released albums and then some. The new album by Beck reminds me a lot of Nick Drake.
(Just for the sake of comparison of course)

 

[Rick Deschaine]

A friend of mine just acquired an unreleased collection of Nick Drake demos and such. 3 LPs, incredible stuff titled Time Has Told Me .
Highly recommended if you can pick it up.
Later, Rick

 

[KrisM]

Rick, what is the track listing like for this set. Is it similar to Time Of No Reply?

Regards
KrisM

NP - Audioslave

 

[Andy Anderson]

I'm with y'all--I really enjoy Nick Drake's stuff. I do have a couple of his albums/collections (I would rank his "Pink Moon" album as one of my top 20 favorites), and recently saw a movie about his life at the EMP here in Seattle. Angelo, I would agree with you that Duncan Sheik is somewhat reminiscent of his style, at least in his fingerstyle playing, and vocal stylings. I hear he does Drake covers in his live shows. His album Phantom Moon is probably the closest in style to Nick Drake's--I believe it was partially meant as a sort of tribute to Drake's influence on him. He does have a line in a track from his 2nd album "Humming" which is something like, "...Mr. Drake stayed up late, and made me cry..." alluding to Drake's bouts with chronic insomnia and probably the emotional impact his suicide had on him. Paul, I would agree with you that Beck's "Sea Change" (a great album, by the way) is somewhat evocative of Nick Drake. Good stuff.

 

[Rick Deschaine]

Here's the tarck listing for 'Time Has Told Me' a 3 LP set.

Side A

Get Together
Been Smoking Too Long
Don't think Twice, It's Alright
If You Leave Me Pretty Mama
Courting Blues
My Sugar So Sweet
Strolling Down the Highway
Blues Run the Game

Side B

Winter is Gone
Here Come the Blues
All My Trials
Tommorrow is a Long Time
Cocaine Blues
Milk and Honey
Summertime

Side C

Black Mountain Blues
Nick's Monologue
Strange Meeting I/ Bird Flew By
To the Garden
Joey
Rain

Side D

Blossom
Time Has Told Me
Saturday Sun
Thoughts of Mary Jane
Day is Done
Fly

Side E

Place to Be
Hazey Jane I
Parasite (first take)
Parasite (second take)
Brittle Days I
Brittle Days II

Side F

Poor Boy
Time Has Told Me
Work in Progress III
Voice From the Mountain
Brittle Days III (variation)
Far Leys
Brittle Days III
Work in Progress 7
Impromptu Sound Check
Black Eyed Dog
Rider on the Wheel

There you Have it!