Tracks
- Pink Moon
- Place to Be
- Road
- Which Will
- Horn
- Things Behind the Sun
- Know
- Parasite
- Free Ride
- Harvest Breed
- From the Morning
Pink Moon is a melancholy album. The music is folk. It's Nick Drake singing and playing guitar.
Nick Drake sings in monotone and with little energy. In almost every song he alludes to death. Place to Be makes it clear he doesn't expect to live a full life and other songs seem to contain anger or loathing. It's a very dark set of lyrics. This music is beautiful, though and combined with the dark lyrics, the album is quite haunting.
It was a great loss to the music world that Nick Drake ended his life after this album. There were very few good quality singer-songwriters in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Nick Drake was one of the best despite only producing three albums' worth of songs.
Not that it would have made a lick of difference though if he had lived and continued to make music. Nothing short of divine intervention would have stemmed the tide of awful singer-songwriters that were to plague the music world from the 1970s onward.
I really enjoy this album, even though there seems to be something improper about enjoying the product of someone's pain. I do think it's worth listening to and should be a part of any serious music collection. This album should be on the 1001 Albums list as an example of what a good singer-songwriter is.
All the songs are outstanding.
★★★★★★★★★★
Tracks
- Introduction
- Hazey Jane II
- At the Chime of a City Clock
- One of These Things First
- Hazey Jane I
- Bryter Layter
- Fly
- Poor Boy
- Northern Sky
- Sunday
Bryter Layter is a lugubrious album. The music is folk, although the presence of piano and saxophone belie the simplicity of that observation. Nick Drake gets some assistance from some of the members of Fairport Convention, John Cale and two members of the Beach Boys.
The songs all sound really beautiful. Although, there is a foreboding quality to the beautiful melodies, as if to suggest that while everything seems well on the surface, just a glance below reveals a different truth. I think the lyrics suggest the same.
Each instrument is very quiet and restrained. There isn't much interplay between them, but they work together well. This is one album where it's very important to pay careful attention to the music.
This is an outstanding album. It's certainly worth listening to. I'm not too sure about whether it should be on the 1001 Albums list. It's not as if there hasn't been enough folk albums. However, this is a different kind of folk album. It certainly shows a folk style that is more introspective than political and worldly. I guess I'd lean in favor of it being on the list.
All of the songs are excellent. The stand outs are: At the Chime of a City Clock, One of These Things First, Hazey Jane I, Fly, Poor Boy and Sunday.
★★★★★★★★★★
Tracks
- Time Has Told Me
- River Man
- Three Hours
- Way to Blue
- Day is Done
- Cello Song
- The Thoughts of Mary Jane
- Man in a Shed
- Fruit Tree
- Saturday Sun
Five Leaves Left is a glum album. It's primarily a folk album, but it's not a simple folk album; many of the songs have string arrangements. The cello and bass guitar are very prominent in their respective songs which contributes to the dark quality of the album. Nick Drake's singing style also contributes to the dark quality by conveying little emotion or energy.
I think this album would be perfect to listen to while sitting next to a window on rainy, fall day. I am actually surprised that Nick Drake wasn't a very successful artist. I guess that partially explains why I had never heard of him and his music until I started doing this.
I instantly fell in love with this album when I first heard it. It is certainly worth listening to, and would be a great addition to any collection. I am at a loss to select any stand out songs; I think they are all fantastic.
★★★★★★★★★★
