Tuesday, August 21, 2012

#177: Nick Drake - Pink Moon (1972)



Zack: Nick Drake’s life (and the songs he wrote about it) sounds like someone tried to create the ultimate tragic character. A recluse with a serious case of depression, his music is as powerful as it is unassuming. It’s just a single acoustic guitar and his melancholy vocals. But it still finds a way to speak to the saddest parts of you. Plus, it’s so short that even the length feels tragic. Like the life of the album was just cut short before it’s time. Sort of appropriate for his final work. There’s not much that can be said about it beyond that it is so sad that it makes the face on the front look like it’s having the time of its life. Clearly this is the kind of album meant for people to stumble upon and experience. I’m really glad I did.
Favorite Tracks: Which Will; Place to Be; Free Ride

Emily: Listening to Pink Moon is like reading someone else's diary. It's so honest and deeply personal that part of me felt like I wasn't supposed to hear it, that no one was supposed to hear it, that Nick Drake wrote and recorded every song as a personal note in order to exhume his feelings. In a way that happened when it was first released - the album didn't even sell 5,000 copies. Like old diaries, the records were stored in dusty boxes as Drake's life came and went. Only in the last few decades did people begin to literally and metaphorically clear away the cobwebs and rediscover these personal laments. I can see why the acclaim was inevitable though. Each short song, only accompanied by a simple acoustic guitar, sounds like it could have been recorded in any era, and its sadness (however personal) can deeply affect any listener.
Favorite Tracks: Parasite; Pink Moon; Which Will

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