Nick Drake: The Biography by Patrick Humphries
|
Book Summary Author: Patrick Humphries Edition: Hardcover Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published) Published: 1998-10-15 ISBN: 1582340064 Number of pages: 224 Publisher: Bloomsbury USA |
| New | New Usually ships in 1-2 business days | $17.00 | ||
| Used | Used Usually ships in 1-2 business days | $5.00 |
Your purchase is protected by the A-to-z Safe Buying Guarantee. Amazon.com automatically transfers your payment to the merchant so you'll never need to pay a merchant directly. Amazon.com A-to-z Safe Buying Guarantee covers both the delivery of your item and its condition upon receipt.
Book Reviews of the Nick Drake: The Biography
Customer Review: Just Around the Next Corner...
Summary: 4 Stars
I hadn't read any of the reviews before reading this bio by P. Humphries.The one I agree most with is "This will have to be the Definitive Bio until..."
Humphries has done an admirable job, given the dictates of the project. It is really heart breaking, and of course a huge disappointment to him, that Sister Gabrielle Drake, and J.Boyd, (producer), would not participate, placing legal constraints on him, and personal ones that this book cannot overcome despite his effort here.Coupled with the fact that both parents had died, writing this book must have been like working with a straightjacket on.
The book is somewhat repetitive, and keeps referring back to the culture of BritFolk Music in the 60's. Being new to Nick Drake-the man and his music, I eagerly read, searching for the stories, the anecdotes, the details, that would flesh out the outline of the man-however reclusive. The stories that are there come from fellow students (male) from Marlborough and Cambridge, along with some musicians. It is surprising, in today's world, that friends/professional colleaugues, would not have gotten more involved with him upon seeing him decline, with an aim to help, but from the book it seems that only Joe Boyd, after moving to L.A., spoke to him ONE time on the phone, at the request of Nick's parents, about him getting some help, therapy. Others have expressed hindsight in relaying his withdrawal, but the book fails to elaborate on any incidents other than Boyd's one call. It may be that the attempts were there but didn't make it into the book.
As I read, I also longed for details having nothing to do with music, personal details that would show a bit what kind of person he was-did he ever, for example, release the frogs in science class? There's a dog on one of his sleeve pictures-did he like/ever have a family dog "in real life?" Did he have a valentine when he was eight? What foods did he love/hate? Did he take milk in his tea or coffee? A Bio is about The Life Of, and I wondered all about the life of this man/musician.
These Qs have "nothing to do with the music" of course-but Boyd's non-involvement precluded Humphries from quoting any of the lyrics anyway-so even that part is skeletal and leaves the reader hungry. He is a capable author and with the involvement of the two key missing people this book would have had so much more flesh on it's bones, instead of the padding others have mentioned, though the bit about teak and Burma and his grandfather delivering Nick set a nice background-but then moving into the life of Nick was sparser, like Clothes of Sand-NOT because Nick was sparse, I suspect, but just because the sources used only cover so much ground.
Had he lived,and learned to overcome or manage the depression and terminal shyness, there is a good chance that Drake would have gone on to composing more elaborate music, perhaps even conducting, and finally reaching the point where he could compose without feeling he was going too commercial-perhaps doing soundtracks (Randy Newman was an early influence, and after all Northern Sky is the tour de force of Serendipity-and NO individualism has been compromised) One of the insights the book provides is how, according to his mother, he loved to conduct from an early age. Mozart, broke, was composing for vaudeville when he died too early at age 35(Magic Flute) having once had some fame, now ignored by the Court and many of his contemporaries-was buried in a common grave, with no marker. And Nick, at age 26-"We will Rise and We are Everywhere." And Humphries is able to illustrate Drake's realization with his finally assertive: If I'm so good, where's the money? and the resultant Hanging on a Star.
Nick Drake may have been on the verge of really breaking in with the works to follow Pink Moon. Certainly Humphries is successful in this- relaying Drake's final musical efforts as indicative of his survivor's instinct kicking in-his productivity, and the Lost Track. To me, this makes the case for accidental overdose more compelling. He drives home the message of a pointless death-and with today's available treatments, all we who remain can do is howl at the moon.
What would be tragic is to have this one biography be the only one. I hope there will be another one, with MORE-more photos, more involvement, and legal releases, from the people still here who knew/know Nick best. Unfortunately, the sands of time do run, and Keith Morris (primary photographer) is missing/presumed gone-due to a scuba diving accident. The biography could indeed be edited, but again, given the constraints, Humphries does an admirable job, that will leave you hungry for more...looking around that next corner for, just plain old MORE.