nickdrake

The �Milky Way� Volkswagon Cabrio commercial currently employs his soothing lyrics and the recent full-length documentary, A Skin Too Few � The Days of Nick Drake, captures the beauty and angst of his life. The latest addition to the Nick Drake craze now appears in Rock Shrines documentary form. Shrines interviews the grave visiting devoted on the anniversary of death; mixing the interviews with biography, film footage, and music. A BBC Choice series, Rock Shrines is granting Drake the legacy he deserves.

Introverted and vulnerable, Nick Drake never adequately shared his beautiful, simple songs during his lifetime. Contemporaries of Donovan and Van Morrison, only posthumously has his name and folk-rock sound garnered global recognition. His themes of love lost, alienation, and melancholy grasped emotions common of the 60s/70s cusp generation. Like other rock innovators of his era, the English Drake died tragically in 1974 at age 20. Six short years before, Drake�s haunting lyrics and sophisticated melodies mesmerized Joe Boyd, the ingenious Fairport Convention and early Pink Floyd producer. Boyd ignited the musician�s public recording career, which triggered the landslide to his tragic end.

Five Leaves Left (1969) served as Drake�s pensive debut album, overlaying ethereal vocals with orchestrated sounds. He followed with the lighter, classic Bryter Later (1970), featuring the Velvet Underground�s John Cale. Bryter Later competed against classic rock epics by Led Zepplin, The Beatles, and The Rolling Stones and critical praise could not substitute for paltry album sales. Drake�s confidence deflated. Compounding his problem, a paralyzing fear of public performance kept the artist in obscurity and further hindered his commercial success. Drake continued creating despite disappointment and recorded his barren final album Pink Moon (1972). Pink Moon revealed the creator�s mental isolation with songs such as �Parasite� and �Know�. After the album�s release, Drake suffered a mental breakdown and was hospitalized. While still struggling with his inner demons, he accidentally overdosed on the antidepressant Tryptizol while at home in Tanworth-in-Arden. Nick Drake never sold more than 20,000 albums combined during his lifetime.

With previous Rock Shrines on Jimi Hendrix, Kurt Cobain, and John Lennon, Nick Drake climbs the ladder of musicians who will not be forgotten.

Rock Shrines� Nick Drake episode airs early 2001.