Nick Drake - Five Leaves Left

I'm not gonna lie, I didn't shuffle this time. Today's album is handpicked, fresh off the vine. I needed some relief from all the "teenager's music" that's been popping up lately.


Today's album: Nick Drake - Five Leaves Left (Island 1969)
Genre: Singer-songwriter, British Folk
Running time: 10 tracks, 39:33
In a nutshell: Lush, introspective folk

1. Time Has Told Me
2. River Man
3. Three Hours
4. Way to Blue
5. Day is Done
6. 'Cello Song
7. The Thoughts of Mary Jane
8. Man in a Shed
9. Fruit Tree
10. Saturday Sun

Take a look at the cover art above. Right off the bat, you can tell this is a much more mature album than the stuff I've been covering recently. You see a well-dressed, 30-something year-old man looking contemplatively out a window, as if he's searching for something. Obviously he won't find what he's looking for outside the window, but the act is analogous to what's going on internally, an external method of focus. Ever notice how your eyes will dart about, or turn upwards when you're trying to remember something?

Singer-songwriter Nick Drake is searching for answers, and provides none on Five Leaves Left. What's that cheezey saying about life? It's not about the destination, it's about the journey? Well that's definitely the case with this album. On the opening track, Drake sings And time has told me/Not to ask for more/For some day our ocean/Will find its shore. Perhaps all our problems will just resolve themselves in time, and this should be good enough for us in the present. Likewise, Drake seems to confirm the futility of searching for a master with answers, only to become a slave in Three Hours.

What's particularly beautiful about this album is how well the music synchronizes with the lyrics, like looking out a window when you're trying to remember something. The wandering guitar arrangement on Three Hours seems to follow its character, Jeremy, as he searches for answers and a home. On the other hand, the blaring strings on Way to Blue match Drake's more straight-forward demand Tell me all that you may know/Show me what you have to show.

I don't want to make it seem as though this whole album is just some folkie's mid-life crisis. There are lighter pop moments, like The Thoughts of Mary Jane, or Man in a Shed. There are also more themes in the album than the one I picked up on and described above. Even if you aren't in the mood to analyze the deep, introspective lyrics, the finger picked guitar melodies and acoustic arrangements are pretty satisfying on their own. This was my first time listening to Nick Drake, and I found him to be quite enjoyable.