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LP
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ISL 1745697HLP
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2013 release. Originally released 1972; exact reissue, 180 Gram, Gatefold sleeve. Part of the Back To Black series. Including digital download code. "After two albums of tastefully orchestrated folk-pop, albeit some of the least demonstrative and most affecting around, Drake chose a radical change for what turned out to be his final album. Not even half-an-hour long, with 11 short songs and no more -- he famously remarked at the time that he simply had no more to record -- Pink Moon more than anything else is the record that made Drake the cult figure he remains. Specifically, Pink Moon is the bleakest of them all; that the likes of Belle and Sebastian are fans of Drake may be clear enough, but it's doubtful they could ever achieve the calm, focused anguish of this album, as harrowing as it is attractive. No side musicians or outside performers help this time around -- it's simply Drake and Drake alone on vocals, acoustic guitar, and a bit of piano, recorded by regular producer Joe Boyd but otherwise untouched by anyone else. The lead-off title track was eventually used in a Volkswagen commercial nearly 30 years later, giving him another renewed burst of appreciation -- one of life's many ironies, in that such an affecting song, Drake's softly keened singing and gentle strumming, could turn up in such a strange context. The remainder of the album follows the same general path, with Drake's elegant melancholia avoiding sounding pretentious in the least thanks to his continued embrace of simple, tender vocalizing. Meanwhile, the sheer majesty of his guitar playing -- consider the opening notes of 'Road' or 'Parasite' -- makes for a breathless wonder to behold." --Ned Raggett, All Music
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LP BOX
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UMG 13436LP
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2013 reissue from Island Records' ReDISCovered series. Deluxe box set containing 180 gram LP with replica shop poster, reprint of handwritten lyrics to two songs, and download voucher. "Nick Drake's stunning 1969 debut album encapsulates a marriage between folk music and the singer-songwriter genre. Part Donovan, part Jim Webb, he articulated an aching romanticism at a time when progressive rock ran rampant. Beautiful melodies and fragrant accompaniment, in particular Robert Kirby's stunning string arrangements, enhance the artist's sense of longing in which warm, but understated, vocals accentuate the album's passive mystery. An aura of existential cool envelops the proceedings, accentuated by Danny Thompson's sonorous bass lines and Drake's poetic imagery. The result is a shimmering, autumnal collection that is reflective and eternally rewarding. This vinyl reissue of Nick Drake's debut Five Leaves Left is pressed on audiophile 180g virgin vinyl remastered from the near-original master tapes by the album's original engineer, John Wood. Although the original tapes were unusable, Wood had made a safety copy of the album in 1969 and those reels were used for this latest session." --Ned Raggett
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2LP
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SBR 5041LP
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2016 repress on vinyl. Comprising recordings made at Nick Drake's family home and in France before his 1969 debut, Family Tree offers a unique insight into a nascent songwriting genius. Spread over four sides of 180 gram virgin vinyl, its 29 songs range from folk standards and compositions by his mother Molly to early versions of future classics taped by his Cambridge friend and arranger Robert Kirby at Cambridge in 1968. Mastered at Abbey Road and featuring 29 rare tracks (one previously only available on iTunes), as well as a deluxe gatefold sleeve, rare photographs and a lavish insert including lengthy sleeve notes, this lovingly assembled set is sure to become a prized item amongst lovers of Nick Drake.
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