Artist: Elliott Smith. Album: XO
(Apologies, the album is on Spotify, but I don’t know how to provide a link to it)
Steven Paul Smith, I imagine few on here have heard of him, even after changing his first name to Elliott, I doubt it makes much of a difference.
Born in Nebraska, raised in Texas, but as a musician spent most of his time in Portland, Oregon.
A talented guitar player, and multi-instrumentalist, he played with the band Heatmiser on the Kill Rock Stars record label, eventually signing to Virgin, but never breaking through.
What would follow was far removed from the rock influenced Heatmiser.
Smith released his debut solo album in 1993, titled Roman Candle, a low-fi production recorded in a girlfriends bedroom. A self-titled album would follow, then another, Either/Or. Either/Or is where I discover Elliott Smith.
On holiday in France, playing darts on a sun-drenched patio with an old friend, I’d been listening to Wu-Tang Clan’s ‘Wu-Tang Forever’ album on the cd player, which was carefully balanced on a garden chair. I love that Wu-Tang album, and still play it, however my friend wasn’t impressed and took control of the music. What followed stopped me in my tracks, my aim becoming even worse, as a hauntingly beautiful and incredibly sad series of songs came out from the speakers.
“Elliott Smith” he replied as I enquired who this was, the album was Either/Or. I was hooked, and Smith’s work stays with me to this day, through the trials and tribulations of life, both the highs and some awful lows.
Although Either/Or stayed true to his previous folk inspired albums (folk-rock in parts, maybe?), there was a stronger production, a fuller sound to some of the songs, although the ever present vocal misery prevalant through his previous work was thankfully for me still there, depression, alcholism, drugs, attempted suicide, paranoia, all would influence his work.
I’m guessing if you like your music upbeat, maybe you can opt out now, no need to go any further, just mark it as 1/10.
But I’m not here to nominate Either/Or, though I suggest you check it out, rather its his fourth album XO that gets the nod, or a hug and a kiss these days.
I’m sure many of you will be familiar with the film Good Will Hunting, Robin Williams (much missed), Matt Damon, Minnie Driver amongst others. Much of the soundtrack on the film is Elliott Smiths music. The song Miss Misery, yes there’s a theme here, becomes nominated for the Oscars on the back of the films success.
And so in March 1998 Smith finds himself backstage rubbing shoulders with the glitterati, with a tv audience of 57 million. A lady tries to help with the nerves he is clearly suffering from. Resplendent in a badly fitting pale suit Elliott walks onto the stage with his acoustic guitar, the orchestra have already begun. The first few lines are mumbled, but the sound technician does his job and Elliott’s performance is met with warm (polite?) applause. The version is far removed from the album, but it’s good nonetheless. He doesn’t win, of course he doesn’t, the lady who did her best to reassure him backstage wins, Celine Dion no less, with ‘that’ Titanic song. What chance did he have, he was non-league, up against a premier league giant, the fix was in.
Anyhow, I’m wavering, basically on the back of the Oscars he is signed to Dreamworks, the budget is now bigger, the studio equipment better, and he completes his fourth album, XO. The first track begins as the the other albums left off, but then it changes, boy does it change, in no part due to Dreamworks heavy investment. But I’m not going to comment on the songs, they’re for you to discover, for you to pass judgement.
Smith would go on to produce another album, Figure 8, but then his life would end, at 34, tragically, though not unexpectedly, with two stab wounds to the chest from a pair of kitchen scissors. Whether self-inflicted, or via the hand of someone else, was never made fully clear.
Someone once said he was the "unhappiest man in the land", a singer you didn't so much listen to as commiserate with. As a musician who peddled so much misery through his hauntingly sad tales, abused as a child, a former heroin addict, a “bad” alcoholic, crack, depression, suicide attempts, it was all so inevitable.
I was in the States when he died, in a relationship that would later almost kill me, I returned to England wearing my Elliott Smith t-shirt on the plane, I doubt anyone noticed or cared.
I hope you can commiserate with this album.
(NB: The Oscars performance is on YouTube)
