When did you first hear about Nick Drake?

Volkswagen commercial

 

1985. Heaven In A Wild Flower. John Martyn talked warmly about him in a Radio 1 interview one Saturday morning, and then they played 'Fruit Tree'. I thought it was gorgeous and bought the LP later that week.

 

My dad got the Made To Love Magic compilation a short time after it came out - he's a lifelong fan of John Martyn and was interested in the connection. Neither of us liked the compilation very much, and I realise why, the modern remixes are overbaked and revisionist. Years later, I was getting into a lot of melancholy stuff like early Microdisney, so I checked out Pink Moon. I loved it and began to check out the other albums Five Leaves Left, Bryter Layter and Time Of No Reply. Northern Sky was the first song which actually made my jaw drop in its beauty. I definitely think the mixes on Time Of No Reply are far superior to Made To Love Magic.

I definitely feel I can relate to Nick. There are similarities in my backstory especially the living abroad. He is the poster boy for the fact that it doesn't matter how good your life is, depression can still follow you around wherever you go.

 

I first read about him in Nick Kent's tribute/obituary in the New Musical Express in February 1975. I was thirteen and it really moved me a lot. Here's a link to the 40th anniversary reprint in The Guardian:
http://www.theguardian.com/music/2014/nov/05/nick-drake-requiem-for-a-solitary-man

 

Around 1975. I think I actually started listening to him before I realised he was dead. My memory of that period isn't very good.

 

Record library loans turned me on to a few things, too.

 

I'm guessing late 80's/early 90's . I was at a Used CD Store that still sold records and there was a used LP copy of Fruit Tree on display at the counter for a very good price.

I had heard about Nick Drake but had not heard any of his material, so as I still had a working turntable at the time, I thought ...."Mine."

The owner of the shop, who had a rep for being a bit surly at times, was working the counter that day and his eyes lit up when I picked it. It was his duplicate copy and he uncharacteristically showered me with praise for my choice!

And of course he turned out to be most correct....

 

I'd say mid-70s.

I knew the name and knew who "Solid Air" was about (think my brother had the SA album) but never got round to buying Bryter/Five Leaves until mid-1980s. I was more interested in Martyn himself before that who had the distinct advantage of being alive and touring.

Kudos to Joe Boyd for ensuring that his albums stayed in print and the story that he tells in White Bicycles about John Cale's involvement with "Northern Sky" and "Fly" is a classic.

 

Same here. Still....

 

I heard Pink Moon in a Volkswagon commercial and then shortly after that I read an interview with Genesis P. Orridge, where he extolled the virtues of Five Leaves left. I picked up a copy of Pink Moon and have been a big fan ever since.

 

And kudos to Volkswagen for doing that...

 

Thanks!
IIRC this article was also were I first understood that he could be worth listening to - and was/is he!

 

There's probably one guy (or woman) at VW's ad agency single-handedly responsible for the resuscitation of Nick's career. Wish we knew who it was.

 

I was another who became a big fan after the VW commercial, even though I am in the age group that was big into music when he was putting out records. I just never got exposed to him then. I'm not sure I would have been into him at the time, as I was more into heavy music then, but who knows. I'm glad I know of him now and I bought the Fruit Tree LP box.

 

VW - with the acoustic guitar renaissance of the 90's

 

I think it was around 1977 or so when I bought both The Greater Antilles Sampler (99 cents!) which leads off with Nick's "Northern Sky" and the Island Records Bumpers sampler which has "Hazey Jane I". The Nick cuts really didn't do much for me at that time and really I had bought these because they were incredibly inexpensive and I was more interested in the other artists featured.

Fast forward to 1989 when I had just changed jobs and felt like I needed a new area of music to explore. So I was getting into the Fairport Convention and Richard Thompson releases when I decided to go all out and ended up buying the US pressing of the Fruit Tree box (Hannibal). That's when I finally "got it" as far as Nick's music goes.

 

Same here. But bless them nonetheless...

 

In 74/75 there was a big article about him on, I guess, NME or Melody Maker that made me curious. Same with Gram Parsons. Of course I had to check both, and became a fan of Drake. Not so much of Parsons.

 

1969 - on the Nice Enough To Eat Island Records sampler LP

 

Some car commercial, where they played Pink Moon. Good song!

 

Around 1976, there was a terrific Nick Kent piece on him in the NME, and the Antilles reissues had just come out.

 

I heard about Nick Drake many years ago, knew his story, but not his music - until the VW commercial. Then around 2005, I picked up a CD copy of Pink Moon. Nick is on my list of things to look for in vintage vinyl whenever I go record shopping. I've only come across a few copies of Pink Moon that were too beat up to buy.

 

About 10 years ago I was spending a lot of time on the Rate Your Music web site, checking out reviews and lists and such. I was looking at their all time best albums list one day, smugly saying to myself "got it, got it, got it." when I came across Five Leaves Left. It was rated like in the top ten of all time. I had to sadly admit "I don't got it". In fact, I ain't never even heard of it! So luckily for me our library had a copy of that great album and away I went. I think its safe to say I really, REALLY like him. My wonderful, tolerant, amazing wife surprised me with the Fruit Tree box set shortly thereafter.

 

After I read about Nick Drake the first song I listened to on YouTube was "Pink Moon". It sounded vaguely familiar so I had probably heard it in the commercial, but I know I had never heard the name "Nick Drake" at the time of the commercial.

 

Pretty much my story, too - I was following Martyn who namechecked him in interviews, when I saw the Antilles Bryter Layter I bought it and went from there.