Nick Drake - Five Leaves Left (1969)

Last weekend Friar Chris told me that a local record store had asked him to price a record collection full of "punk rock" records that the record store owner had just bought off a collector. Friar Chris asked me to come along with him to assist him in pricing of these records, since he knows I'm also knowledgeable about that stuff. It turns out the collection was full of more than just punk rock. There were original pressings of records by The Flaming Lips, Dinosaur Jr., Joy Division, The Meat Puppets, The Velvet Underground, as well as rare pressings of Neil Young albums and countless more rarities. Everything was in absolutely mint condition, and when I say mint, I mean mint, they were also all entirely original pressings. Every single record I looked at looked as if it was brand new off a store shelf. (If interested in purchasing and records from this collection or checking out the collection, go to  That Old Retro Store ) In exchange for helping with pricing of the records, the owner of the store, Wade, told Friar Chris and I that we were each allowed to pick out a few records that we wanted from the collection for ourselves. I took this album, the Dream Syndicate EP I posted last night, the Howlin Wolf album I posted earlier, and a original pressing of The Velvet Underground's self-titled album.

I think this rip, as well as the others I've put up from this collection are a testament to how truly taken care of these records really are.

Anyways, enough of the story of how I got this, and the sales pitch for That Old Retro Store. Now it's time to talk about the record itself.

I'm not entirely sure how Nick Drake didn't sky rocket to the popularity of artists like Bob Dylan or Leonard Cohen during his brief life, though he has become extremely popular and well-noticed since. His music is hauntingly beautiful. This album, recorded in 1968, was his debut, and is said to be inspired by Leonard Cohen's debut album. On this album, Drake was accompanied by British folk-rock groups Fairport Convention, and Pentangle. Because Fairport Convention played on this album, much of the album was rushed during down time while Fairport Convention was busy recording their own Unhalfbricking album, and there does seem to be a sense of urgency to this album. It has been observed that Drake was "tight and anxious" during these recording sessions.


Tracklist:
1. Time Has Told Me
2. River Man
3. Three Hours
4. Day Is Gone
5. Way To Blue
6. Cello Song
7. The Thoughts Of Mary Jane
8. Man In A Shed
9. Fruit Tree
10. Saturday Sun

Download: mediafire