I haven’t really given much thought to what I would do this week for the Morning Music. That’s because I decided last week that I would do Nick Drake. But as the John Martyn week moved on, I started to have questions about it. It seems kind of lazy to do. But the only other thing I’ve been thinking about — an explanation of different styles of classical music — is far too much work for me right now. So Nick Drake it is! And why not? I mean, I love his work as much as I did when I first heard it. It is unbelievable great.
Of course, there isn’t a whole lot of Nick Drake music. And there is basically no live stuff online. (There does seem to be a documentary on him that I might use next Saturday.) So let’s start with his outstanding first album, Five Leaves Left. Supposedly, Drake considered “River Man” the centerpiece of the album. So it seems as good place to start as any. It’s the story of woman who negotiates or just plans with Death how she will die. I don’t think it has any special meaning beyond that, but I’m sure there are Nick Drake fans who will tell me otherwise. It’s also uses 5/4 time most beautifully: