Search - Nick Drake :: Family Tree (Dig)

Essential for Nick Drake fans

Bailey Z. Rose | Orlando, FL | 12/20/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

""Family Tree" compiles a bunch of Nick Drake's home recordings -- many of which have been circulating as bootlegs, but a few originals as well.



The tracks on "Family Tree" are more bluesy than his studio releases -- most of them are traditional tunes or works of fellow folk artists like Dave Van Ronk / Jackson C Frank / Bob Dylan. The cool thing is that Nick's renditions seem, at times, more appropriate than their original versions!



Nick's guitar is exceptionally clean, and this can be deceptive, as it can be easy to underestimate the difficulty and complexity of his fingerpicking if you're not paying attention. As always, his distinctive voice does the tunes justice without seeming at all "British" or fakely "folky".



As a fan of Drakes work and a collector of as much of his music as possible, I'll say that "Family Tree" is essential for anyone who loves Nick's music, or anyone who enjoys traditional blues / folk music. For fans, this album represents a collection of refreshingly different, and possibly unheard, tracks -- for lovers of blues / folk, this album is a treasury of classic tunes rejuvenated by a gifted guitarist / singer / songwriter.



Give it a shot!"