Elliott Smith, Five Years On

Not long after moving to Oregon, I met a co-worker's boyfriend, Nathan, a musician who told me about Elliott Smith, a Portland songwriter-singer I had barely heard of. Later on -- now about ten years ago -- Smith was nominated for a Grammy. Five years ago today, he died in Los Angeles, possibly by suicide. Nathan and others have described him as a later-generation Paul Simon or John Lennon, paving the way for the modern Portland music scene and the likes of Death Cab For Cutie, The Shins, and others.

Today I stayed home in an attempt to deal with a most-miserable cold. Curling up with a cup of hot tea, I naturally turned on my bedside radio -- and discovered that Oregon Public Radio's "Think Out Loud" talk show (normally devoted to political and other current-interest topics) was today featuring a remembrance of Elliott Smith. Some of Smith's former musician collaborators, band members and friends were either in-studio or call-ins. One remarkable call was from a woman who cited Smith and his music as a force that helped her overcome her heroin addiction.

You can see some video clips, hear an audio clip new to me (Coraliza), and find more about this broadcast at http://action.publicbroadcasting.net/opb/posts/list/1736412.page. For more about Think Out Loud (there may also be a podcast of the Elliott Smith show) at http://www.opb.org/thinkoutloud/. Also, if you listen to the stream at http://www.opbmusic.org, you are likely to hear some Elliott Smith from time to time. Finally, check out OPBMusic's Elliott Smith blog entry.

Of particular note for me was a call from Autumn de Wilde, noted for her photographs of Elliott Smith, among others. See this work at http://www.autumndewilde.com/elliott.htm and in her book (and here). (I believe that Autumn is the daughter of photographer Jerry de Wilde, someone I knew about mainly due to his involvement with photographer Robert Frank, one of my strongest early inspirations/influences.)

UPDATE 11/26/08: More on Autumn de Wilde as guest DJ at KCRW

I never really dived very deeply into Elliott Smith, despite the recommendations of friends like Nathan and John W., but hearing the Think Out Loud program today reminded me of how this is stuff to be listened to and savored. For me, the lyrics are especially compelling.