Made to Love Magic

by

Nick Drake

Edit

We didn't think it would happen, but here it is - another new compilation of recordings by Nick Drake, that troubled and marvelously talented young man who in his short career nevertheless managed to produce three of the most heartbreakingly beautiful albums ever made. You can't go wrong with any of them, as the Amazon critic above says, but this disc is still no less essential. It's seemingly meant to replace Time of No Reply - which was the previous offering of gems-from-the-vault - and so there's still a little overlap here. Here's the breakdown for those wondering what's really 'new':

"Joey," "Clothes of Sand," "Thoughts of Mary Jane," "Rider on the Wheel," "Black-Eyed Dog" and "Voices" (fka Voice from the Mountain) are the same tracks from ToNR, remastered and sonically spruced up.

"Hanging on a Star," "Mayfair" and "River Man" are solo takes with just Nick and his guitar, previously unissued. "Three Hours" is also an alternate take from the studio, this time with congas and flute. The differences in those last two give a fresh new twist, especially "River Man" which had only been released with full strings.

(I Was Made to Love) "Magic" and "Time of No Reply" itself have had orchestral backings freshly recorded, working from the original charts made in the late 60s (and in the case of ToNR never used). Again, a wonderful new twist.

"Tow the Line" is apparently a new discovery and has never been released anywhere. It could have easily belonged on Pink Moon - it's another pretty solo song and shares the same not-really-fatalistic mood. On its own it's not exactly spectacular, but of course it's noteworthy as the only Drake song heretofore unknown. As far as we know.

So there it is, although I'm probably not the only one who had to have it sight-unseen just because everything the man put to tape was stellar. I'm not sure why a couple of the ToNR tracks were still left off here; they could have easily been added to this disc (which runs a little under 42 minutes as it is), and now there are a mere couple tracks that are unfairly fading into the realm of the out-of-print. But that can't be helped now, so all I can do is encourage anyone who hasn't discovered this wonderful artist yet to rectify the situation whenever possible. Nick's is a catalogue that's as fresh, vital and exquisitely beautiful today as it was 30 years ago, and Made to Love Magic stands as the (almost) perfect finish. Buy, marvel and wonder.

I love Nick Drake, and I fear I'm turning into a sucker by running out and buying every repackaged, recycled album that's put out now. Okay, so there's a new song here and there, but come on already and get a box set out with EVERYTHING on it. Nick Drake fans are avid, even somewhat rabid, and they will buy a box set.

This album is solid Nick Drake, but with the exception of a few tracks, it's stuff we've all heard before or have on another album. Save your money on this one, unless you absolutely cannot live without that one Nick Drake song you don't already have.