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There are a lot of good choices for the album to cover from 1972. Eagles released their first album. David Bowie dropped his Ziggy Stardust album. The Rolling Stones gave us Exile on Main St., a seminal album I’ve never listened to. I have listened to Exile in Guyville, though. However, I am taking a different path. An album that has left a legacy, even if it wasn’t huge at the time.
Nick Drake released Pink Moon, his third album in 1972. He did it all himself this time, eschewing a backing band. The album didn’t sell great. It got a mixed critical reception at the time. Now, though, it’s considered an all-time-great album. People love Pink Moon. Drake didn’t live to see that happen. He died two years later. He was 26 years old.
Drake died of a drug overdose. His death was ruled a suicide. This has helped bolster his legacy, and the legacy of Pink Moon. Drake has been fetishized, because people love to fetishize a depressive’s work, and also depression. People will tell you that Pink Moon reflects Drake’s depression. His friends will tell you that Drake never worked when he was depressed. I have no idea. I wasn’t there. None of his fans were. People connect however they connect.
These days? Pink Moon basically gets perfect critical assessments across the board. It’s, the kind of album that gets a 10.0 from Pitchfork and Spin. The Rolling Stone listed it 201st on their list of the 500 greatest albums of all-time. People cover his songs. Volkswagen used “Pink Moon” in an ad. Drake is a prominent musical figure. He’s a cult hero. None of this happened during his life. None of it may have happened had he not died so young.
That’s weird. It’s also inevitable. Nick Drake was not a star like David Bowie was in 1972. Both are beloved icons now. Would Drake have gotten there had he not died tragically? There is no way to know, and there is nothing pleasant about thinking about it. Pink Moon can’t exist outside its context, but it’s nice to try your best to just delve into the music and enjoy it.
