Product Description

'Made To Love Magic' brings together original and alternative recordings from cult singer/songwriter Nick Drake. The album includes a complete solo version of 'River Man' and a five minute version of 'Three Hours'. Also discovered in the vaults was the last recording Drake ever made before his death in 1974, the track 'Tow The Line'.

Track Listing

1. Rider On The Wheel
2. Magic
3. River Man
4. Joey
5. Thoughts Of Mary Jane
6. Mayfair
7. Hanging On A Star
8. Three Hours
9. Clothes Of Sand
10. Voices
11. Time Of No Reply
12. Black Eyed Dog
13. Tow The Line

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #17396 in Music
• Released on: 2004-05-24
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 42 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
All the world's a stage and folk legend Nick Drake--a frail, reclusive romantic whose music was sad but beautifully emancipating and who died young in 1974 in mysterious circumstances--was one of life's reluctant players. As epithets go, the lyrics to Made To Love Magic ("I was born to sail away into a land of never, not to be tied to an old stone grave") aptly convey how Nick Drake's legend continues to gather no moss, even some three decades after his lonely tranquilised farewell. Enthusiastic newcomers should start with any of Drake's three studio albums (Five Leaves Left, Bryter Layter, Pink Moon) and Patrick Humphries' definitive biography but Made To Love Magic is, nevertheless, essential. Consisting of rare and unheard tracks (many of which have even avoided the mucky paws of the keenest bootlegger) and compiled by those closest to him (sister Gabrielle, engineer John Wood and fellow Cambridge Uni student and string-arranger Robert Kirby) the album is a labour of love. Lost amateur recordings of Nick Drake at University in Cambridge, outtakes from the Five Leaves Left album, Robert Kirby's unused string arrangements for Magic and Time of No Reply finally restored, an early rendition of "Three Hours" featuring Rebop Kwaku Baah (Traffic, Can) on percussion and remixed versions of those despairing final songs from July 1974, including the newly discovered "Tow the Line". This is surely the final word on Nick Drake; unless, of course, those Aix-en-Provences tapes and that mythical lost Peel session from August 1969 ever make themselves known. --Kevin Maidment

Customer Reviews

The last word on Nick Drake
Indispensible really for anyone who owns the trilogy of Drake albums released in his lifetime. Features some great tracks that presumably Nick would have been happy to release - Rider on the Wheel (one slight vocal fluff), Time of No Reply, Black Eyed Dog, Magic and his final recording Tow the Line - the only one not available before in some form. They feature his great guitar playing, distinctive voice and enigmatic poetic lyrics and on the whimsical Magic , the gorgeous but, perhaps, excessive orchestration, more subtly done on Way to Blue. Black Eyed Dog is extremely moving in the context, the darkest of blues. Other tracks are weaker songs eg Joey, Mayfair or the painfully strained Hanging on a Star, or alternative versions - Three Hours, Thoughts of Mary Jane and River Man, all interesting takes. Understandably not a cohesive or homogenous album but good clean (remixed?) versions. Let's just be grateful for that.

Buy this CD if you are a Nick Drake Fan
This Cd holds the last official track to be released by the Nick Drake Back catalogue, "Tow the Line" which is well worth the price on its own though, it does shown Nick at his most Cynical, and there is an edge of desperation in the song(not that there's anything wrong with that kind of songwriting).

There are many more wonders to behold, like the Many alternate takes,"Rider on the wheel"( the guitaring is so diffrent) sticks out, as does the complete version of "Mayfair" the only other version of it Nick forgets the words half way thru. this CD also contains the "other" Take of "Made to Love Magic" apparently the version on this album is the version that Nick wanted to be released, where as the version on the CD "Time of no reply" is the version he was unhappy with releasing both are diffrent only in the String arrangments, I personally prefer the version on time of No reply, i supose it could come down to which version you hear first. at any rate this album comes highly recommended, there are a couple of rehashed tunes on there, but mainly, diffrent arrangements of studio quality music, is the order of the Day.

Stuart

Overflowing with beauty
As a new listener to the music of Nick Drake, i was not sure what to expect from yet another artist listed as "great" and "legendary" after a tragic end to life.
Like any sane person i started from the end, buying this, his latest release, as my cautious introduction. I have to say however that i was completely bowled over on first listenings, it is so refreshing to find an album's worth of material that seems so honest and touching. The backing tracks for most of his vocals are either accoustic guitar, or an ochestral score, and these both complement his lyrics and unique style of singing incredibly well.
If you are interested in my opinion, the tracks "Joey" "River Man" and "Tow the line" are three of the best on this album, but in all honesty, i really enjoyed them all and hope you do to.