Although he recorded only three albums, critics and fellow musicians hold his work in very high esteem. Drake failed to find a wide audience during his lifetime and had a strong aversion to performing. Since his death, however, Drake's music has gained a significant cult following.
Drake's father worked as an engineer. Although he was born in Rangoon, Burma, Nick's family moved back to England soon afterward, and Drake was brought up in Tanworth-in-Arden, a small village in the English county of Warwickshire. He went to public school at Marlborough College, where he learned to play the clarinet and piano. As a young adult, Drake enrolled in Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge, to study English. His older sister, Gabrielle Drake, is an actress.
Drake was a fan of British and the emerging American folk music scene, including artists Bob Dylan and Phil Ochs. While a university student, Drake began performing in local clubs and coffee houses. He was discovered by Ashley Hutchings, the bass player of the folk rock group Fairport Convention. Hutchings introduced Drake to the other members of Fairport Convention, folk singer John Martyn and producer Joe Boyd.
He delayed attendance to spend six months at the University of Aix-Marseille, France, beginning in February 1967. While in Aix, he began to practice guitar in earnest and to earn money would often busk with friends in the town centre. Drake began to smoke cannabis, and that spring he traveled with friends to Morocco, because, according to traveling companion Richard Charkin, "that was where you got the best pot". Drake's associates convinced Island Records to sign the young singer-songwriter to a three-album contract. Drake began recording his debut album Five Leaves Left later in 1968, with Boyd assuming the role of producer. The sessions took place in Sound Techniques studio, London, with Drake skipping lectures to travel by train to the capital. At the age of twenty, he released his first album Five Leaves Left (1969), which featured a chamber music quartet on several songs and had a light, breezy sound. Drake's second album Bryter Layter (1970) introduced a more upbeat, jazzier sound, with keyboards, horns and several brass instruments. Both albums were produced by Boyd and featured several members of Fairport Convention.
Many accounts of Drake focus on his mythology, but a large part of his enduring popularity is due to his meticulous songwriting, prosody, odd guitar tunings and lyricism.
Drake was pathologically shy and resented touring. The few concerts he did play were usually in support of other British folk acts of the time, such as Fairport Convention or John Martyn and were often brief and awkward. Partially because of this, his work received little attention and sold poorly. Whilst in the recording studio, he was so shy that he'd always play into the wall so as to avoid people's gazes.
Severely depressed and doubting his abilities as a musician, Drake recorded his final album Pink Moon (1972) in two two-hour sessions, both starting at midnight. The songs of Pink Moon were short (the album consists of eleven of them and lasts only 28 minutes) and emotionally bleak. Drake recorded them unaccompanied, in the presence of only a sound engineer (a piano was later overdubbed on the title track). Naked and sincere, it is widely thought to be his best work.
At this point, he considered other careers including the army and computer programming, but more suitably as a songwriter for other artists. However, none of Drake's plans materialized. In the next few months, Drake grew severely depressed and maintained relationships only with close friends such as John Martyn, who wrote the title song of his 1973 album Solid Air for and about Drake and with Sophia Ryde. He was hospitalized several times and lived with Hardy for a few months. Friends from that time have described how much his appearance changed: his nails grown, his hair and frame gaunt and thin.
In 1974, Drake felt well enough to write and record a few new songs. However, on November 25, he died of an overdose of antidepressants. The coroner concluded that the cause of Drake's death was suicide, although this was disputed by friends and relatives. Antidepressants of that time were quite lethal if ingested in any higher dosage than the one prescribed. His mother recounts that he must have had difficulty sleeping and had got up in the night to have a bowl of cornflakes. It's unclear whether he took more pills to help him sleep or to take his own life.
His simple gravestone in the Tanworth churchyard bears the line "And now we rise/And we are everywhere", taken from From the Morning - the last song on the last album Nick lived to complete.
Posthumous popularity
Since Drake’s death, his music has grown steadily in popularity. Several modern musicians, such as Lucinda Williams, Badly Drawn Boy, Matthew Good, Sebadoh's Lou Barlow, R.E.M. guitarist Peter Buck, Blur’s Graham Coxon, and Belle and Sebastian, consider Drake an important influence. In early 1999, BBC2 aired a 40-minute Nick Drake documentary, "A Stranger Among Us — In Search of Nick Drake", as part of its Picture This strand. The following year saw the release of a documentary by Dutch director Jeroen Berkvens, titled A Skin Too Few: The Days of Nick Drake and featuring interviews with Joe Boyd, Gabrielle Drake, audio engineer John Wood, and arranger Robert Kirby. Brad Pitt is a fan of Drake and, in 2004, he narrated a BBC radio documentary about the singer.
Island has responded to Drake’s popularity with several new releases including Time of No Reply (1986), an album of unreleased material including four new songs recorded in 1974, Way to Blue: An Introduction to Nick Drake (1994), a "best of" album, remastered HDCD releases of his three studio albums in 2000, and Made to Love Magic (2004), featuring one new track and some newly recorded orchestration for a previously released track. A replacement for Way to Blue called A Treasury was also released in 2004 on Hybrid-SACD.
In 2000, Volkswagen licensed the track Pink Moon, the title track from Nick's third release, for a particularly serene car commercial in the US. The advertisement caused a significant bounce in Drake’s popularity, bolstered by uses of Drake's music on a number of film soundtracks, including 1998's Hideous Kinky and Practical Magic (featuring "Road" from Pink Moon and "Black Eyed Dog" from Time of No Reply, respectively). In 2001, two Bryter Layter tracks appeared in mainstream films: "Northern Sky" in Serendipity, and "Fly" in The Royal Tenenbaums. In the same year, "Cello Song" from Five Leaves Left was featured in Me Without You. In 2004, "One of These Things First" appeared in Garden State and "Northern Sky" was featured again, this time in Fever Pitch.
Drake's "River Man" has become quite popular among Jazz musicians. A piano improvisation based on the melody was released by Brad Mehldau on the album "Progression: Art Of The Trio, Volume 5", and a Jazz vocal version by Claire Martin appears on the album Take My Heart.
Drake's posthumous popularity has made many fans consider the lyrics to "Fruit Tree" a song from Five Leaves Left prophetic: “Fame is but a fruit tree / So very unsound. / It can never flourish / Till its stock is in the ground. / So men of fame / Can never find a way / Till time has flown / Far from their dying day.” In 2004 two of his singles reached low positions in the UK charts - "Magic" and "River Man".
Most recently, Nick Drake has emerged as a key influence in the resurgence of 1960's and 1970's folk traditions, apparent in the works of artists including Devendra Banhart, Joanna Newsom, and Six Organs of Admittance.
In 2005, performer Beck updated his website during Christmas time with covers of three songs from Pink Moon: "Pink Moon", "Which Will" and "Parasite."
Family Tree, the next Bryter Music/Island record was released in July 2007.
Fruit Tree
Nick Drake Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
So very unsound.
It can never flourish
'Till its stock is in the ground.
So men of fame
Can never find a way
'Till time has flown
Far from their dying day.
Remembered for a while
A much updated ruin
From a much outdated style.
Life is but a memory
Happened long ago.
Theatre full of sadness
For a long forgotten show.
Seems so easy
Just to let it go on by
'Till you stop and wonder
Why you never wondered why.
Safe in the womb
Of an everlasting night
You find the darkness can
Give the brightest light.
Safe in your place deep in the earth
That's when they'll know what you were really worth.
Forgotten while you're here
Remembered for a while
A much updated ruin
From a much outdated style.
Fame is but a fruit tree
So very unsound.
It can never flourish
'Till its stock is in the ground.
So men of fame
Can never find a way
'Till time has flown
Far from their dying day.
Fruit tree, fruit tree
No one knows you but the rain and the air.
Don't you worry
They'll stand and stare when you're gone.
Fruit tree, fruit tree
Open your eyes to another year.
They'll all know
That you were here when you're gone.
The lyrics of Nick Drake's song "Fruit Tree" may be interpreted to be a commentary on fame and the nature of success. Drake appears to suggest that fame is fleeting and can be likened to a fruit tree that is unsound, taking time to flourish and can only achieve long-lasting success when it has roots in the ground. He emphasizes that the passage of time enables individuals to realize their full worth, and fame cannot be found until it has long left a person's dying day.
The crux of the song is summarized in the refrain: "Forgotten while you're here; remembered for a while; a much updated ruin from a much outdated style." Drake likens fame to something fleeting and ultimately unimportant. He then shifts focus to life itself, describing it as a long-forgotten show that is full of sadness. The theme of reminiscence is encapsulated in Drake's assertion that life is a mere memory that happened long ago, and that we must stop and ask why we never wondered why it went by so quickly. He then goes on to paint a picture of being safe in the womb of an everlasting night, to highlight the idea that it is only when we die that people will realize our true worth.
Overall, "Fruit Tree" performs an insightful commentary on the nature of success, fame, and the fleetingness of life itself. Drake emphasizes the importance of finding value in life for our own sake rather than focusing on the approval of others.
Line by Line Meaning
Fame is but a fruit tree
The concept of fame is highly unpredictable and unreliable.
So very unsound.
It is highly likely that fame would not come to fruition.
It can never flourish
Until it is firmly grounded in something more stable and reliable.
'Till its stock is in the ground.
Until then, it would be highly unlikely for it to fully bloom.
So men of fame
People who are already famous
Can never find a way
They won't earn that fame again.
'Till time has flown
Until a very long time from now.
Far from their dying day.
Until they reach their last days on this earth.
Forgotten while you're here
During your lifetime, people may forget about you.
Remembered for a while
However, for a short period of time, you might be remembered after your death.
A much updated ruin
Although you may have been famous or had a fanbase, it disappears and becomes an update in the recent past.
From a much outdated style.
Once what you were famous for is outdated, it would be like it never really existed.
Life is but a memory
Everything that happens in your life would be just a memory at some point.
Happened long ago.
The events and the moments of the past feel like years ago.
Theatre full of sadness
The memories baggage with emotions that may make a person sad.
For a long forgotten show.
It has left a very long time ago that most people have forgotten about it.
Seems so easy
It might seem very easy to ignore your life as it passes you by.
Just to let it go on by
By just ignoring and living on; life goes on.
'Till you stop and wonder
Until that point in life where you realize you need to make things count.
Why you never wondered why.
The questioning and regretting come later when things seem to have passed you by.
Safe in the womb
The comfort zone and a very comfortable, safe environment.
Of an everlasting night
Endless darkness.
You find the darkness can
In that darkness, you come to realize and comprehend.
Give the brightest light.
The understanding of yourself and who you are give you an intense, illuminating shine.
Safe in your place deep in the earth
When you find your desired, comfortable place on this planet or when you are buried, dead.
That's when they'll know what you were really worth.
As time goes on or after your death, people eventually realize your value.
Fruit tree, fruit tree
Metaphor: compares fame or life to that of a fruit tree.
No one knows you but the rain and the air.
Only nature gets to know you.
Don't you worry
Do not stress or get anxious.
They'll stand and stare when you're gone.
People will appreciate your worth and miss you when you are gone.
Open your eyes to another year.
Some years will bring new discoveries and opportunities.
They'll all know
People will begin to recognize.
That you were here when you're gone.
They will appreciate your contributions and thoughts to bring change to their existence.
Lyrics © RESERVOIR MEDIA MANAGEMENT INC
Written by: Nick Drake
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Julian Vickery
"Fruit Tree" by Nick Drake (19 June 1948 – 25 November 1974), one of the standout tracks from his debut album "Five Leaves Left," released in 1969. It seems almost prophetic, given the circumstances of his premature death. Today would have been his 70th birthday by the way.
Lyrics:
Fame is but a fruit tree
So very unsound.
It can never flourish
‘til its stock is in the ground
So men of fame
Can never find a way
‘til time has flown
Far from their dying day
Forgotten while you’re here
Remembered for a while
A much updated ruin
From a much outdated style
Life is but a memory
Happened long ago
Theatre full of sadness
For a long forgotten show
Seems so easy
Just to let it go on by
‘til you stop and wonder
Why you never wondered why
Safe in the womb
Of an everlasting night
You find the darkness can
Give the brightest light
Safe in your place deep in the earth
That’s when they’ll know what you were truly worth
Forgotten while you’re here
Remembered for a while
A much updated ruin
From a much outdated style
Fame is but a fruit tree
So very unsound
It can never flourish
‘til it’s stock is in the ground
So men of fame
Can never find a way
‘til time has flown
Far from their dying day
Fruit tree, fruit tree
No-one knows you but the rain and the air
Don’t you worry
They’ll stand and stare when you’re gone
Fruit tree, fruit tree
Open your eyes to another year
They’ll all know
That you were here when you’re gone
(Thanks Nick.)
ThunderOfDayDream
Fame is but a fruit tree
So very unsound
It can never flourish
‘til its stock is in the ground
So men of fame
Can never find a way
‘til time has flown
Far from their dying day
Forgotten while you’re here
Remembered for a while
A much updated ruin
From a much outdated style
Life is but a memory
Happened long ago
Theatre full of sadness
For a long forgotten show
Seems so easy
Just to let it go on by
‘til you stop and wonder
Why you never wondered why
Safe in the womb
Of an everlasting night
You find the darkness can
Give the brightest light
Safe in your place deep in the earth
That’s when they’ll know what you were truly worth
Forgotten while you’re here
Remembered for a while
A much updated ruin
From a much outdated style
Fame is but a fruit tree
So very unsound
It can never flourish
‘til it’s stock is in the ground
So men of fame
Can never find a way
‘til time has flown
Far from their dying day
Fruit tree, fruit tree
No-one knows you but the rain and the air
Don’t you worry
They’ll stand and stare when you’re gone
Fruit tree, fruit tree
Open your eyes to another year
They’ll all know
That you were here when you’re gone
Flavio Martínez
"Fruit tree, no-one knows you but the rain and the air." My heart is broken.
Still listening to this at least 1 time per year. Brings me to tears everytime. So powerful.
Burt472
...And mine.....
Edward Skan
1 time per year eh. Don't overdo it like.
SesameStrut
A stunning, sobering masterpiece. The world didn't deserve him.
jofall91
For the way they ignored his masterful playing and songwriting, you’re damn right the world didn’t deserve him! I wish I could just hug Nick and tell him it’ll be alright, although it wouldn’t have helped… 💔
kerry
This song seems prophetic. People are just beginning to miss Nick...
John Honeyman
Nick wrote his epitaph here.
"Safe in your place deep in the earth
That’s when they’ll know what you were really worth"
R.I.P. maestro, appreciated way too late to save you... but much loved now.
MontanAesthetic
Crazy how much he inspired me as a young lady.. (1999-2006) I would’ve never made art if it were not for Nick Drake.. and I thank him for everyone he inspires alike.
L Fi
Thank you, Nick Drake. The inspirer and comforter of many! 💙
Marina Nina
😥