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.
Poor Mum
Nick Drake Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Poor mum
After a lifetime of dreaming
Poor mum
Poor mum
Whatever became of your scheming
Nothing worked out in the way that you planned
Nothing was quite as you thought
Joy as it flies cannot be caught
Poor mum
Poor mum
Where did you take a wrong turning
Poor mum
Poor mum
Pack up that last little yearning
Pack it away with the books and the toys
Silent and bound
Silent and mend
Go out and grab at you life and forget
You are poor, poor mum
In the song "Poor Mum" by Nick Drake, the lyrics speak about a mother who has had a lifelong dream that never fully materialized. The song presents a nostalgic, bittersweet exploration of what could have been for the mother, who is now left with only the memory of her aspirations.
The lyrics suggest a sense of confusion and disappointment as the mother reflects on her past and wonders where she went wrong. The lines "Nothing worked out in the way that you planned / Nothing was quite as you thought" convey a sense of regret over lost opportunities and the realization that life has not turned out as expected.
Despite the melancholic tone of the song, there is also a sense of hopefulness and encouragement. The lines "Try very hard not to misunderstand / Joy as it flies cannot be caught" suggest that the mother should not dwell on her past and instead embrace the present moment. The final lines of the song, "Go out and grab at your life and forget / You are poor, poor mum," offer a message of empowerment and suggest that it's never too late to take control of one's life.
Overall, "Poor Mum" is a poignant and introspective exploration of life's disappointments and the importance of moving forward despite them.
Line by Line Meaning
Poor mum
Sorrowful lament for mother's unfortunate circumstances that indicate her unattained desires and aspirations.
Poor mum
An expression of pity for the mother's prevailing situation in life.
After a lifetime of dreaming
Acknowledging that the mother too had dreams and desires that persisted throughout her life.
Poor mum
Repeating the phrase to emphasize the sadness in the situation.
Whatever became of your scheming
Reflecting on the mother's plans and ambitions that have not been fulfilled as life did not turn out the way she had planned.
Nothing worked out in the way that you planned
A statement of fact that things didn't go as planned for the mother in her life so far.
Nothing was quite as you thought
Highlighting the disparity between what the mother had visualized and the reality that she faced throughout her life's journey.
Try very hard not to misunderstand
Encouragement to the listener to understand and not be misled by the mother's struggles and failures in life.
Joy as it flies cannot be caught
An explanation that how one can't hold on to joy and happiness in life forever, as the phase of joy is transitory.
Poor mum
Repeating the phrase to continue with the sentiment of sorrow and condolence.
Where did you take a wrong turning
Questioning the mother's circumstances and trying to understand how things went wrong and where she lost control or direction in life.
Poor mum
Continuing the lament for the mother's plight.
Pack up that last little yearning
Advising the mother to let go of her desires, and packing them up like books and toys that people outgrow, to move on with life.
Pack it away with the books and the toys
Further explanation of the need to pack connections with things that bring nostalgia and block progress to new experiences.
Silent and bound
Describing how the mother may feel- confined and held back.
Silent and mend
Recovery of control and rebuilding life for the self.
Go out and grab at you life and forget
Encouraging the mother to pursue new experiences for herself and focus less on what hasn't worked out thus far.
You are poor, poor mum
A final acknowledgement of the mother's dire circumstances and the profound sense of pity for the mother during these many years.
Contributed by Layla R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Francine Roch
Poor Mum, poor Mum, after a lifetime of dreaming,
Poor Mum, poor Mum, whatever became of your scheming?
Nothing worked out in the way that you planned
Nothing was quite as you thought
Try very hard not to misunderstand
Joy as it flies can not be caught
Poor Mum, poor Mum, where did you take a wrong turning?
Poor Mum, poor Mum, pack up that last little yearning
pack it away with the books and the toys
Silent and dumb, sillent and mum
Go out and grab at your life and forget
You are poor poor ....
Mum?
redfrogrodeo
I haven’t seen or spoken to my mother in 7 years. She’s a very mental Ill woman with a traumatic past. She caused me a lot of pain and I can’t be around her. I hold no grudge and feel bad for her suffering. When I feel sad about our relationship I listen to this beautiful haunting song.
mikalovfydorzebrowski
Wiw... She uses exactly the same phrasing and melodic soundscape Nick Drake explored. Shows you that sometimes talent of genius doesn't appear out of the blue
Randall Throckmorton
It’s amazing how those similarities can be heard across different genres, instruments and eras. I wonder if she had a family influence herself or did her genius emerge out of the blue.
Jessica Haines
@Randall Throckmorton and isn't it incredible how if Nick Drake is a musical influence, it's also his mother who is your influence! Even if you've never heard her.
Ivory Khan
Molly was NIck's primary influence.
Erik Thorsen
@Randall Throckmorton No. The whole family was remarkably musical. That extends to aunts, uncles, grandparents. They seem to have played nearly constantly.
Oronzo Persano
One of the most brilliant and sublime song that I ever heard here. Thanks you Mum, thank you Molly, Thanks you Nick
Molly Potter - Emotions!
Oh my. How poignant and fatalistic. Mesmerising. Love it.
gloomandglow
This is her best one, by far.
Rich P
Almost impossibly poignant in the light of subsequent events. Lovely even on its own.