[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]

(TV) Not so familiar Verlaine favourites



I was "late at the ball", as we say in Swedish, and didn't buy me any Nick
Drake records until today. So now I'm here with the 4 LP box, which comes with
a big booklet. And the first paragraph in it goes like this:

"After a punk rock concert in New York ... English producer John Wood goes
backstage. There he is introduced to Tom Verlaine... To Wood's surprise,
Verlaine knows all about him. 'I've admired your records for a long time',
says the gaunt blond guitarist, then names the performers he likes: the
McGarrigle Sisters, John Martyn, the Fairport Convention. 'But you know', says
Verlaine, 'the very best of all is Nick Drake.'"

Perhaps this conversation did took place once upon a time, and perhaps it was
just out of courtesy Verlaine said what he said. But has he *ever* said
anything like this elsewhere? A bunch of folk-rockers and singer-songwriters
as favourites? The McGarrigle Sisters?! John Martyn? Even Nick Drake? I'd say
that there's similarities between Verlaine's Fender playing and Richard
Thompson's, but the song-writing style is quite different. Anyway -- a bit
interesting to see some other possible influences mentioned than Coltrane and
Ayler and the other the usual suspects.

Leif J, Sweden
--------------
To post: Mail tv@obbard.com
To unsubscribe: Mail majordomo@obbard.com with message "unsubscribe tv"