Books about Elliott Smith

Elliott Smith became somewhat well known in 1997 when his song, Miss Misery , was nominated for an Oscar for its place in the movie, Good Will Hunting .  It is incredible that Smith did not become a bigger name in the aftermath of this mainstream appearance.  He has long been a fixture and favorite in the indie rock scene, especially in places like Portland, Los Angeles, and New York, but widespread mass appeal never really came, which is not necessarily a bad thing. 

Smith died on October 21, 2003.  The story says he killed himself.  The facts of the case as we know them suggest that something else might have happened in his Echo Park, Los Angeles home that day.  The fact that Elliott died is sad enough, but more disheartening is the false legacy he left behind.  Casual observers remember Smith as a depressed addict who checked himself out.  They recall all of his songs as being about drug abuse and depression.  The truth is that such a drab picture is far from reality.  I plan on writing a hub that attempts to show that Elliott had lots of living left to do making the circumstances surrounding his death relevant for serious debate.  But in this hub, I will introduce three books about Elliott Smith.  Elliott has a strong and dedicated core group of fans that grows daily therefore there is a fair amount of material out there on him.  The three books that follow compliment one another well.

First off, this is a fantastic series. Simply put, each book in the series looks at an album in its entirety, picking apart each song and how they all fit together in an artist's lexicon like only an obsessed fan can or would. For music lovers, there is nothing quite like it. The addition of an Elliott Smith record is an ideal move, given the complexity of his work, its deep and varied meaning, and the way he adds new fans every day due to the way his music can resonate with so many.

XO chronicles the Elliott Smith record the same title.  Author Matthew LeMay does a sound job using the songs of XO to (re)inform Elliott Smith's legacy, one that can be simplistically portrayed by both fans and the media.  There are portions of the book, such as how LeMay glosses over the brilliant song New Monkey, that are lacking, but by large proper respect is paid to Elliott's work.  And most importantly, as Elliott likely would have wanted it, LeMay never attempts to offer the final word on what the words Elliott used 'meant.'

For some reason, a good number of Elliott Smith fans have bad things to say about Benjamin Nugent's Elliott Smith and the Big Nothing .  The number one criticism of the book is that Elliott's family as well as those who were apparently 'close' to Elliott refused to talk to Nugent for the book.  I find this criticism weak.  Many of those who did not speak to Nugent are the same people who offer up the company line on what happened surrounding Elliott's death, for one reason or another.

Regardless of who he did or did not talk to, Nugent does a fine job of chronicling Elliott's career from the place where his musical roots were initially planted in North Texas.  Following Elliott to Portland, New York City, and finally Los Angeles, Nugent takes an approach similar to LeMay's.  Elliott Smith is not watered down to a 'sad sack depressive,' rather he is presented as a multi-faceted human being, who, like most everyone, we'll probably never figure out.

The way this book is presented graphically is second to none.  It is of high quality, offers some great insights and thoughts on Elliott's life and music.  It looks good, literally and figuratively, on one's book shelf.  There is something, though, to what an Amazon reviewer had to say about the book.  It seems that the author Autumn de Wilde is stuck on the fact that she knew Elliott and keeps rock star company.  She is likely a nice person, but attention surely was not given to how she came off... more like a name-dropper, stereotypical LA type than someone genuinely looking to offer a snapshot into the life and music of Elliott Smith.  De Wilde looks to be more concerned at flaunting her 'insider' status vis a vis Elliott Smith.

A big bonus with this book:  An attached compact disc that includes a live performance Smith gave at Largo in Los Angeles.