Nick Drake

The Life

By: Richard Morton Jack, Gabrielle Drake - foreword

Narrated by: Richard Morton Jack, Gabrielle Drake

Length: 19 hrs and 3 mins

Publisher's summary

The full life of one of the greatest singer-songwriters of the twentieth century, with a Foreword by his sister Gabrielle Drake.

In 1968 Nick Drake had everything to live for. The product of a loving, creative family and a privileged background, he was not only a handsome and popular Cambridge undergraduate, but also a new signing to the UK's hippest record label, Island.

Three years later, however - having made three well-reviewed but low-selling albums - Nick had been overwhelmed by a mysterious mental illness. He returned to live in his family home in rural Warwickshire in 1971, and died in obscurity in 1974, aged just 26.

In the decades since, Nick has become the subject of ever-growing fascination and speculation. Combined sales of his records now stand in the millions, his songs are frequently heard on TV and in films, and he has become one of the most widely known and admired singer-songwriters of his generation.

Nick Drake: The Life is the only biography of Nick to be written with the blessing and involvement of his sister and Estate. Drawing on copious original research and new interviews with his family, friends and musical collaborators, as well as deeply personal archive material unavailable to previous writers - including his father's diaries, his essays and private correspondence - this is the most comprehensive and authoritative account possible of Nick's short and enigmatic life.

Includes a foreword by Gabrielle Drake.

©2023 Richard Morton Jack (P)2023 Hodder & Stoughton Limited

Critic reviews

"This is the book we've been waiting for - the one Nick's legacy deserves and so badly needs. Richard Morton Jack has reconstructed Nick's life with great sensitivity and care, and in remarkable detail. It is a biography to be treasured." (Joe Boyd)

Proceed with caution

Have been waiting for this book for months and just finished. Nick’s music has been a big deal in my life for a long time. The book is excellent but profoundly sad. Really. I understand why his sister says in the introduction that she won’t read it a second time. All the things that the music has meant to me, all the beautiful moments…reduced to untreated mental illness. Just saying…

The last puzzle piece..

Absolutely riveting. I could not stop listening. I have read every book on Nick Drake but always felt something was missing or it led to too many questions. I feel like this is so comprehensive from start to finish.

So sad and so beautiful…

Deeply moving, insightful, and very enlightening. I’ve been listening to Nick Drake’s music for 30 years, and this has helped me to understand it better, and care about it more deeply. I loved this book, and will read it again.

A powerful read

Whether you are a fan of Nick Drake or just beginning to listen to his music this book will bring you closer to understanding the man and his genius.

Comprehensive. Pragmatic, yet heartfelt.

This biography caught me off guard. I sought out the hardback version (at present only available in the UK), While waiting for delivery, I decided to purchase the Audible version narrated by the author. When coupled with ‘Nick Drake: Remembered For A While’ (2014), you’ll have a thorough portrait of Nick Drake the musician and the person. Full of meaningful insights into his immediate family, and those who knew him. I’m most grateful that there aren’t any condescending comments, pejorative asides, or the snark which typically plagues biographies. Essentially, the form is a historical narrative, supported by personal correspondence, school records, family diary entries and interviews which are attributed directly to the individual, largely expressed verbatim. Great pains are taken so that each voice has clarity, While heartbreaking, this is a sober yet deeply empathetic effort. And now, back to music!

An outstanding biography

A comprehensive, meticulously constructed and endlessly sensitive look into Nick Drake's life.
This was obviously written with incredible care and understanding, aiming at clarity and a sincere and complex depiction of Drake, as a man and as an artist. It also sets to rights many inaccurate stories I'd heard about Nick's life.

Jack's performance adds to the overall impression. The depth of his devotion and respect for Nick and for the Drake family are apparent.

It's not an easy read\listen, of course. But I'd recommend it to anyone who loves Drake's music and wants to learn something about the person who created it.

A coherent well-researched narrative. Brilliant writing, flawless audiobook production.

Unlike any previous scattered interviews or attempts at biography - we at last have the fully coherent narrative of Nick Drake’s life and his troubled years after leaving Cambridge. Richard Morton Jack has created a lasting, brilliant portrait. Loved the audiobook!

A Must for any Nick Drake Fan

I have been listening to Nick Drake for about 20 years and Love his music. Have read many articles and watched Documentaries about him. But nothing comes close to this book. the total story of his life is both joyful and tragic and this book gives you so much insight..thanks in a major way to Nick's Father's Diary. I respect and have so much admiration for his parents who never waivered for the love of their son. this is a family story of a man that was a genius.

Simply put, this book is a miracle....

For many Nick Drake fans, like myself, the only way we could learn more about the short life of Nick Drake was digging up old magazine articles about Nick that we found online, pouring over liner notes in box sets and repressings of Nick's three brilliant albums, or chatting with like minded friends and comparing notes on the scant amount of information in Drake's life after the release of Pink Moon. However, now, due to the extraordinary work of Richard Morton Jack, Nick Drake's life is no longer hidden in the shadows. Richard Morton Jack has taken great care in leaving no stone unturned and now presents to us the wonderful beginnings of Nick's musical life and the rather difficult details concerning the end of his life. I say this book is a miracle because so much of Nick's life was shrouded in myth, with only two minor documentaries online to help shape what little most of us know about the short life of this beloved artist. Now, we know the full story. Richard Morton Jack was giving access to the private correspondence of family letters, diary, and journal entries, home recordings, and many other artifacts from the Drake family that helped give a proper history of the life of Nick Drake. I can not recommend this book enough. It's absolutely brilliant!

A brilliant but devastating biography

By the time I was in college, I thought I was already well-versed in and had already defined the strict parameters of what I considered “the canon” of immaculate legendary artists. The three Js (Jimi, Janis, Jim) and a few others.

So, I was very surprised to find so late in my musical life that my friend’s casual, “you haven’t heard Nick Drake?” would reveal another one to add to the canon. To this day, there are only two artists whose oeuvre never gets old, no matter how many times I listen: Nick Drake, and the Doors (and I was very tickled to find that Drake was also a fan of the Doors and attended my favorite Doors concert in September, 1968).

As much as I enjoyed the discussion of musical tidbits such as this, it really is a devastating story researched and presented without parallel in this new book. The author meticulously weaves his narrative with the assistance of the Drake family’s connections and sources to tell Nick’s story in a way that could not possibly be superseded.