Roman Candle: the beginning of a beautiful career

Thank God for Elliott Smith's girlfriend back in the mid-90s, whomever or wherever she may be. You see, while little ol' Elliott was toiling around miserably in a semi-successful local rock band that he no longer really wanted to be in (Heatmiser), he was also going home at nights and recording 4-track demos of acoustic songs he had been working on to get some space from all the rock he played all day long. He wasn't doing it for any label or any one else besides himself and maybe a few friends. This is where the best girlfriend in the world comes in. After unsuccessfully trying to convince him to send his demos into record labels, she finally just took the damned things herself and sent them off to the Kill Rock Stars label without his knowledge. The label liked the songs so much that they didn't even want him to touch a single note. They wanted to put out the entire set as an album. Thus, Elliott Smith, singer/songwriter, solo artist was born.

And we're all better for it.

Now, this is not my favorite Elliott Smith album, in fact, it might be one of my least favorites. But my least favorite Elliott Smith record is still gonna be something I like more than my favorite album by anybody, in any given year. He's just that good. If you look back to one of my first (and, i'm sorry, pathetic) reviews, you'll see I've been trying to convince people to give him a listen for quite a while now. I figured that, since after three years not a single soul has gotten around to reviewing this album, it was about time that I did. Because you need to go buy it.

So, how to explain this album. Well, the productions values are not exactly high, if that's important to you. Most of these songs are the actual demos his girlfriend sent into the label. They are quite lo-fi. This, however, does not prevent them from being amazingly beautiful. Take, for instance, Condor Avenue, one of the album's best tracks. He wrote this song when he was sixteen! That's right, while you and me were busy popping pimples and trying to be cool, he was writing music this good. now i'm picking up to put away anything of your's that's still around / i don't know what to do with your clothes or your letters / it'll make a whisper out of you...

There are also several 'no name' songs on this album, which, if you are to believe Mr. Smith, he just never got around to naming them. Which is why it is wonderful to see him live and hear someone yell out "play no name number 4" and see him react with something like "i don't know which one that is!". But I digress. Personally, my favorite song on Roman Candle is probably No Name #1, though No Name #4 (also featured on the Good Will Hunting soundtrack) is a close second. The amount of feeling, depth, and melody that Elliott is able to put into his songs - even at this, his earliest attempts at a solo career - is honestly astounding. He is all but naked on Roman Candle, foreshadowing the brilliance of his next album, a self-titled masterpiece which ranks among the best indie releases of all time, with songs that break your heart and treat your ear, all at once.

So, thank God Elliott Smith's one time girlfriend. You let the cat out of the bag. For my money, he is the best singer/songwriter out there (even the last Heatmiser album, Mic City Sons, released after this record, demonstrates the song writing genius he had become). I own every CD he has ever made. I am anxiously awaiting his follow-up to Figure 8 - a sometimes briliant, sometimes wandering album - with baited breath. When Elliott Smith is at his best, no one around these days can touch him. Do yourself a favor and pick up the first solo recording he ever made, and find the roots of his genius scattered about it. If you've never heard Elliott, don't buy this album first. But if you've heard subsequent albums of his, you definitely won't regret picking Roman Candle up.

you start to drink you just want to continue
it'll all be yesteryear soon
you start to drink you just want to continue
it'll all be yesteryear soon...