To: Elliott From: Portland
February 1st, 2011
To: Elliott From: Portland
To: Elliott From: Portland by Various ArtistsA tribute to the late Elliott Smith featuring indie-rock notables including The Decemberists, Helio Sequence, The Thermals, Swords, Dolorean, Amelia and Sean Croghan. Hard Times, the song chosen by Croghan, a close friend and former roommate of Smith’s, is previously unreleased. Many of these artists knew Elliott personally, and played with Elliott at various times. The album features liner notes from those who knew and loved Elliott Smith. It was mastered by Tony Lash, Elliott’s former Heatmiser bandmate.
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Tribute is a true gem,
Tribute albums tend to fail their intended audience time and again, mainly because the audience they target are purist fans of the original work. More often than not, these fans view any reworking of the material as a form of sacrilege. Sadly, this is already the case for what is in reality, an outstanding tribute to Elliott Smith, “To:Elliott/From:Portland.” Reading the message boards on various Smith fan sites, it doesn’t take long to see that this release is loathed by his fan base. The crux of their collective wrath seems to be aimed at the non-sparse production, the reverse of which was a Smith trademark. Unfortunately, they are missing the real worth of this CD – that he was a remarkable songwriter, and given that fact, even relatively unknown artists (all of the bands on this disc are from his hometown of Portland) have a hard time sounding bad when given such a great song to work with. The CD kicks off with the best known band of the bunch, The Decemberists, and their cover of Clementine, and it’s performed
almost as sparse as Elliott’s original – acoustic guitar, harmonica, and the sound of a crackling fire in the background. The fire is a great effect – and reminds me how few of today’s songs would actually sound so good at night in the woods with the smell of burning brush and branch permeating the air. From there, the production gets more lavish as each of the artists takes on the task of honoring his work. In spite of this, these artists do a fantastic job with Smith’s material – and for people who were not a part of the near lunatic fanaticism that made up Smith’s fan base while he was alive, I think they will be drawn even closer to his original work. Much like one of Elliott’s biggest inspirations, The Beatles, a great song still sounds like a great song – even if performed by a guy at the corner pub. Unless you live in Portland, you won’t know many (if any) of these artists, with the exception of the Decemberists and Eric Matthews – but please don’t let that stop you from discovering this fine CD.
You’ll thank yourself later for owning it.
Michael Monahan
Atlantabluesky.com
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Perhaps it helps to be an Elliott Smith fan?,
I bought this CD because I liked “Division Day” by We Are Telephone when I heard it on Pandora. Plus, I looked at the reviews here on Amazon and was hopeful. That was a mistake.
“Rose Parade” is good. The rest of the covers, to me, lack any real intensity or passion. Based on other comments here, supposedly this tribute was by bands that really like Elliott Smith’s music. Somehow I’d think this attachment would produce some flair or heart but if the bands feel it, they don’t convey it.
Contrary to other reviews, perhaps these songs fail to impress because I am totally unfamiliar with the original versions…perhaps hearing a song you already like, even if done badly, makes it better? I can only speculate, give this CD 2 stars and move on to my next acquisition.
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best Elliott tribute CD,
A great tribute arranges the music to their own style, as if it is their own original. This CD does that. If you know these bands you could see that clearly. Good song selection. Great job.
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