Acknowledgements Preface Part One: "Making Something From Nothing" - The "Story" of XO - XO Song by Song Part 2: "Pictures of Me" Sources
Smith's 1998 major label debut defies the "tortured singer-songwriter" stereotype, and takes up this defiance as a central theme. At a time when Smith was being groomed for a particular (and particularly condescending) brand of stardom, he produced a record that eviscerated one of the central assumptions of singer-songwriterdom: that pain is beautiful. This book is an original take on a widely beloved album and steers clear of the sensationalist suicide angles that have dogged most analysis of Elliott Smith's extraordinary work.
Matthew LeMay has been a staff writer at Pitchfork Media since 2000. His band, Get Him Eat Him, will release their second album in the summer of 2007. He lives in Providence, Rhode Island.
The case is skillfully put forward that [Smith] wasn't all gloom,
but a studious musical perfectionist.
*Record Collector*
...the 33 1/3 series are a fascinating and revealing collection of
books. Written by music fans for music fans, this series will never
grow old, never grow boring, and goes far into explaining the
mysticism and appeal behind these priceless bodies of work, for
your own personal pleasure or just in case you happen to know
someone who just doesn't understand.
*Webcuts Music*
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