I've been listening and admiring Elliot Smith's work

>>73903566
He very rarely used strange tunings. It's mostly just D standard.

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For an Indie artist, he had a pretty high profile and was seen as one of the top singer/songwriters of his generation. He was a pretty skilled guitarist, even though he himself would say otherwise. Even better than that, was his creativity and sense of melody on the guitar, allowing him to create his songs and progressions. He really was a treasure and it's a shame he went through such emotional pain and left so soon.

He's probably not as good as smith and certainly not /mu/ approved but check out Conor Oberst. His first album with the mystic valley band and a few bright eyes albums are absolutely fantastic imo. He uses intelligent songwriting like smith. I think some of his stuff is the best written from this current generation of artists

>>73904406
I like a lot of older Bright Eyes songs but this comparison has angered me for over around 15 years now. It's like comparing Billy Joel to Wesley Willis.

>>73904622
Just curious what you've listened to and what you like from Conor? His catalog is pretty fucking huge

>>73904406
>>73904622
>>73904651
The only song I've liked from him was Weather Reports. The few other things I've checked out I haven't liked as much.

Is there an album where the songs are in a similar vein?

>>73904651
I've heard damn near everything he's made. A few girlfriends of mine were very into him. The first Desaparecidos album, Fevers and Mirrors, Every Day and Every Night, Lifted. I like plenty of his stuff. I just feel like Conor and Elliott are barely playing the same game.

Try Nick Drake, OP.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L1AkYgBTc4M

Not sure I'd call him a better player or a better singer/songwriter, but he was surely more eccentric.

Then Joanna Newsom. Her voice may be a bit hard to get into, though.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ky9Ro9pP2gc

Finally, in terms of pure acoustic guitar playing, I've never heard anyone better than John Fahey.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XOU3EZOhy9A

>>73904851
/mu/ drone

>>73904894
It's the music I like, mate.

That makes me a drone, so be it.

Elliott was a very good songwriter, and his playing worked well for the songs he wrote, but you can find plenty of people that matched him skill wise on acoustic.

And lmao, that's not an "alien guitar tuning". That's just the incredibly common Open D tuned down a whole step, so technically just open C.

And jesus christ he's not "largely unknown to people out of the folk loop". He played on the fucking Oscars, and is more or less a pop culture staple for the kind of music he plays. Most of his fans don't even seem to listen to that much folk music, Elliott himself didn't even really listen to folk music. When Rick and Morty makes a joke about you then you're not "low profile".

I really like his music, but his die hard fans have this tendency to treat him like the 2nd coming of Christ and its so ridiculous. He was a great songwriter with a strong intuitive sense of melody who wrote about personal struggles that many people can relate to, which in turn causes them to overstate that importance due to the personal connection they feel.

>>73904851
Holy shit what is up with this place. Nick Drake is 100% a better guitar player than Elliott Smith, and IMO an overall better songwriter but I have my own biases there. Fahey's genius lies in composition and inventiveness, not technical ability. Pretty much all the other big players in the genre he fucking created are better guitar players. Joanna is great but she's not related to any of these artists at all so I don't understand why she's even worth mentioning.

>>73904949
...yeah, in terms of pure skill Drake was definitely better. You're right.

By Fahey'shis genre you mean primitivism, right? I admit I don't know much about it, would be very interested in hearing these artists you mention. Think I've got some Robbie Basho, but that's it.

Joanna, I just thought op might like her based on what he said of his musical tastes.

>>73904949
>Elliott himself didn't even really listen to folk music
That's not necessarily true. He was known to do the occasional Bob Dylan cover, and had played a few other folk songs. He was definitely more influenced by pop artists like The Beatles, Elvis Costello, Big Star, and other big name artists like that. You're pretty spot on with all the other stuff though.

>>73905054
>I don't know much about it, would be very interested in hearing these artists you mention
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tew_fIhz3eY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=auQNLn0LLkY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LKvFhPF0xYA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uVhC3yf9sE4

>>73905106
Everyone listens to Bob Dylan, I don't think that really shows that much. But yeah, my point is he comes far more from a pop songwriter kind of lineage than a folk one. You can hear it in his guitar playing alone, he doesn't use the kind of syncopated travis picking that basically all of the american folkies use.

>>73905252
Cheers, I'll check these out.

>>73904851
OP, here. Love all those people. I'll check Fahey out, thanks.
For you I'd recommend Bert Jansch and Dick Gaughan .

>>73904949
>That's just the incredibly common Open D tuned down a whole step, so technically just open C.

I put the wrong tuning in, I had written it down but can't find it. That's a mistake.

>largely unknown to people out of the folk loop".

Everyone I know has never heard of Elliot Smith, I'm Gen Z. He's super unpopular with the people I know - Kurt Cobain is the big guy.

I agree with Drake being the better song writer but not with him being more skilled than Elliot. Although, Drake bootleg covers are amazing and form those I believe you can really see how great a player he was. An extremely talented individual.

>>73905252
>syncopated travis picking

pretty sure he does that on the Biggest Lie, some others on Either/Or I think

>>73905378
>Everyone I know has never heard of Elliot Smith, I'm Gen Z. He's super unpopular with the people I know - Kurt Cobain is the big guy.
That doesn't necessarily mean he's unknown though. Your group != everyone. Most of the people I hang out with aren't into rock, I'd bet none of them would know The Velvet Underground, that doesn't mean The Velvet Underground are some unheard of indie band, at least not in 2017. I talked with at least two of my high school english teachers about Smith.

>Sad white boy on the guitar

Stop this meme faggots.
Listen to some hip-hop .

@73906470
post your bait elsewhere

>>73906637
Stay mad whitey.

>yfw ween does elliott smith better than elliott smith

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g0n6K3Nbmew

God, you /mu/ faggots just don't know anything. This guy is mediocre at best at guitar. I won't say anything about his writing, but he definitely is nothing special at guitar. Check out Jon Gomm, Antoine Dufour, Antoine Boyer, Stochelo Rosenberg, fucking Al Di Meola. Guys who are actually good at guitar (and writing for that matter).

>>73906941
+1
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nY7GnAq6Znw

also i'd add all the brazilian bossanova players (like baden powell), absolute gods on the guitar and worlds above of elliot (who I love)

i'm a massive fan of elliott smith, i've listened to all his albums hundreds of times.

that being said, he's not a great guitar player.

if i HAD to rate his guitar ability out of 10, i'd give him 4.

songwriting: 10/10
knack for melody: 10/10

love elliott, but he simply wasn't technically proficient at guitar.

but fuck i gotta go put his albums on now

>>73906978
wow this sounds like absolute gimmicky trash

nowhere even close to the same league as smith or drake

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z8xLU471218

>>73907533
>t. never played guitar in his life

>>73907533
it's technically 1000 times more proficient

but the songwriting isn't there at all, would much rather listen to elliott

nick drake feels like he has aspergers, like his feels don't match what he's saying as well as elliott. it just doesn't feel right. elliott is a fucking god.

>>73907614
i could play that lmao

>>73907630
>but the songwriting isn't there at all, would much rather listen to elliott
that's what i'm saying. it just sounds bad so i don't give a shit if it's harder to play

>>73903566
these are my thoughts exactly OP, he was a god among men

>>73907630
Drake is far less self-pitying than Elliott though. He can actually write an emotional song without stooping to the typical confessional topics like "muh drugs" or "muh breakups".

>>73903566
how is the c major triad "alien" you pleb

>Southern Belle
Fuck this is good.
Thanks, OP.

I suggest Aztec Camera if you want acoustic guitar god stuff
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2B2Sc2G_5ZA

Tama if you want interesting folky fingerpicking stuff
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q7PYCcBElUg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0iTqmL0axGE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=apBHMAZc3RQ

>>73910496
oh, also Sean Lennon for interesting baroque pop
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zXmjZov3ztI

>>73906857
thought you were going to post this one
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kvXxAGPOB4I

>>73903566
He's pointing at himself...

>>73906978
>hurr he turned his knobs and tapped the body, what a guitar hero
I cringed watching that shit.

>>73910593
drat

>>73906370
I didn't say that he was unknown, at least to a lot of people my age, unless they're into music they wouldn't have known about Elliot.

>>73906978
Style over substance, load of crap

>>73910911
You need to find other people to hang out with.

>>73910992
I don't really know many people my age who listen to a lot of music. Most people I hang out with like hip-hop/trap rap etc I like that stuff too but I can't really talk to them about Elvis Costello or Jackson C. Frank. There's the odd musical acquaintance who i'll have a good conversation with. It's a bit more complicated

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c_2n73Uva2w&t=1020s

>>73903566
>>73904356
this Pajeet is writing book reports.


You know fuck all about music. It gives you away.

>>73911056
There's lots of people who like that kind of shit though, you don't need to go all "hurr le wrong generation" because the person who sits beside you in class doesn't like what you like. I mean that's a given, most people aren't that into music anyway. Any given random person has probably never heard of Aphex Twin either, that doesn't mean he isn't extremely popular.

Miss Misery was all over the radio and Elliott Smith is one of the best known entry level singer songwriter people.

>>73904851
this is the first time in my life i've ever seen joanna newsom compared with elliott smith and it better be the last.

never say her name in the same sentence as godkind elliott again.

>>73911875
newsom is a much better singer and songwriter than smith is

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Nick Drake > Elliot Smith >>>> Bob (((Dylan)))

>>73912204
yeah you probably have a nice fidget spinner and fedora collection as well kek

>>73912962
ok kid

>>73906978
he's obviously good but I'm not a fan desu

How do I get into bossa nova guitar?