the mark of time passing

October 21 will always be a sombre day on my calendar since it marks the day Elliott Smith (allegedly) took his own life in 2003.

Oddly enough, it was the first anniversary of his passing last year that led me to start this blog, so now the date of October 21 shares greater meaning.

The best way to remember Elliott, or perhaps even discover him for the first time, is to visit Sweet Adeline, the official website started by a fan, our man Charlie.

The sweetness that Charlie shows for Elliott's life and music is very touching, and clearly resembles the sweetness that Elliott apparently showed his fans whenever they had the opportunity to spend time together.

The message board at Sweet Addy is thriving, 2 years after we lost Elliott, both with memorials, memories, sweetness and humor.

Last year at this time saw the release of a collection of Elliott's final recordings, "From A Basement On The Hill". It was extremely tough to listen to, considering we were still numb from his passing a year before.

This year has added new pain with the release of the "Thumbsucker" soundtrack which includes 2 previously unreleased cover songs that Elliott apparently finished just prior to his death.

Within the past week, 22 unreleased Elliott tracks have been circulating online. Like most other fans, I've downloaded them for my enjoyment/sorrow, and plan to listen to them for the first time tonight, to privately mark the 2 year anniversary of his passing. I was going to include a link to the tracks so you could get them yourself if interested, but I've decided against it. There are ample ways to track them down, so you can find them with the proper know-how.

Fans of Elliott will be remembering his life and music today in their own special way, so no matter how YOU plan to mark his life, thanks for doing so.

I've been listening to his catalogue of recordings thru the week, and like I said earlier, I will spend this evening listening to songs that I have never heard before, so it's almost like discovering Elliott again for the first time.

Charlie said it perfectly on the Sweet Adeline page......

everyday we wish you were here elliott.
we send our love instead.
xo.