That’s how he talked. What none of these videos captures is what a consummate goofball he was. He was HILARIOUS, at times. I think he’d be super bummed to know people think of him as a super depressed dude.
Nothing random about it. He's put in his 10,000 hours, so to speak. And he knows well how the chords work together, even if he can't identify every one harmonically down to the note.
I can't be 4K while being 1080p, it's like saying it's 360p 2K, which doesnt makes any sense. Maybe you meant something along "Advice Quality : 4K 80Mbps 60fps"
patrick i know right, im starting to realize all his songs are so much more intricate than they sound because of how nicely his transitions flow together
"Although most of those are normal chords, this one is like some sort of like, some sort of D7 or something. But it has an E in it. I dont know what it's actually called. But I like it." Hahaha that part made me laugh for some reason. Oh Elliott. Totally sick what he does with the inherent melodies within chords though. Makes even the full band songs sound really good on an acoustic.
I know...they obviously are. It would be nice if you could see him clearly....but that hasn't stopped me from still watching this at least 20 times just to hear him. I can totally reciprocate when it comes to the way he would go about songwriting and just intuitively making his music.
That "dead heroin addict" was capable of reaching musical heights that you probably don't have the talent to even conceptualize. Remember, many of the greatest musicians who ever lived were addicted to heroin.
This is kind of a myth that people think of Elliott as some dead heroin addict. He's unknown to many, adored by those who know, adored by critiques, a musician's musician, industry legend, some of the least amount of hate I have ever seen for an artist. Elliott get's nothing but respect. People always comment how "people see him as a sad depressed suicidal heroin addict". I don't think that's really true in 2020. Sure the odd moron will make that assumption, but people usually listen to him at one point and realize what's up. Look at his videos and support online, it's overwhelmingly positive and loving and not much ignorance going around.
@@cadesmandela1935 you have to consider that the guy posted this comment 8 years ago. Back then, you couldn't reply directly to another comment (starting a thread) in RUclips. So... That's why it looks so out of context nowadays.
If you like Elliott Smith's dreamy chords and patterns, I think you'd also like Grizzly Bear. Daniel Rossen, the guitarist/songwriter, is very inspired by Elliott Smith and plays similar weird chords in his songs. RIP
it synchs up fine when i play it on my system. this is the first video ive uploaded on here so i dont really know what else to do with it. like i said, its a real media file. dont know if thats the culprit or not. you can download it yourself off of limewire if you want to watch it properly.
Elliot says, chord changes and sequences are what piqued his interest; sitting around noodling not looking at the guitar; finding interesting inversions of chords, where bass note of the chord is the 5th (remember the 3rd of the chord is what gives it its quality: major, minor, etc); half chords or three string variations; continually finding new and interesting aspects about music of others and things around you and put it in the “blender”; and finally have the confidence to demonstrate and express what you like-if you like it: it is good (or good enough, go with it).
I'm a psych student and though things like thyroid can cause depression it is rare. There are many things that cause depression most fall into these three categories environment, genetics, chemical/brain function.
I still want to play the electric guitar. Piano and synthesizer, too. And sing. And the violin. And the bass and drums. And I want to be a sound engineer who makes my own music. I prefer to mix it.
Elliot Smith seems to be talking about some Sacred Geometry in this, especially with the first couple comments he made at the beginning of this. Man, he was so awesome. Hella inspirational stuff.
Everyone knows cigarettes are bad for the heart. Usually the heart gets a lot more credit than other organs such as the liver and kidneys. Who says, my kidney bleeds, or I love you with all my liver. But in terms of cigarettes and the damage that they cause, everyone refers to the lungs. I think you've made a very valid point. Thank you for enlightening me and I hope you continue to not smoke, it's not good for your heart.
So sad... For some reason this video makes it look like he's still with us so you can find him wherever out there, but it's sadly been 13 years since he left.
Very unlikely he did that himself, though it's so easy to get away with murder when someone has publicly gone on about suicide just like Cobain and Smith did. An ideal victim, women are not seen as a perpetrator in society and often walk in these situations. If the situation were reversed, well good like MAN, you'd be in jail. Often men are jailed automatically when their spouses are killed number one suspect
'there's some records that sell millions of copies and its really unclear if anybody who was making it liked it.' LOL. So true! My god, this world misses you Elliot!
@Redsparrowe123 No problem at all. Epiphone makes a series called Masterbilt though, which has a well made, for lack of a better term, budget version of it though. All solid wood, called an AJ-500RE
No not a D9 it's from son of sam, I'm working on it, he often used open strings in chords that ring beautifully. I do the same thing, who gives a shit what it's called, getting too technical destroys the creative process that's why he didn't care what it's called. Iit's how it sounds that is important and that's how you find those chords by just goofing around and experimenting
Michael Ferenczy He said it was a D7 chord with an "e" in it. What is that? It's called a "D9." If it's a D chord with a 9 but no 7, it's called a "D add9." Unlike you, I know what the hell I'm talking about.
Getting technical definitely does not destroy the creative process. That's just a silly attempt at rationalizing not learning theory. Understanding the voicing of chords allows for more comfortable improvisation and variations.
+Daniel Plainview Maybe if you just wait to your death then you can reincarnate into Elliott Smith. Until that point, you can do some stuff like eating some sunflower seeds, sleeping, going to buy bread or whatever. It can take a little while.
Yes, most are actually easy to play as one-off chords, the trick is playing all in succession and in rhythm ON top of singing a melody which isn't always the same as the rhythm. It's like patting your head and rubbing your stomach at the same time.
David Cassette, I still would listen, but it will just be annoying if he went all mainstream. When it comes to music, I like it to be only heard of by people who are at least somewhat open to independent music.
I think the lesson to be learned from this video is that Elliott Smith never really knew why he was so unbelievably amazing at writing songs theres just.. uhh.. some.. stuff and chords he likes and.. uhh.. he is imaginative.. and uh.. he likes music. haha. theres no explaining his genius.
GuitarParts101 Not only did he not know why, I don't think he ever even realized that he was so brilliant in the first place. It's heartbreaking but beautiful as well.
His speaking voice has a Mr. Rogers quality to it. So gentle and unassuming. Draws you in and disarms any instinct to deflect or misunderstand. I don’t get any bit of arrogance or posturing one might expect from a brilliant and successful musician.
@UCAtlpMBsi4oZMeNAJ8iH6AA Wouldn’t that be a treat! Just imagine an hour of him candidly discussing his approach towards writing lyrics and how when combined just so with the right melody they invoke feelings and meaning somehow deeper than the sum of their parts. It’s a strange haunting magic thats woven throughout his song.
@@WinstonElena Kurt had such an ear for melodies; all Nirvana songs have amazing melodic hooks, is uncanny. I agree that Kurt is nowhere near as skillfull as Elliott, but I think they were both amazing and skilled in their own way
@@eastwoofer Art is meant to be authentic and different, its meant to open horizons. Educate yourself and listen to some Velvet Underground, Meat Puppets, Dinosaur Jr and Pavement. Ok we get it you listen to commercial music only.
honeypot because they are so similar, they are both such interesting beings and it was truly difficult to understand either of them but some how you still do.
"If you like it there must be sth good about it because you like it. There are some records that sells millions of copies, and it's really unclear if anybody liked it ."
After watching this video, I opened my project in Fruityloops that's been sitting there for weeks and weeks unfinished and causing me stress everytime I've tried to complete it. I just let everything I had flow out of my head, and within an hour it was done. It's a song I made for my girlfriend's birthday and she loves it. Thanks Elliott :)
...plays epic example of a song and ends with: "but, its an electric guitar song" as if to somehow be meek about it. I love him and I miss him. I wish he was still around to continue making such beautifully orchestrated music. RIP, Elliott. Im sure they've got a guitar or two up there for you. I cant wait to get there and see what you've come up with.
“ I think it’s easy if you just relax and stop thinking about what people want to hear.” This one hit me hard. I find myself thinking about people listening to my music as I write it and because of that I take way less risks and Probably makes it less emotional
He had the best thing going for writing I reckon. He maybe learned a load of theory as a kid, then forgot most of it cognitively, but played enough so his fingers still knew the theory, then could just relax and turn his brain off while he doodled till the good stuff happened. Pure instinct at that point - loose and playful without having to worry. The words and soul of it can’t be taught or practiced though, he was just that guy. Holy shit he wrote some beautiful beautiful songs. Hard to accept that he’s not here, his music’s been a constant friend in my life.
I was at a masterclass a while ago and the conductor stressed this concept that playing/composing/improvising "by instinct" is only so much effective, because instinct takes you only along paths you traced, e.g. by studying theory or digesting and analyzing diverse music. Whether Elliott Smith knew what he was doing when writing or not, for sure there must have been some valuable input
no. There's nothing pretentious or snotty about what Jeremiah said. There are comments here sorta teasing about how elliott doesn't go into great detail all the time, and just says "oh I don't know" sometimes, but if you actually watch it, clearly there's a lot going on here, it just takes a bit of prior understanding to really grasp.
@@copsarebastards Exactly. He's using emotional language, you have to relate to the feelings of writing for it to make sense. As someone who has got too caught up in "thinking" too much while writing, this was very inspiring!
Some people feel that being a "great" guitarist involves amazing technical skill, and it can mean that. I personally think it involves doing what's best for the song and coming up with a great part, whether that is simple or complicated. Elliot was great because he knew how to use the guitar to serve the song and not for its own sake.
I agree. Sometimes a really good musician is one with the music theory knowledge and technical skill of someone like pat metheny, but it doesn't have to be that... Music should just be honest, and it should convey something. Whether you convey it through poetic lyrics or complex harmony or weird time signatures doesn't really matter, as long as it successfully conveys what you are trying to put out there.
Jake Khawaja I've been looking for rules regarding how one person gets to turn out great work and others don't for 40 years and the only rule I can find is that there are no rules.
I never realize how important his"attack" on the guitar was. He has been utterly unique strumming approach and feel. As much as the chordal imagination, I've got that from the video.
Agreed! His left hand (i.e. his chord changes) is what he's known for but his articulation with his right hand was super loose yet incredibly intricate and precise. Very very hard to replicate, and so important to his sound
Other guitarists breaking down Elliott's music in a technical fashion: "Key signature X, Scale Y, Minor third, Drop D..." Elliott breaking down his own song: "I play a lot of things where you don't want all the strings to sound, where it's... see, this string isn't moving because my finger's on it. and that one's not moving because my fingers on that too, so these are really just the notes that I'm /playing/... with this hand... everything else is blocked off. It's really just three strings, like a 'half-chord'. Me, a music theory idiot: 'Ohhhhhhhh cool okay'
Lol I fee the same way. I feel like he used mainly his ear and improvised around that- which is how he came up with a lot of dissonant and unconventional chords; with a splash of music theory on top for the fundamentals. Might be a product of his generation of musicians , a lot of guys from that era ‘didn’t know theory’ but could play some crazy stuff - I guess it’s a byproduct of having to learn songs mainly off of records in a time before the internet?
He is brutally honest about everything. Elliott's music touches my soul everytime. dear ambitious guitarist, this is for your emotional part of writing music. forget the skills and techniques sometimes. the sense matters more.
Leigh Boland You have a point, as a literalist, but you don't need to push it. His music IS filled with depth, just like one can be filled with emptiness...And that's why his music is so deep-because for me personally, Elliott's music fills my emptiness...
Elliot explaining a chord he just played by saying, "I don't know what it's really called. But I like it." This sums up why he was such a great musician. A true artist. He didn't get bogged down by the formality or über-professionalism of it all. He just played what he thought sounded good. Most musicians are missing that today. Too many rely on whole teams of people to produce a "product," to or build a brand. That isn't art; at least not in any true sense of the word. Aesthetics mean something.
Exactly and that’s why these new artists like Doja Cat, BTS, Cardi B, Ed Sheeran now etc. their music lacks sincerity and authenticity and is dullness painted with recycled production gimmicks. Travis Scott uses about 30 co-writers per song, that’s not an artist that’s a product. A real songwriter and musician can sit down and write and produce a song by themselves like Elliott did, they need to go back to the basics and stop favouring image and ‘brands’ over good music.
@@j.c7719 that’s not really fair, the music scene is much more competitive than it used to be, making a living out of it and actually being creative and true to ur own creativity are pretty mutually exclusive at this point, sadly also obligatory elliot was a genius
How to write a song:
"JUST RELAX - and quit THINKING about what you think other people wanna hear, you know?"
:Elliot Smith
I write music and it really is great advice.
I like how he talks to you as like he knew you, gives it a super personal touch to the vid
true
Its almost like a blog before there was vlogs. His voice really puts you at ease like hes a friend
Sorry vlog not blog
That’s how he talked. What none of these videos captures is what a consummate goofball he was. He was HILARIOUS, at times. I think he’d be super bummed to know people think of him as a super depressed dude.
@@RustinChole There's video evidence of goofball-ness? Or you knew him personally?
wild how he can just play a random bunch of chords off the top of his head and it’s just instantly recognizable as him
Exactly what I was thinking
those were the Christian Brothers chords. just fyi
@@buckminsterowski and 2:30 was Son of Sam
Nothing random about it. He's put in his 10,000 hours, so to speak. And he knows well how the chords work together, even if he can't identify every one harmonically down to the note.
You can do it to if you practice.
Vid quality: 144 Advice Quality: 1080p 4K
In its defense, I think this might have been the 2nd video ever uploaded to RUclips.
limnificant really?
Wish this had a million likes lmao
I can't be 4K while being 1080p, it's like saying it's 360p 2K, which doesnt makes any sense. Maybe you meant something along "Advice Quality : 4K 80Mbps 60fps"
this isn't even 144, even potato quality doesn't describe this
Damn, I did not realize how intricate "A Question Mark" was till I saw this
patrick i know right, im starting to realize all his songs are so much more intricate than they sound because of how nicely his transitions flow together
As soon as you see him play his songs on acoustic the songs you just listen to and accept are instantly so much more impressive. It's very cool.
I wish this clip would have been at least one hour of length.
"Although most of those are normal chords, this one is like some sort of like, some sort of D7 or something. But it has an E in it. I dont know what it's actually called. But I like it."
Hahaha that part made me laugh for some reason. Oh Elliott. Totally sick what he does with the inherent melodies within chords though. Makes even the full band songs sound really good on an acoustic.
Had to watch this for inspiration by a very talented musician. RIP Elliott.
same here
Sweet man he was. Darling, poetic, intuitive, brilliant. Unique. Miss him.
I really like that he can't explain to a tee what is so natural and so surreal to us. I love ya dude.
To us ES fans using RUclips back in '05 and '06, it was a gift to watch these videos no matter the quality!
"If you like it, there must be something good about it"
he gave some of the best songwriting advice I've ever heard
Could someone please refine this precious video
Apart from his awesome song-writing and singing abilities, Elliott has also got this amazingly nice voice ...
i love you, elliott
I don't know what this video is from, who filmed it or why it exists at all, but Elliott Smith is an amazing, sincere and kind person.💐
What a comedian in addition to being so observant and poignant. Love it
I wish there was a higher quality version of this.
Amazing, all these years later and I'm still finding new music by Elliott. Shazamed the intro to this video and discovered Junk Bond Trader.
i hope the dislikes are just bc of the quality
I know...they obviously are. It would be nice if you could see him clearly....but that hasn't stopped me from still watching this at least 20 times just to hear him. I can totally reciprocate when it comes to the way he would go about songwriting and just intuitively making his music.
Looking forward to the 4K 20th anniversary remaster of this one.
Thank you for posting this! I miss him!!!!
That "dead heroin addict" was capable of reaching musical heights that you probably don't have the talent to even conceptualize. Remember, many of the greatest musicians who ever lived were addicted to heroin.
This is kind of a myth that people think of Elliott as some dead heroin addict. He's unknown to many, adored by those who know, adored by critiques, a musician's musician, industry legend, some of the least amount of hate I have ever seen for an artist. Elliott get's nothing but respect. People always comment how "people see him as a sad depressed suicidal heroin addict". I don't think that's really true in 2020. Sure the odd moron will make that assumption, but people usually listen to him at one point and realize what's up. Look at his videos and support online, it's overwhelmingly positive and loving and not much ignorance going around.
This is such a strange comment ...
@@BlueprintsForHeadaches exactly nobody said anything bad but they wanna seem like
@@cadesmandela1935 you have to consider that the guy posted this comment 8 years ago. Back then, you couldn't reply directly to another comment (starting a thread) in RUclips. So... That's why it looks so out of context nowadays.
so cool to hear him talk about his process
What a beautiful man.
The guitar is part of his body. Elliott was and is the Greatest.
The first thing he says in this video is such an underrated piece of advice. Just imagine things throughout the day.
The older I get, the better his music sounds to me.
If you like Elliott Smith's dreamy chords and patterns, I think you'd also like Grizzly Bear. Daniel Rossen, the guitarist/songwriter, is very inspired by Elliott Smith and plays similar weird chords in his songs. RIP
Wow. Probably the best song writing advice I've heard.
it's 2020 and that is still a nice hat
I love you Elliott
I wish I could like this video a thousand times over.
it synchs up fine when i play it on my system. this is the first video ive uploaded on here so i dont really know what else to do with it. like i said, its a real media file. dont know if thats the culprit or not. you can download it yourself off of limewire if you want to watch it properly.
Elliot says, chord changes and sequences are what piqued his interest; sitting around noodling not looking at the guitar; finding interesting inversions of chords, where bass note of the chord is the 5th (remember the 3rd of the chord is what gives it its quality: major, minor, etc); half chords or three string variations; continually finding new and interesting aspects about music of others and things around you and put it in the “blender”; and finally have the confidence to demonstrate and express what you like-if you like it: it is good (or good enough, go with it).
E. smith just inspired me. he gives convention a new meaning
If Elliott read just half of these comments he'd get such a huge kick outta it
He was a youtube pioneer too!
nice. he was genius and lives on in his music what more could he want. amazing dude. can you please please.. fix the sound!
He actually made me feel better about my songwriting,,do your best and own it.
Feeling without thinking, rather than the reverse. All soul.
I'm a psych student and though things like thyroid can cause depression it is rare. There are many things that cause depression most fall into these three categories
environment, genetics, chemical/brain function.
his strumming is really good
I still want to play the electric guitar.
Piano and synthesizer, too.
And sing.
And the violin.
And the bass and drums.
And I want to be a sound engineer who makes my own music.
I prefer to mix it.
Elliot Smith seems to be talking about some Sacred Geometry in this, especially with the first couple comments he made at the beginning of this. Man, he was so awesome. Hella inspirational stuff.
A Question Mark is a dank song.
I personally never had much trouble coming up with the chord/phrasing for songs. It's the lyrics/vocal melody that I always get stumped on.
Everyone knows cigarettes are bad for the heart. Usually the heart gets a lot more credit than other organs such as the liver and kidneys. Who says, my kidney bleeds, or I love you with all my liver. But in terms of cigarettes and the damage that they cause, everyone refers to the lungs. I think you've made a very valid point. Thank you for enlightening me and I hope you continue to not smoke, it's not good for your heart.
All these people cracking jokes about the video quality clearly weren't around when computers had lower resolution than smart phones
i like it, too, Elliott :) so glad you live on...
it would be a drag to battle with convention.
"He got Cobained" is right Dizzy- how do you stab yourself twice in the heart? I can't believe it's been 13 years.
So sad... For some reason this video makes it look like he's still with us so you can find him wherever out there, but it's sadly been 13 years since he left.
around 18 times he supposedly stabbed himself, twice in the heart. aayyy
I believe it was just two times...
Very unlikely he did that himself, though it's so easy to get away with murder when someone has publicly gone on about suicide just like Cobain and Smith did. An ideal victim, women are not seen as a perpetrator in society and often walk in these situations. If the situation were reversed, well good like MAN, you'd be in jail. Often men are jailed automatically when their spouses are killed number one suspect
'there's some records that sell millions of copies and its really unclear if anybody who was making it liked it.' LOL. So true! My god, this world misses you Elliot!
Best songwriting lesson ever
I love this mans confidence. It seems very based.
I love this so much.
@Redsparrowe123 No problem at all. Epiphone makes a series called Masterbilt though, which has a well made, for lack of a better term, budget version of it though. All solid wood, called an AJ-500RE
Unfortunately, there aren't too many artists who aren't treated like that on youtube
Who was the interviewer?
yes. we are all aware of the lagging.
this is such a good interview, i wish it didn't cut off about 7 minutes in :-/
This video is absolutely amazing. I didn't know you could do that with legos
+Fallingmonsters lol!!
HAHAHAHA . YOU are amazing. You. This comment.
I'm laughing way harder than I should hahahaha
HAHAHAHAHAHA! Mandie Bellamy, you certainly are not. That's great.
When it comes to elliott I always be dramatically emotional, but this comment drags laughter from the bottom of my heart.
"i don't really know what it's called, but I like it"
It's a D9, but a strange sounding D9.
No not a D9 it's from son of sam, I'm working on it, he often used open strings in chords that ring beautifully. I do the same thing, who gives a shit what it's called, getting too technical destroys the creative process that's why he didn't care what it's called. Iit's how it sounds that is important and that's how you find those chords by just goofing around and experimenting
Michael Ferenczy
He said it was a D7 chord with an "e" in it. What is that? It's called a "D9."
If it's a D chord with a 9 but no 7, it's called a "D add9."
Unlike you, I know what the hell I'm talking about.
U are obviously young and defensive
Getting technical definitely does not destroy the creative process. That's just a silly attempt at rationalizing not learning theory. Understanding the voicing of chords allows for more comfortable improvisation and variations.
Which pixel is Elliot Smith
mitchurd all of them
be humble. sit down
This video was published in 2006 and the original was probably recorded way back in the 90s on cheap equipment. Give him a break
Again . Which Pixie is Elliott Smith ? Aha , I see ^^ hehe
He is the one that looks like one t but it is actually two ts
Tips to be an awesome songwriter:
1. Be Elliott Smith
2. Write music
+unknown I'm having trouble with the first step, do you have any advice?
+Daniel Plainview Maybe if you just wait to your death then you can reincarnate into Elliott Smith. Until that point, you can do some stuff like eating some sunflower seeds, sleeping, going to buy bread or whatever. It can take a little while.
Obsession you have to Obsess
Obsession you have to Obsess
Daniel Plainview Choose a chord to begin with, if you want.
Best 144p video in youtube.
well said
Celahir Alcarin agreed
Amen.
2018 and it still is haha
It's kinda cool that all the Elliot Smith on RUclips is grainy and pixelated. Suits him.
Very underrated acoustic guitar player. You can play scales and shred all day, but some of those chord changes and shapes are truly hard to play.
Yes, most are actually easy to play as one-off chords, the trick is playing all in succession and in rhythm ON top of singing a melody which isn't always the same as the rhythm. It's like patting your head and rubbing your stomach at the same time.
not to mention his picking/strumming patterns
Yeah but if he was too worldwide. I'd probably spare less interest. Of course I'll still like his music but I won't listen to him a whole lot.
What? So you're literally admitting that even if his music was exactly the same that you'd be less inclined to listen to it if it was more well known?
David Cassette, I still would listen, but it will just be annoying if he went all mainstream. When it comes to music, I like it to be only heard of by people who are at least somewhat open to independent music.
"There must be some something good about it because you liked it, right?"
I think the lesson to be learned from this video is that Elliott Smith never really knew why he was so unbelievably amazing at writing songs theres just.. uhh.. some.. stuff and chords he likes and.. uhh.. he is imaginative.. and uh.. he likes music. haha. theres no explaining his genius.
Don't even try it. When something is as awesome as Elliott, it's imposible to put it into words.
GuitarParts101 Not only did he not know why, I don't think he ever even realized that he was so brilliant in the first place. It's heartbreaking but beautiful as well.
Lol
Man, I miss him!
Such a gift... One of a kind, so many beautiful songs. I'll just be quiet now.
That's all music. Either you have it or you don't, sad truth.
His speaking voice has a Mr. Rogers quality to it. So gentle and unassuming. Draws you in and disarms any instinct to deflect or misunderstand. I don’t get any bit of arrogance or posturing one might expect from a brilliant and successful musician.
His voice is beautiful.
@UCAtlpMBsi4oZMeNAJ8iH6AA Wouldn’t that be a treat! Just imagine an hour of him candidly discussing his approach towards writing lyrics and how when combined just so with the right melody they invoke feelings and meaning somehow deeper than the sum of their parts. It’s a strange haunting magic thats woven throughout his song.
I wish more people had asked about his songwriting process.
Some artists hate that question though. See: Kurt Cobain (though Elliott blew Kurt out of the water )
@@WinstonElena Kurt had such an ear for melodies; all Nirvana songs have amazing melodic hooks, is uncanny. I agree that Kurt is nowhere near as skillfull as Elliott, but I think they were both amazing and skilled in their own way
@@WinstonElenaah the two pillars of white sad sacks, Kurt and Elliot. Never purchase a gun or shoot heroln.
@@estebandido4988 Well stated.
Elliot was so humble, such a gifted musician. His technique and body of work is absolutely genius.
A ridiculously talented songwriter and musician. I'm so glad I got into his music last year. One of the best decisions I ever made.
@@eastwoofer Art is meant to be authentic and different, its meant to open horizons. Educate yourself and listen to some Velvet Underground, Meat Puppets, Dinosaur Jr and Pavement. Ok we get it you listen to commercial music only.
@@kurdt1012i agree 🙌🙌
@@eastwooferTERRIBLE OPINION
the van gogh of song
Whoa. weird. I've said this before. It's cool that someone else feels his music the same way
Why? Because they both had mental illness? Because they both killed themselves? Stupid comment.
honeypot no cause his work is good ya dummy
@@justaguy9203 Then why couldn't he have mentioned any other famous artist? Why just the one that happened to kill himself? Ya dummy
honeypot because they are so similar, they are both such interesting beings and it was truly difficult to understand either of them but some how you still do.
"If you like it there must be sth good about it because you like it. There are some records that sells millions of copies, and it's really unclear if anybody liked it ."
After watching this video, I opened my project in Fruityloops that's been sitting there for weeks and weeks unfinished and causing me stress everytime I've tried to complete it. I just let everything I had flow out of my head, and within an hour it was done. It's a song I made for my girlfriend's birthday and she loves it. Thanks Elliott :)
are u guys still together
I kinda want to know too lol
Me too
That one pixel can really sing
He didn't sing one note.
His answer to that last question is legitimately fantastic advice
...plays epic example of a song and ends with: "but, its an electric guitar song" as if to somehow be meek about it. I love him and I miss him. I wish he was still around to continue making such beautifully orchestrated music. RIP, Elliott. Im sure they've got a guitar or two up there for you. I cant wait to get there and see what you've come up with.
It's even MORE impressive that he played it on acoustic - them thick ass strings.
@@DrawtheCurtains He was a genius and I truly believe he will be rediscovered by the youth of today.
“ I think it’s easy if you just relax and stop thinking about what people want to hear.” This one hit me hard. I find myself thinking about people listening to my music as I write it and because of that I take way less risks and Probably makes it less emotional
Write music/make art for yourself. Soon as you’re performing for others it’s going to fail. Humans aren’t
Smart enough to know what other people want.
He had the best thing going for writing I reckon. He maybe learned a load of theory as a kid, then forgot most of it cognitively, but played enough so his fingers still knew the theory, then could just relax and turn his brain off while he doodled till the good stuff happened. Pure instinct at that point - loose and playful without having to worry. The words and soul of it can’t be taught or practiced though, he was just that guy. Holy shit he wrote some beautiful beautiful songs. Hard to accept that he’s not here, his music’s been a constant friend in my life.
Me too!
great commentary
“He’s music has been a constant friend” 😢😢 I feel that. Such beautiful music that resonates deeply!
I was at a masterclass a while ago and the conductor stressed this concept that playing/composing/improvising "by instinct" is only so much effective, because instinct takes you only along paths you traced, e.g. by studying theory or digesting and analyzing diverse music. Whether Elliott Smith knew what he was doing when writing or not, for sure there must have been some valuable input
If you don't find this informative or educational you're not paying close enough attention.
+Jeremiah Spencer yes, I agree. there are so many bits of guidance and advice in here for those with an open mind
or maybe some people just learn in different ways and you being pretentious and snotty about it doesn't help at all.
no. There's nothing pretentious or snotty about what Jeremiah said. There are comments here sorta teasing about how elliott doesn't go into great detail all the time, and just says "oh I don't know" sometimes, but if you actually watch it, clearly there's a lot going on here, it just takes a bit of prior understanding to really grasp.
@@copsarebastards Exactly. He's using emotional language, you have to relate to the feelings of writing for it to make sense. As someone who has got too caught up in "thinking" too much while writing, this was very inspiring!
thx expert
yeah, 2006 sounds about right for an upload date. ahh old youtube.
elliott's a treasure though
art garfunkel yup...2006 treasures..and yes Elliot is golden. A genius. By far the best guitarist and very honest with his song writing
Some people feel that being a "great" guitarist involves amazing technical skill, and it can mean that. I personally think it involves doing what's best for the song and coming up with a great part, whether that is simple or complicated. Elliot was great because he knew how to use the guitar to serve the song and not for its own sake.
I agree. Sometimes a really good musician is one with the music theory knowledge and technical skill of someone like pat metheny, but it doesn't have to be that... Music should just be honest, and it should convey something. Whether you convey it through poetic lyrics or complex harmony or weird time signatures doesn't really matter, as long as it successfully conveys what you are trying to put out there.
Jake Khawaja
I've been looking for rules regarding how one person gets to turn out great work and others don't for 40 years and the only rule I can find is that there are no rules.
There really isn't one of his songs that doesn't have some sort of interesting melody, he had an amazing ear for where a sequence should go
+scaredypicker Thnks for this - Really love how you've phrased this; and "doing what's best for the song"
I completely agree
Video quality is poor, but the genius is evident...
if i had a dollar for every pixel in this video, i’d have 75 cents ..
This is legitimately the most useful video i've seen on how to make music. Thanks Elliott
itd be a drag to do battle with conventions... you can be imaginitive with it... best fucking advice i ever had as a song writer
"IMAGINATION is the DIVINE FORCE" ... thank you Elliot Bless you ...
I never realize how important his"attack" on the guitar was. He has been utterly unique strumming approach and feel. As much as the chordal imagination, I've got that from the video.
Agreed! His left hand (i.e. his chord changes) is what he's known for but his articulation with his right hand was super loose yet incredibly intricate and precise. Very very hard to replicate, and so important to his sound
This video would have been a lot better if whoever edited the thing didn't slap solo's over Elliott speaking.
Take notes kids. This boy is arguably the best songwriter of all time
dylan?
Lennon?
svgar er ?
Luca Pelo no argument here, best I've ever heard.
Truth
Just watching him mess around on the fretboard for a second to demonstrate what chord changes are shows what an accomplished guitarist he was.
Other guitarists breaking down Elliott's music in a technical fashion: "Key signature X, Scale Y, Minor third, Drop D..."
Elliott breaking down his own song: "I play a lot of things where you don't want all the strings to sound, where it's... see, this string isn't moving because my finger's on it. and that one's not moving because my fingers on that too, so these are really just the notes that I'm /playing/... with this hand... everything else is blocked off. It's really just three strings, like a 'half-chord'.
Me, a music theory idiot: 'Ohhhhhhhh cool okay'
Lol I fee the same way. I feel like he used mainly his ear and improvised around that- which is how he came up with a lot of dissonant and unconventional chords; with a splash of music theory on top for the fundamentals.
Might be a product of his generation of musicians , a lot of guys from that era ‘didn’t know theory’ but could play some crazy stuff - I guess it’s a byproduct of having to learn songs mainly off of records in a time before the internet?
Elliott surely knew theory. Especially in his childhood piano time. Waltz #1 and Bye are two beauty pieces of work. (I apologize for my english)
He is brutally honest about everything.
Elliott's music touches my soul everytime.
dear ambitious guitarist, this is for your emotional part of writing music. forget the skills and techniques sometimes. the sense matters more.
His music is filled with Depth.
How can you fill something with depth?
Or how can something be filled with depth?
listen to the music!
Leigh Boland You have a point, as a literalist, but you don't need to push it. His music IS filled with depth, just like one can be filled with emptiness...And that's why his music is so deep-because for me personally, Elliott's music fills my emptiness...
This was filmed on my grandma's rotary phone, but I still love it.
this is the most down to earth and honest i have ever seen him....good find!
Wow, I finally see him using a pick!
Elliot explaining a chord he just played by saying, "I don't know what it's really called. But I like it."
This sums up why he was such a great musician. A true artist. He didn't get bogged down by the formality or über-professionalism of it all. He just played what he thought sounded good. Most musicians are missing that today. Too many rely on whole teams of people to produce a "product," to or build a brand. That isn't art; at least not in any true sense of the word. Aesthetics mean something.
sandollor corporatized & sanitized for the masses
Thank you for articulating this. Teams of songwriters producing a product has become the norm. At least for main stream music and it’s sad
I like that take
Exactly and that’s why these new artists like Doja Cat, BTS, Cardi B, Ed Sheeran now etc. their music lacks sincerity and authenticity and is dullness painted with recycled production gimmicks. Travis Scott uses about 30 co-writers per song, that’s not an artist that’s a product. A real songwriter and musician can sit down and write and produce a song by themselves like Elliott did, they need to go back to the basics and stop favouring image and ‘brands’ over good music.
@@j.c7719 that’s not really fair, the music scene is much more competitive than it used to be, making a living out of it and actually being creative and true to ur own creativity are pretty mutually exclusive at this point, sadly
also obligatory elliot was a genius
such a beautiful and gifted soul, I wish I could have just a crumb of his talent
he totally would have given you a crumb as well