In 1969 Nick Garrie recorded The Nightmare Of J.B. Stanisla, a lush folk/pop album. When collectors discovered it in the ’80s, it began fetching astronomical sums, and it was eventually reissued on CD in 2005. Garrie’s life in obscurity has too many twists to recount, but includes two albums as Nick Hamilton and an opening spot on a Leonard Cohen tour in 1984. The Moon And The Village (Tapete), Garrie’s first release in 23 years, is another subtle charmer. His mellow vocals are supported by arrangements that let his stories glow with a warm inner light. Garrie will be guest editing magnetmagazine.com all week.
Garrie: I was sitting in a ritzy hotel restaurant in northern Portugal feeling sorry for myself because my daughters had gone back home. A young couple came in with their young daughter and sat at the next table. The girl had to be propped up and fed. I chatted to the father and asked him if she liked music. “Sometimes yes, sometimes she howls.” When I started my set in the Atlantic Bar, she was watching me, propped up by cushions. I saw her mother lean over her like a Madonna, and I spoke to the girl and told her her parents loved her very much and I was going to play a song for the whole family: “And I Love Her.” When I finished, she tried to put her hands together and clap. I think that night for the first time I realized how lucky I was to be a musician.
