Elliott Smith – An Introduction to...

Following on from A Basement On The Hill and New Moon, this is Smith’s third outing from beyond the grave, and terming this lucky-dip cluster of songs An Introduction To... does little to sugar the pill. To paraphrase the Baird, "That which we call a posthumous greatest hits album / by any other name would smell just as sleazy."

This collection steers clear of his more polished oeuvre with only one track each from XO and Figure 8, a little problematically dismissing his last authorised artistic statements and implying the “real” Elliott Smith is someone else entirely. While the motives behind this album may be dubious, the quality of Smith’s songwriting is one thing that can’t be criticised. Between the Bars waltzes hauntingly beside the sadly prophetic Needle In The Hay, whilst Pictures Of Me stomps defiantly before regret follows with The Biggest Lie. A largely pointless exercise, but a brilliant man, and a tragic loss. [Oisín Kealy]