Nick Drake - River Man (sans Orchestra) 

Same here. I think Harry Robinson's string arrangement is one of the most beautiful I have ever heard. The color and tension the orchestration brings places this Nick Drake song on a classic level reserved for very few songs. It is cool to hear the stripped version, especially to hear Danny Thompson's double bass in isolation, but I want the whole version for daily listening. My favorite song ever.

+shikawgoh no it's not

+islezeus It's a subjective personal opinion. Not a definitive statement.

Scott Newman irie

i agree ,string arrangement seems like someone elses idea.ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-BIOo8a6Q6gs.html

Will Prinn It really wasn't like that. He was deeply committed to his friend Robert Kirby's orchestral arrangements. He was a perfectionist about them

Nick actually chose Robert Kirby for the orchestration.

@@darkkiss7247 According to an excerpt from the March 2018 issue of MOJO celebrating the 70th anniversary of Drake's birth, it was arranger Harry Robinson who wrote the 12-strong viola heavy score for River Man. Here's a bit of it: ..."Then there is the third element: the string arrangement, no afterthought but built into the original composition, as demonstrated in a version captured on music student Robert Kirby's Ferrograph tape-recorder where Drake works guitar notes into the fabric to stand in for a string section. Though Kirby successfully arranged four other songs on what would be Drake's debut album, River Man defeated him. "Dave Brubeck's Take Five aside, that was the only time in my life I'd heard a piece of music consistently in 5/4,"....."I could not for the life of me work out how to write a piece of music that didn't stagger along like a spider missing a leg, how you crossed over and ignored the bar lines. But Harry's string arrangement is scarcely in 5/4; it goes along like a limpid river all the way, moving regularly and crossing over all the beats and the 5/4 with it."....Arranger Harry Robinson was a stage, screen and studio all-rounder recommended by Sound Techniques engineer John Wood as a musical mimic who could accommodate Drake's desire for strings evoking the English composer Frederick Delius. Producer Joe Boyd was surprised at how well the neophyte Drake explained and demonstrated what he wanted for the string parts, and Robinson responded with a score for the 12-strong section heavy on violas for warmth and weight. To get the best sound, the whole track was recorded live in the studio, Drake playing and singing while surrounded by the orchestra with Robinson conducting, just as Frank Sinatra and Nelson Riddle had done it a decade before.

@@danb1572 I read this same article a while back. it's nice to see it posted here. I've also listened to as many cover versions as I could find. Except for one or two, all have been excellent. If the song grabs you in your gut and kicks you in the ass, there is no way you can do a disservice to the song. Andy Bey's cover might be my favorite, followed by Nigel Kennedy and Boy George's take, which also surprised me. Such a phenomenal song.