Steven Paul "Elliott" Smith (August 6, 1969 – October 21, 2003) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. Smith was born in [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Omaha,_Nebraska]Omaha, Nebraska[/url], raised primarily in Texas, and lived for much of his life in [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portland,_Oregon]Portland, Oregon[/url], where he first gained popularity. Smith's primary instrument was the guitar, though he was also proficient with piano, clarinet, bass guitar, drums, and harmonica. Smith had a distinctive vocal style, characterized by his "whispery, spiderweb-thin delivery",and used multi-tracking to create vocal layers, textures, and harmonies.


 After playing in the rock band Heatmiser for several years, Smith began his solo career in 1994, with releases on the independent record labels Cavity Search and Kill Rock Stars (KRS). In 1997, he signed a contract with DreamWorks Records, for which he recorded two albums.Smith rose to mainstream prominence when his song "Miss Misery"—included in the soundtrack for the film Good Will Hunting (1997)—was nominated for an Oscar in the Best Original Song category in 1998.



His first release, Roman Candle (1994), came about when Smith's girlfriend at the time convinced him to send a tape of "the most recent eight songs that [he'd] recorded on borrowed four-tracks and borrowed guitar" to Cavity Search Records.Owner Christopher Cooper immediately requested to release the entire album of songs, which surprised Smith, as he was expecting only a deal for a seven-inch record.Regarding the record, Smith said: "I thought my head would be chopped off immediately when it came out because at the time it was so opposite to the grunge thing that was popular ... The thing is that album was really well received, which was a total shock, and it immediately eclipsed [Heatmiser], unfortunately."



In 1995, Smith's self-titled album was released on Kill Rock Stars; the record featured a style of recording similar to Roman Candle, but with hints of growth and experimentation. Though the majority of the album was recorded by Smith alone, friend and The Spinanes vocalist Rebecca Gates sang harmony vocals on "St. Ides Heaven", and Heatmiser guitarist Neil Gust played guitar on "Single File". Several songs made reference to drugs, but Smith explained that he used the theme of drugs as a vehicle for conveying dependence rather than the songs being about drugs specifically.Looking back, Smith felt that the album's pervasive mood gave him "a reputation for being a really dark, depressed person", and said that he later made a conscious move toward more diverse moods in his music.



In 1996, filmmaker Jem Cohen recorded Smith playing acoustic songs for the short film Lucky Three: An Elliott Smith Portrait. Two of these songs would appear on his next album, Either/Or, which was another Kill Rock Stars release. Either/Or came out in 1997 to favorable reviews.The album found Smith venturing further into full instrumentation, with several songs containing bass guitar, drums, keyboards and electric guitars, all played by Smith. The album title was derived from the two-volume book of the same name by Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard, whose works generally deal with themes such as existential despair, angst, death and God.




By this time, Smith's already-heavy drinking was being compounded with use of anti-depressants. At the end of the Either/Or tour, some of his close friends staged an intervention in Chicago,but it proved ineffective.Shortly after, Smith relocated from Portland to Brooklyn, New York.




In 1996, Smith was selected by director and fellow Portland resident Gus Van Sant to be a part of the soundtrack to his film, Good Will Hunting. Smith recorded an orchestral version of "Between the Bars" with composer Danny Elfman for the movie. Smith also contributed a new song, "Miss Misery", and three previously released tracks ("No Name #3", from Roman Candle, and "Angeles" and "Say Yes", from Either/Or). The film was a commercial and critical success, and Smith was nominated for an Academy Award for "Miss Misery". Not eager to step into the limelight, he agreed to perform the song at the ceremony only after the producers informed him that his song would be played live that night—either by him or another musician of their choosing.



In 1998, after the success of Either/Or and "Miss Misery", Smith signed to a bigger record label, DreamWorks Records. Around the same time, Smith fell into depression, speaking openly of considering suicide, and on at least one occasion, made a serious attempt at ending his own life.While in North Carolina, he became severely intoxicated and ran off a cliff. He landed on a tree, which badly impaled him but broke his fall. When questioned about his suicide attempt, he told an interviewer, "Yeah, I jumped off a cliff, but let's talk about something else."



Smith's first release for DreamWorks was later that year. Titled XO, it was conceived and developed while Smith wrote it out over the winter of 1997/1998, night after night seated at the bar in Luna Lounge. It was produced by the team of Rob Schnapf and Tom Rothrock. XO also contained some instrumentation from Los Angeles musicians Joey Waronker and Jon Brion. It contained a more full-sounding, baroque pop sound than any of his previous efforts, with songs featuring a horn section, elaborate string arrangements, and even a drum loop on the song "Independence Day". His familiar double-tracked vocal and acoustic guitar style were still apparent while his somewhat personal lyrical style survived.



Smith relocated from Brooklyn to Los Angeles in 1999,taking up residence at a cabin in the [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silver_Lake,_Los_Angeles,_California]Silver Lake[/url] section of town.That fall, his cover of The Beatles' "Because" was featured in the end credits of DreamWorks' Oscar-winning drama American Beauty, and also appeared on the film's soundtrack album.



The final album Smith completed in his lifetime, Figure 8, was released on April 18, 2000. It featured the return of Rothrock, Schnapf, Brion and Waronker, and was partially recorded at Abbey Road Studios in England, with an obvious Beatles influence in the songwriting and production.



The album garnered very favorable reviews, peaking at number 99 on the Billboard 200 and 37 on the UK Album Charts.The album garnered praise for its power pop style and complex arrangements, described as creating a "sweeping kaleidoscope of layered instruments and sonic textures."



However, some reviewers felt that Smith's trademark dark and melancholy songwriting had lost some of its subtlety, with one reviewer likening some of the lyrics to "the self-pitying complaints of an adolescent venting in his diary."



Around the time he began recording his final album, Smith began to display signs of paranoia, often believing that a white van followed him wherever he went.He would have friends drop him off for recording sessions almost a mile away from the studio, and to reach the location, he would trudge through hundreds of yards of brush and cliffs. He started telling people that DreamWorks was out to get him: "Not long ago my house was broken into, and songs were stolen off my computer which have wound up in the hands of certain people who work at a certain label. I've also been followed around for months at a time. I wouldn't even want to necessarily say it's the people from that label who are following me around, but it was probably them who broke into my house."During this period, Smith hardly ate, subsisting primarily on ice cream. He would go for several days without sleeping, and then sleep for an entire day.



Smith had attempted to go to rehab several times, but found that he was unable to relate to the popular treatments for addicts that used a Twelve-Step Program basis for treatment. "I couldn't do the first step […] I couldn't say what you were supposed to say and mean it." In 2002, Smith went to the Neurotransmitter Restoration Center in Beverly Hills to start a course of treatment for his drug addiction. In one of his final interviews, he spoke about the center, "What they do is an IV treatment where they put a needle in your arm, and you're on a drip bag, but the only thing that's in the drip bag is amino acids and saline solution. I was coming off of a lot of psych meds and other things. I was even on an antipsychotic, although I'm not psychotic."


After his 34th birthday on August 6, 2003, he gave up alcohol, caffeine, red meat, refined sugar and his longtime (sometimes abused) regimen of psychiatric medication. Director Mike Mills had been working with Smith during his final years and described Smith's troubles and apparent recovery: "I gave the script to him, then he dropped off the face of the earth […] he went through his whole crazy time, but by the time I was done with the film, he was making From a Basement on the Hill and I was shocked that he was actually making music."



With things improving for Smith after several troubled years, he began experimenting with noise music and worked on his girlfriend Jennifer Chiba's iMac with the intent of learning how to record with computers, noting that it was the only method with which he was still unfamiliar. Smith jokingly labeled his experimental way of recording "The California Frown" (a play on the Beach Boys' "California Sound").He said of the songs, "They're kind of more noisy with the pitch all distorted. Some are more acoustic, but there aren't too many like that. Lately I've just been making up a lot of noise."



Smith died on October 21, 2003 at the age of 34 years from two stab wounds to the chest.At the time of the stabbing, he was at his Lemoyne Street home in [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Echo_Park,_California]Echo Park, California[/url],where he lived with his partner, Jennifer Chiba. According to Chiba, the two were arguing,and she locked herself in the bathroom to take a shower. Chiba heard him scream, and upon opening the door, saw Smith standing with a knife in his chest. She pulled the knife out, after which he collapsed and she called 9-1-1. Smith died in the hospital with the time of death listed as 1:36 p.m. A possible suicide note, written on a Post-it note, read: "I'm so sorry—love, Elliott. God forgive me."



The name "Elliott" is misspelled as "Elliot" in the coroner's report; however, a coroner informed the Smoking Gun website "that Smith's first name was misspelled in the report", not on the Post-it note.While Smith's death was originally reported as a suicide, the official autopsy report released in December 2003 left open the question of homicide.The coroner reported no traces of illegal substances or alcohol were found in Smith's system at the time of his death, but did find prescribed levels of antidepressant, anxiolytic and ADHD medications, including Clonazepam, Mirtazapine, Atomoxetine and Amphetamine.No hesitation wounds were found, a trait typical of suicide by self-infliction.With Smith's death not officially declared a suicide, journalist Alyson Camus noted discrepancies in the case that suggest foul play.However, the authorities do not seem to be investigating the case further.Smith's body was cremated and a public burial site or memorial was never formally announced.



Shortly after Smith's death, a fan memorial was initiated outside Solutions Audio (4334 Sunset Boulevard, [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Los_Angeles,_California]Los Angeles, California[/url]), the site at which the cover of the Figure 8 album was shot. Farewell messages to Smith were written on the wall and flowers, photos, candles, and empty bottles of alcohol mentioned in Smith's songs were left. Since then, the wall has been a regular target for graffiti,but is regularly restored by fans.