Musician: The Vertabrats, Rhythm Guitar, Occasional Lead Guitar, Lead and Backing Vocals
I wish I had known Nick better.
The few precious times I had a chance to be around him, he was passionate, full of ideas, curious, and engaged. He consumed ideas, literature, art, music, and writing.
I had known him first from the B-Lovers, when they blew into town and immediately turned my head. Later, when I moved to California, Berni let me copy some of his tapes, and in my earliest days out there, it was their music that gave me a much-needed connection to what I had known.
His lyrics then, as they would throughout, had that magical effect of making you think and wonder about them long after the song ended. He left just enough unsaid to pull you in. I've pictured and wondered about the twin sisters in "Inside Out" for years. Recently, I spent an insane amount of time trying to decode "Zurich, In Absentia". I'll probably never know what he meant by "Was it 17 or 24?" -- that last unknown that I will come back to time and again.
His guitar playing, of course, was seemingly effortless, organic, natural, and mesmerizing, be it electric, acoustic, jazz, rock, folk, you name it. He could do it all. I loved to just watch him play.
I will always regret not reaching out. But I'll regret even more not knowing him better.
Thank you, Nick.
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The impression he made on me immediately was…a young Jeff Beck…maybe the scene from Blow Up…it wasn’t his looks exactly, or his guitar playing..but he had a quiet confidence…and it certainly worked on me! I loved em, there was no two ways about it.
It wasn’t ’til much later that I got to know Nick… He was a unique soul. Voracious appetite for any kind of art…information…the library, what a perfect place for him…not just well read but a truly thoughtful guy, and a lot more tender and caring than I had ever imagined before, when we were both younger. Last time i saw them, Jans, they played a song of mine, I was stunned, such an honor really. Not only the last gig …which was soooo much fun to watch, and hear, and the interplay of the guitars…I mean, he and Todd were such a really good match for each other. And when we rehearsed for the Mabel’s gig, I got to be a fly on the wall for their practice, it was just ha ha…I was a pig in shit! It was just wonderful…
He wasn’t just one style of music…sure a fantastic guitar player…the acoustic, finger picking stuff…just as fascinating…from guitar standpoint, he could do it all…and writing too…and all that comes with that.