Well, this thread has taken some interesting turns - from Nick Drake's sex life, to whether Eva Cassidy has any merit or not. Frankly, I don't give a toss about any of that.

Just to return to the original proposition, my own view would be that Nick Drake was an interesting singer, songwriter and guitarist who - though unrecognised at the time - fitted retrospectively into the contemporary scene which he inhabited. As a guitarist, my opinion of his guitar playing is that it was good - but not distinguished. Guitar genius - on the same plane as, say, Django Reinhardt, Eddie Lang, Rev. Gary Davis, etc. - he was not. His songs are introspective and pleasant, but don't give me insights into the human condition in the way that songs by - say - Richard Thompson, Randy Newman, Paul Simon, John Prine, Jim Webb, and many others - have done.

This was the reason for my original post: the contemporary media culture's opinion of his oeuvre - in my view - has been hyped beyond measure. His work stands as it is - it doesn't require exaggeration.