Elliott Smith
“In the summer of 1999, I talked my friend Marko Shafer into driving 1,000 miles with me from Los Angeles to Olympia, WA at the last minute to attend a DIY festival he knew little to nothing about. It was called Yo Yo A Go Go and I was excited to see The Make Up, Thrones, Sleater-Kinney, and Dead Moon but the main attraction was, without a doubt, Elliott Smith. When we arrived at The Capitol Theater, we learned that the show was sold out. Determined to get in despite the odds, I walked down the side alley of the theatre and saw Elliott Smith standing by the back door, I shit you not. He was wearing a trucker hat that said WHO’S THE BOSS? and he was pulling from a cigarette just as you’d expect him to be. I explained to him our situation, to which he replied something along the lines of, ‘Well I’ve got two guest passes and no friends, wanna be my friend?’ And like that, he finished his smoke and led us through the back door. We walked past several bands who were setting up their gear, to which Elliott asked each of them, ‘Who’s the boss?’ – as if on cue, they shot back, ‘You are Elliott!’. Elliott then took us to the side of the stage where I sat for the entirety of his performance and shot these photos. We could hear a fuckin’ pin drop in that sold out theatre of 1500 people. He had us all hanging on his every word; I was in awe. Afterwards, we went to a bar with Elliott and chatted. I think it was my second time in a bar ever. He was beyond sweet, seemed generally interested in what I had to say. He was funny, intelligent and charming. After a few beers it got a little darker, but I was so young I didn’t fully comprehend it at the time. I love these photos. I love Elliott and always hold a small place in my heart for him. He was one of the realest people I ever met and I feel lucky to have gotten a chance to be around him while he was here.”