The family of the late Elliott Smith has issued a statement that implies
they are not as supportive of the singer's girlfriend as she suggested in her interview with MTV last week. As previously reported, the coroner's report into Smith's death said that there was not enough evidence to prove he committed suicide. If that statement implies Smith was murdered then girlfriend Jennifer Chiba, who was in the house at the time of the incident, would become a prime suspect. With that in mind Chiba last week hit out at implied accusations in the media, pointing out she had not been charged with any crime, and claiming to have the support of Elliott's family.
However the attorney representing the family, Conrad Rippy, yesterday issued
a statement that was non-committal with regards where their loyalties lie: "Elliott's family has every confidence that the ongoing investigation will determine the actual circumstances of Elliott's death. Until such time as their investigation has concluded, however, and especially in light of the recently published coroner's report, neither Elliott's family nor anyone else can claim to know 'the truth' about Elliott's death, and any statement to the contrary mischaracterizes the family's position."
Police have reopened their investigations into Elliott's death since the coroner's report was published at the start of the month.
Via: CMU
Article comments
1 - mAtt
I don't know if I'm alone in saying this, but I think Eliot Smith was one of the best songwriters our generation has seen. It's sad that he's gone and I truly, truly hope that this whole mess cleans up. It'd be horrible if he was always remembered for this controversy instead of his beautiful music.
2 - Mark Saleski
i hate to go against the popular opinion here...but i just do not get artists like Eliot Smith.
i hear adjectives like "sad", "pensive", etc...i don't hear this at all.
it sounds to me like the person is just plain bored.
it's probably just me.
3 - Eric Olsen
Mark, sadly, I agree, although I wouldn't say "artists like Smith," I would just say Smith. Have you heard his punky stuff with Heatmiser, though? Infinitely better - I was shocked the weepy stuff became popular when the punky stuff did not.
4 - Mark Saleski
a friend of mine kept pushing cd's my way and i'd reject most of 'em because the singer had that same kind of distant, fey style.
...though this almost never happens to me if the singer is female.
5 - Andrew Ian Dodge
Eric and Mark I agree with both of you. This type of stuff is just bored twaddle as far as I am concerned. I wonder if anyone else has noticed the name of his label...ironic huh?
6 - Eric Olsen
Self-fulfilling, I guess!
7 - ParticleMan
I don't know guys. The only Smith song i've heard is the one from the Tenenbaums soundtrack, but when i heard it, the first thought that struck me was "Kurt Cobain." Polly, Something in the Way, Pennyroyal Tea, All Apologies, etc. came to mind. Calling it 'bored twaddle' is a shortchange i think.
But if you aren't down with brooding, meloncholy acoustic numbers to begin with, then i can see your boredom with Smith.
8 - Craig Lyndall
I am a fan of Smith's music but I wouldn't fault anyone for thinking it is boring. I could see where a lot of people would feel that way because it isn't a crazy interesting style. I happen to find it delicate, sparse, and raw. These are probably the same things that the non-fan finds that (s)he doesn't like.
9 - ClubhouseCancer
Totally disagree. I think Elliott's later stuff (XO and Figure 8) is gorgeously produced and not so sad as advertised. The guy had a real gift for melody and smart lyrics, and these last two albums showed a promising propensity for late-Beatlesque swirly baroque-pop arrangements. very different from the sometimes-samey downbeat guitar/vocal things on his first couple of albums.
It's very subjective of course, but I think Elliott Smith was for real, and his death is sad.
10 - Eric Olsen
His death is tragic, period, debates about the music have no bearing on that.
11 - Craig Lyndall
I agree and I kind of wish that it was just a run of the mill suicide. That was sad enough without all this controversy which really changes the whole perception of his death. Like when Ted Williams died, I was ok with it until I heard about his corpse's treatment in that preservation facility or whatever. I don't want to stop justice, but it is very distracting considering this was a guy who didn't want attention for the wrong reasons. This is a guy who didn't want to perform at the Oscars when his song was nominated in Good Will Hunting.
12 - willie
Elliott Smith was the best singer/songwriter in my opinion, he had the genius lyrics of Dylan and the rocking backup music sound of the Beatles. He will be missed.