Video: Beck – “Alameda/Ballad of Big Nothing,” 11.03.03

On November 3, 2003, just days after the untimely death of Elliott Smith, friends and colleagues including Beck, Beth Orton and Lou Barlow took the stage at the Henry Fonda Theater to pay tribute to Elliott. Audio recordings of the show have been floating around for a while, but the first-ever video of the show just appeared on YouTube — Beck, doing anguished covers of “Either/Or” stand-outs “Alameda” and “Ballad of Big Nothing.” Beautiful stuff, though of course overshadowed by the tragedy that produced it. [Via Everybody Cares, Everybody Understands]

On that note, some of us are going to the Solutions wall on Sunset Blvd. (the site of Elliott’s Figure 8 cover art) tonight to pay our respects and maybe sing some songs around 9 p.m. — come join us.

More: Elliott Smith, Six Years Gone