Editing Elliott Smith (section)

== Death ==
Smith died on October 21, 2003, at the age of 34 from two stab wounds to the chest.<ref name="autopsy" /> At the time of the stabbing, he was at his Lemoyne Street home in [[Echo Park, California]],<ref name="autopsy" /> where he lived with his girlfriend, Jennifer Chiba. According to Chiba, the two were arguing,<ref name="Petridis" /> and she locked herself in the bathroom to take a shower.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://blogcritics.org/archives/2004/01/12/080503.php |title=Blogcritics.org: Smith's Girlfriend Speaks... |last=Dodge |first=Marty |date=January 12, 2004 |website=Blogcritics.org |archive-url=http://arquivo.pt/wayback/20090715081152/http://blogcritics.org/archives/2004/01/12/080503.php |archive-date=July 15, 2009 |access-date=June 24, 2013}}</ref> Chiba heard him scream and upon opening the door saw Smith standing with a knife in his chest. She pulled the knife out, after which he collapsed and she called [[9-1-1]] at 12:18&nbsp;pm. Smith died in the hospital, with the time of death listed as 1:36&nbsp;p.m. A possible suicide note, written on a sticky note, read: "I'm so sorry—love, Elliott. God forgive me."<ref name="autopsy" /> The coroner misspelled Smith's first name in the autopsy report, omitting the second 't'.<ref name="autopsy" /> While Smith's death was reported as a suicide, the official autopsy report released in December 2003 left open the question of homicide.<ref name="autopsy" />

Smith's remains were cremated, and his ashes were divided between his mother, father, and half-sister Ashley.<ref name=":0" /> A small memorial service for family and friends was held at his father's home in Portland, although Smith's "ashes weren't on hand because the coroner wouldn't release them."<ref name=":0" /> The status or location of Smith's ashes has not been made public.

According to ''[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]]'', record producer [[Larry Crane (recording engineer)|Larry Crane]] reported on his Tape Op message board that he had planned to help Smith mix his album in mid-November. Crane wrote, "I hadn't talked to Elliott in over a year. His girlfriend, Jennifer, called me [last week] and asked if I'd like to come to L.A. and help mix and finish [Smith's album]. I said 'yes, of course', and chatted with Elliott for the first time in ages. It seems surreal that he would call me to finish an album and then a week later kill himself. I talked to Jennifer this morning, who was obviously shattered and in tears, and she said, 'I don't understand, he was so healthy.{{'"}}<ref>{{cite web |url=http://messageboard.tapeop.com/viewtopic.php?printertopic=1&t=4998&postdays=0&postorder=asc&&start=75&sid=7a9f2fc2b7da075cd204be4b29fa7513 |title=Tape Op Message Board :: View Topic – OT: Elliott Smith Has Died... |last=Crane |first=Larry |author-link=Larry Crane (recording engineer) |date=October 22, 2003 |website=Tape Op |access-date=June 25, 2013}}</ref> The coroner reported that no traces of illegal substances or alcohol were found in Smith's system at the time of his death but did find prescribed levels of antidepressant, [[anxiolytic]], and [[ADHD]] medications, including [[clonazepam]], [[mirtazapine]], [[atomoxetine]], and [[amphetamine]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.laweekly.com/2004-01-01/news/the-elliott-smith-mystery/ |title=The Elliott Smith Mystery – Page 1 – News – Los Angeles |last=Pelisek |first=Christine |date=January 1, 2004 |website=LA Weekly | access-date=June 25, 2013}}</ref> There were no hesitation wounds.<ref name="Petridis" /> Due to the inconclusive autopsy ruling, the Los Angeles Police Department's investigation remains open.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/fond-farewell-remembering-elliott-smith-15-years-tragic-mysterious-death-015356923.html|title=A fond farewell: Remembering Elliott Smith, 15 years after his tragic and mysterious death|date=October 20, 2018 |publisher=Yahoo!|access-date=March 7, 2019}}</ref> 

Smith received a letter from his step-father, Charlie Welch, on the day he died, but did not get the chance to read it. In the letter, Welch denies having urges to sexually abuse anyone after Smith's allegations of repeated childhood sexual abuse from him but apologised for general mistreatment of him and his "deficiencies as a father."<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.bookforum.com/print/2003/a-new-biography-plumbs-the-lost-life-of-a-great-songwriter-12200 | title=Can't Make a Sound|website=Bookforum.com }}</ref><ref>{{cite book | isbn=978-1608199730 | title=Torment Saint: The Life of Elliott Smith | last1=Schultz | first1=William Todd | date=October 2013 | publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing USA }}</ref>

=== Reaction ===
[[File:Elliott Smith Memorial Wall.jpg|thumb|The memorial outside Solutions Audio in Los Angeles, California, in August 2006]]

Shortly after Smith's death, a fan memorial was initiated outside Solutions Audio (4334 Sunset Boulevard, Los Angeles, California), the site at which the cover of the ''[[Figure 8 (album)|Figure 8]]'' album was shot. Farewell messages to Smith were written on the wall, and flowers, photos, candles, and empty bottles of alcohol mentioned in Smith's songs were left. Since then, the wall has been a regular target for graffiti<ref>{{cite web |url=http://laist.com/2007/08/28/this_is_why_we.php |title=This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things: LAist |last=Pierce |first=Tony |date=August 28, 2007 |website=LAist |access-date=June 25, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130510021715/http://laist.com/2007/08/28/this_is_why_we.php |archive-date=May 10, 2013 }}</ref> but is regularly restored by fans.{{Citation needed|date=September 2020}}

Memorial concerts were held in several cities in the United States and the United Kingdom.<ref name="The New York Times" /> A petition was soon put forth with intent to make part of the Silver Lake area a memorial park in Smith's honor. It received over 10,000 signatures, but no plans to establish the park have been announced.<ref name="The New York Times" /> A memorial plaque located inside Smith's former high school, [[Lincoln High School (Portland, Oregon)|Lincoln High]], was hung in July 2006.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://localcut.wweek.com/?p=362 |title=Elliott Smith, The Myth and the Man, Memorialized |last=Baumgarten |first=Mark |date=July 13, 2006 |website=Local Cut |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060808204437/http://localcut.wweek.com/?p=362 |archive-date=August 8, 2006 |access-date=June 24, 2013}}</ref> The plaque reads: "I'm never going to know you now, but I'm going to love you anyhow" referencing Smith's song "Waltz No. 2 (XO)".

<!-- ATTENTION
PLEASE DO NOT ADD YOUR BAND, YOUR FRIEND'S BAND, YOURSELF OR YOUR FRIEND TO THIS SECTION. It is meant for culturally significant bands ONLY, as per Wikipedia's standards. Thousands of musicians have covered Smith/written tribute songs for/about him. If you are culturally significant enough, chances are someone who does not know you will add you or your band to this section far before you get the chance to do so.

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[[File:Lincoln High School Memorial.jpg|thumb|Memorial for Smith at the high school from which he graduated; lyrics from his song "Waltz No. 2 (XO)" are inscribed upon it.]]Since Smith's death, many musical acts have paid him tribute. Songs in tribute to, or about, Smith have been released by [[Pearl Jam]] ("Can't Keep" on the ''[[Live at Benaroya Hall]]'' concert album);<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.guerrillacandy.com/2011/07/18/from-the-vault-pearl-jam-benaroya-hall-2003/ |title=From the Vault: Pearl Jam @ Benaroya Hall 2003 |last=Hay |first=Travis |date=July 18, 2011 |website=Guerilla Candy |access-date=June 25, 2013}}</ref> [[Sparta (band)|Sparta]] ("Bombs and Us");<ref name="The New York Times" /> [[Third Eye Blind]] ("There's No Hurry to Eternity", originally titled "Elliott Smith", on the ''Live from Nowhere Near You, Volume Two: Pacific Northwest'' compilation); [[9 Horses]] (“listening to the Elliott Smith discography in reverse order”, on the album ''Perfectest Herald''); [[Ben Folds]] ("Late" on ''[[Songs for Silverman]]'');<ref>{{cite news |last=Burkeman |first=Oliver |date=April 29, 2005 |title=Interview: Ben Folds |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2005/apr/29/shopping.popandrock |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240428231023/https://www.theguardian.com/music/2005/apr/29/shopping.popandrock |archive-date=2024-04-28 |access-date=June 25, 2013 |newspaper=[[The Guardian]]}}</ref> [[Brad Mehldau]] ("Sky Turning Grey (for Elliott Smith)" on ''[[Highway Rider]]''); [[Rilo Kiley]] ("It Just Is", and "Ripchord" from the album ''[[More Adventurous]]''); [[Lil B]]'s 'The Worlds Ending';<ref>Archived at [https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/h-IYSl4I-4I Ghostarchive]{{cbignore}} and the [https://web.archive.org/web/20100723052903/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-IYSl4I-4I&feature=related Wayback Machine]{{cbignore}}: {{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-IYSl4I-4I|title=Lil B - Feat Elliott Smith(RIP) - The Worlds Ending DIRECTED BY LIL B|website=YouTube |date=April 9, 2010 }}{{cbignore}}</ref> [[Rhett Miller]] ("The Believer" on ''[[The Believer (Rhett Miller album)|The Believer]]'');<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/8940043/rhett_miller_becomes_a_believer/|title=Rhett Miller Becomes a "Believer" |last=Robertson |first=Jessica |date=December 9, 2005 |magazine=Rolling Stone | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060914074006/http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/8940043/rhett_miller_becomes_a_believer/?rnd=1139957806164&has-player=true&version=6.0.12.872 |archive-date=September 14, 2006 |url-status=dead|access-date=June 24, 2013}}</ref> [[Earlimart (band)|Earlimart]] ("Heaven Adores You" on ''[[Treble and Tremble]]'');<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1491513/elliott-smith-influences-earlimart-lp.jhtml |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120209181613/http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1491513/elliott-smith-influences-earlimart-lp.jhtml |url-status=dead |archive-date=February 9, 2012 |title=Elliott Smith Casts a Long Shadow Over Earlimart's ''Treble'' – Music, Celebrity, Artist News |last=Perez |first=Rodrigo |date=September 30, 2004 |publisher=MTV News | access-date=June 25, 2013}}</ref> [[Joan As Police Woman]] ("We Don't Own It" on ''[[Real Life (Joan As Police Woman album)|Real Life]]'');<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.tinymixtapes.com/Joan-as-Police-Woman |title=Tiny Mix Tapes Reviews: Joan as Police Woman – ''Real Life'' / ''B-Sides'' |work=Tiny Mix Tapes|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070629174910/http://www.tinymixtapes.com/Joan-as-Police-Woman |archive-date=June 29, 2007 |access-date=June 24, 2013}}</ref> [[Phoebe Bridgers]] ("Punisher" on ''[[Punisher (album)|Punisher]]'');<ref>{{Citation |title=Punisher by Phoebe Bridgers |date=2020-06-17 |url=https://music.apple.com/us/album/punisher/1504699857 |language=en-US |access-date=2022-06-16}}</ref> and [[Pete Yorn]] ("Bandstand in the Sky" on ''[[Nightcrawler (album)|Nightcrawler]]'', a song jointly dedicated to [[Jeff Buckley]]).<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.sweetadeline.net/june04.html |title=June 2004 |date=June 2004 |website=Sweet Adeline |access-date=June 25, 2013}}</ref> Several tribute albums have been released since his death, including [[Christopher O'Riley]]'s 2006 ''[[Home to Oblivion: An Elliott Smith Tribute]]'', with 18 instrumental covers, [[The Portland Cello Project]]'s 2014 ''to e.s.'',<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.oregonlive.com/music/2014/12/portland_cello_project_elliott_smith_tribute.html |title=Portland Cello Project returns with Elliott Smith tribute |last=Greenwald |first=David |date=December 3, 2014 |publisher=Portland Oregonian |access-date=July 21, 2020}}</ref> covering six of his songs, [[Seth Avett]] and [[Jessica Lea Mayfield]]'s 2015 ''Seth Avett and Jessica Lea Mayfield Sing Elliott Smith,'' with 12 covers incorporating Smith's musical style and their own, and ''[[To Elliott, from Portland]]'' containing covers by a number of Portland bands. Singer [[Madonna]] covered his 1997 song "[[Between the Bars]]" in 2017.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.stereogum.com/1971070/watch-madonnas-acoustic-cover-of-elliott-smiths-between-the-bars/news/|title=Watch Madonna's Acoustic Cover Of Elliott Smith's "Between The Bars"|date=November 9, 2017 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/madonna-elliott-smith-cover-between-the-bars-twitter-2158041|title=Watch Madonna cover Elliott Smith's 'Between The Bars'|website=[[NME]] |date=November 9, 2017 }}</ref>

On July 30, 2004, Chiba filed a lawsuit against the Smith family for 15% of his earnings (over $1&nbsp;million), claiming that she and Smith lived as "husband and wife",<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily/index.php/2007/10/17/kiss-announce-kissology-vol-3-bob-dylan-im-not-there-concert-coming-to-nyc-foxy-brown-pleads-not-guilty/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071019012818/http://www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily/index.php/2007/10/17/kiss-announce-kissology-vol-3-bob-dylan-im-not-there-concert-coming-to-nyc-foxy-brown-pleads-not-guilty/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=October 19, 2007 |title=KISS Announce "''Kissology Vol. 3''", Bob Dylan "''I'm Not There''" Concert Coming to NYC, Foxy Brown Pleads Not Guilty |last=Futterman |first=Erica |date=October 17, 2007 |magazine=Rolling Stone | access-date=June 25, 2013}}</ref> that Smith had pledged to take care of her financially for the rest of her life, and that she worked as his manager and agent from around 2000 until his death.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1572125/c-murder-be-tried-again-second-degree-murder.jhtml |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120525133517/http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1572125/c-murder-be-tried-again-second-degree-murder.jhtml |url-status=dead |archive-date=May 25, 2012 |title=C-Murder to Be Tried for Murder; Plus Britney Spears, ''Hannah Montana'', Linkin Park, My Chemical Romance & More, In for the Record – Music, Celebrity, Artist News |date=October 17, 2007 |publisher=MTV | access-date=June 25, 2013}}</ref> A state labor commissioner ruled her claim as manager to be invalid, as she had worked as an "unlicensed talent agent" under [[California's Talent Agencies Act]]. The case made it to the California appellate court in October 2007, but the decision was affirmed 2–1.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://gloriousnoise.com/2007/elliott_smith_girlfriend_cut_o |title=Elliott Smith's Girlfriend Cut Off |last=Brown |first=Jake |date=October 17, 2007 |website=Glorious Noise |access-date=June 25, 2013}}</ref>

In an October 2013 ''Spin'' magazine article—a reflection at the 10-year anniversary of Smith's death—drummer McPherson stated that Smith was "a sick man without his medicine" during the last 31 days of his life, when he was not only sober, but had also given up red meat and sugar. In the same article, Chiba recalls thinking, "Okay, you're asking a lot of yourself. You're giving up a lot at once." Chiba further explained that "anyone who understands drug abuse knows that you use drugs to hide from your past or sedate yourself from strong, overwhelming feelings. So when you're newly clean and coming off the medications that have been masking all those feelings, that's when you're the most vulnerable." Writing for ''Spin'', Liam Gowing also encountered a local musician who claimed Smith had said to him: "The people who try to intervene, they're good people who genuinely care about you. But they don't know what you're going through. Do what you need to do." According to the musician, Smith had adamantly dissuaded him from suicide.<ref name="Gowing" />