What makes Nick tick

2007-10-26T14:25:24Z

There’s a song you almost always sing in the shower. It’s that bouncy ditty in your head that won’t go away till you give in and belt it out in wild abandon.

Well, for me recently it’s been “When I Write the Book”, “Cruel to Be Kind” and “Heart” by Nick Lowe and Rockpile.

I first heard Rockpile in 1979 and was immediately smitten by their sound – roots rock, rockabilly, also described as proto-punk and power pop. The group – Dave Edmunds and Billy Bremner on guitars and vocals, Nick Lowe on bass and vocals, and Terry Williams on drums – had been working together since 1976, recording Dave Edmunds' three albums and Nick Lowe’s two albums. The band had only one album, Seconds of Pleasure (1980), to their name. Their tunes were short but melodious, with powerful guitar riffs, driving drums, and witty, irreverent lyrics. Their music ushered in the new wave sound of the 80’s.

Rockpile: Terry Williams, Nick Lowe, Dave Edmunds and Billy Bremner

Master of the power pop, Nick Lowe has been writing these catchy, three-minute songs since the early 70’s with his pub rock band Brinsley Schwarz and later with Dave Edmunds and Rockpile.

He was also in-house producer for indie label Stiff Records and produced Elvis Costello’s first five hit albums, The Pretenders’ first single, and The Damned’s (UK’s first punk rock band to put out a record) first album, among others.

Nicknamed “Basher” because of his back-to-basics quick DIY style of making records (described as “one hand on the fader and another hand holding a vodka bottle”), Nick Lowe is also now called the godfather of punk rock.

I love Nick Lowe’s 1979 album Labour of Lust. It is the only album we have of him, and it remains a favorite. We are still looking for Rockpile’s Seconds of Pleasure.

With these songs going through my head, I searched You Tube and found Rockpile clips and more! I learned that after Rockpile, Nick Lowe put out about a dozen more albums. Those were never released here. I’ve never heard of them, but through the wonders of the information highway called the internet, I got to listen to his songs, read interviews and reviews. Heck, I even downloaded a full concert in his current tour of the US to promote his new album (At My Age --still unheard of here, of course).

I must say I admire the man. He still has great hair ;-), but now it’s snowy white. He doesn’t bounce around the stage anymore. In an industry where youth and hype are primary, Nick Lowe has managed to gracefully shed his rock and roll image for a more dignified elderly blue-eyed soul persona.

His lovable wit and wordplay are still intact in his songs, now tinged with country, soul, blues and jazz. His songs are stripped down to the basics that give them a timeless classic feel.

I listened to that recent concert, where he just had an acoustic guitar with him, and he played a set of his old songs from the 70’s to his more recent and new ones. “Heart of the City,” (1976) his first ever single as a solo artist, later recorded as a hard-driving punk song with Rockpile, now sounds so mellow and refreshingly new. Even “What’s So Funny ‘bout Peace, Love and Understanding”, made famous by Elvis Costello, gets better and better the more I listen to it.

Songs from his new album At My Age are also unforgettable. I especially like “People Change,” “Long-Limbed Girl” and “Hope For Us All”. An excellent singer-songwriter and performer at age 58, Nick Lowe still rocks.

Now I have more songs to sing in the shower.

billieredsocks

What makes Nick tick