Nick Lowe is clearly a good egg. From 1970s rocker, to go-to producer for Stiff Records - which earned him the nickname Basher ("bash it out—we'll tart it up later") - and a short stint as a bona fide pop star before settling into the role of crooning elder statesman of song.
A Nick Lowe gig is a feast of fun, and highly recommended if you get the chance.
On this album he's ably supported by Steve Donnelly, Robert Treherne and Geraint Watkins, who would be his sidekicks for the next fifteen years. And while all the songs are eminently listenable, this doesn't feel as strong as others from his later period.
Standouts are the slow, smooth cocktail lounge You Inspire Me, the more upbeat Lonesome Reverie, and the sparse Failed Christian.
The Man That I've Become feels like it was either written for Johnny Cash (formerly Lowe's step-father-in-law) or an attempt to sound like him, and I Must Be Getting Over You has a gentle charm. The album ends with a lively version of Ivory Joe Hunter's country song Cold Grey Light Of Dawn.
As previously said, these are decent enough songs, but very few bangers, not as strong as I'd expect from Basher
3* - a Nick Lowe album is always a good listen, but this is lacking in Lowe classics
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