Nick Lowe is most definitely a 'good thing'. Erstwhile bassist and songwriter with Brinsley Schwarz, go-to producer to get top tunes down on vinyl with the minimum of fuss for Stiff Records and even as a popstar with a handful of hit singles in the late 1970s, both under his own name, and with Dave Edmunds and Rockpile.
He wrote I Knew The Bride (When She Used To Rock and Roll) and (What's So Funny About Peace, Love and Understanding - two of the finest songs ever. So I'm always well disposed to anything with the Nick Lowe brand.
So, on seeing this one half price in a sale about 20 years ago, it wasn't a hard decision. And this isn't the rocker of the 1970s and early 1980s. This is an older, more reflective Lowe, with the emphasis on songwriting, and simple arrangements well done. Here you'll find twelve three-minute songs, all of them worth a listen. Some might call this country rock, but I think it's just good songwriting, well sung. There's no point in going through them one by one, all are good, but particular favourites are Lately I've Let Things Slide, Indian Queens, Between Dark and Dawn and the glorious, almost rockabilly Has She Got A Friend?
There's nothing new or experimental here, just some fine pop songs.
4* - did I mention that this was a collection of fine, simple pop songs?
Comentários