NICK LOWE : Nick The Knife (1982)

I've had a soft spot for the work of Nick Lowe for as long as I can remember. I'd just begun paying serious attention to music when he hit his brief commercial zenith (& was subsequently all over Top Of The Pops) in the late 70s. Though I didn't actually own any of his records back then (no cash, too young), the hooks were sufficiently robust that they made deeper inroads than most, hanging around while I navigated a course through the New Romantic rammel of the 1980s & on into the Sonic Youth/Madchester-helmed 1990s in fact. By the time I'd worked my way back 'round to wanting to hear Lowe's music again all of his records were long out of print, with desultory charity shop cameos by tatty Radar-era 7"s (in their marvellous Barney Bubbles sleeves, of course) my only opportunity to stockpile his back catalogue. It's only very recently - last year actually - that any of Lowe's LPs received a respectable CD reissue, namely Proper's generously appended/annotated edition of 1978's Jesus Of Cool (aka Pure Pop For Now People). As debuts go, Jesus Of Cool was, potentially at least, a career-defining record that might easily have undermined many lesser artist's progress. Though I've always been a little disgruntled by his his abrupt rebuff of The New Wave, Lowe was probably very wise in not attempting to replicate Jesus Of Cool's sound on the follow up, 1979's Labour Of Lust, or ever again, in fact.

By the time of his third album, 1982's Nick The Knife, Lowe had officially split with Rockpile (specifically Dave Edmunds, the rest of them appear here sporadically), was married to Carlene Carter (thereby making him Johnny Cash's son-in-law! Cash, of course, later recorded several of Lowe's songs, notably the brilliant "The Beast In Me") & pursuing a much more relaxed, country-influenced direction (with a dash of rock 'n' roll). Though it's not as power-poppily instant as it's erstwhile predecessors, Nick The Knife remains a world-weary perennial, bereft of snappy hit singles perhaps, but packed with witty & insightful Lowe-penned songs, a couple of which are among his best ever. Notably, there are no cover versions, quite a rarity for a Lowe LP. Recorded & produced, as usual, by Lowe himself, it still sounds fantastic as well. It's currently £60+ on Amazon, so how about a little gratitude to this feller for the link, hmm? Throbbing Gristle fans look away now, I expect you'll find Lowe's bonhomie a little jarring...

Ba Doom