Nick Lowe - The Impossible Bird
On this episode, we have a listener pick: Nick Lowe and his 1994 album The Impossible Bird.
Nick Lowe has been a topic of conversation several times on This Is Vinyl Tap due to the indelible mark the man has left on pop music. Lowe was a bass player, singer and songwriter of the influential pub rock band Brinsley Schwarz. He was a member of the the fabulous Rockpile. He is a producer of some note, having worked with countless artists including Elvis Costello, the Pretenders, Graham Parker, and the Damned. And he is one hell of a song writer, penning such timeless tunes as "(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love, and Understanding," "Cruel to be Kind," "I Love the Sound of Breaking Glass," and "The Beast In Me."
Having found himself is a but of a rough creative patch in the late 1980's, his luck changed withe the success "The Bodyguard" soundtrack, which included a cover of "Peace, Love, and Understanding." That gave Lowe the financial freedom to pursue new musical directions and the music buying public were much the richer for it. The Impossible Bird was a bit of a reboot for Lowe and a different kind of Nick Lowe album; more mature and stripped down, with his vocals front and center. It was not quite country, not quite rockabilly, not quite folk, but a flawless combinations of all of the above. Its a collection of choice covers and fantastic Lowe originals expertly executed by a crack band and easily one of Lowe's finest musical statements that includes some of his most endearing and enduring songs.
Recommended on this episode: Indoor Safari by Nick Lowe and Los Straitjackets.
THINGS WE DISCUSSED ON THIS EPISODE
Nick Lowe (sometime around 1980) with his eight-string Hammer bass.
Lowe’s first profession band Kippington Lodge. This is the band that would eventually become pub rock stalwarts Brinsley Schwarz.
Pictured (L to R) Brinsley Schwarz, Bob Andrews (center back), Nick Lowe (center front), and Billy Rankin.
Listen to the Nick Lowe penned “I Can See Her Face” by Kippington Lodge.
Brinsley Schwarz (Circa 1974).
Pictured (L to R): Billy Rankin, Nick Lowe, Brinsley Schwarz, Bob Andrews, and Ian Gomm.
Here’s Brinsley Schwarz performing “Surrender To The Rhythm” on The Old Grey Whistle Test in 1973.
Nick Lowe discusses how he recorded “Bay City Rollers We Love You” to attempt to get out of his contract with United Artists.
Here’s the official video for he first single Lowe recorded for Stiff Records “So It Goes,” which happened to also be the first single released by Stiff. The band in the video is Rockpile.
The Damned and Nick Lowe (standing in the garbage can).
Lowe, who was the in-house producer for Stiff Records, produced the Damned's first single, "New Rose", which most consider to be the first English punk single, as well as the group's debut album, Damned Damned Damned.
Here’s the video for Nick Lowe’s biggest hit “Cruel to Be Kind.” The video recreates Lowe’s wedding to Carlene Carter and again features Rockpile as his backing band and Dave Edmunds as the couple’s chauffeur.
In 1986, Lowe toured with Elvis Costello as party of his band the Confederates on a tour of Australia and Japan. Here is the two of them in Japan singing "(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love, and Understanding.”
Nick Lowe performs a solo acoustic version "Shelley My Love" acoustic in a Japanese hotel room s.
In November of 1994, Nick Lowe and his band the Impossible Birds (Bill Kirchen on guitar, Geraint Watkins on keyboards, Paul Riley on bass and Bobby Irwin on drums) performed “12-Step Program (To Quit You Babe)” and “True Love Travels on a Gravel Road” on "Later with Jools Holland.”
