Gainesville Sun, August 10, 1984: Difference between revisions
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When Nick Lowe burst onto the pop scene in the late '70s, a musical locomotive, breaking down almost single-handedly the flimsy walls between serious stuff and silly symphonies with titles like "I Love the Sound of Breaking Glass," "American Squirm" and "I Knew the Bride (When She Used to Rock 'n' Roll)" he claimed his only goal was "to make a big pile and get out while the getting's good." | When Nick Lowe burst onto the pop scene in the late '70s, a musical locomotive, breaking down almost single-handedly the flimsy walls between serious stuff and silly symphonies with titles like "I Love the Sound of Breaking Glass," "American Squirm" and "I Knew the Bride (When She Used to Rock 'n' Roll)" he claimed his only goal was "to make a big pile and get out while the getting's good." | ||
A cheeky lad, this Suffolk schoolboy, but he had the goods to back up such a statement his music was solid, unpretentious pop, tightly (but never over-) produced, and he became one of the founding fathers of a grassroots return to simple, furl, | A cheeky lad, this Suffolk schoolboy, but he had the goods to back up such a statement his music was solid, unpretentious pop, tightly (but never over-) produced, and he became one of the founding fathers of a grassroots return to simple, furl, innocuous pop music. In 1979, everybody loved Nick Lowe, and he seemed a cinch to make that big pile. | ||
Last week Lowe was in Gainesville, playing his heart out for less than 500 people at Reality Kitchen. A great show, but what gives? Why isn't he playing in stadiums? | Last week Lowe was in Gainesville, playing his heart out for less than 500 people at Reality Kitchen. A great show, but what gives? Why isn't he playing in stadiums? | ||
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"Course there's always times when you think 'Oh, God,! don't fancy this any more,' but it's the initial reason you start, you start off with a tennis racket in the bedroom mirror, posing away, and that's the reason you want to get up and show off In front of people. | "Course there's always times when you think 'Oh, God,! don't fancy this any more,' but it's the initial reason you start, you start off with a tennis racket in the bedroom mirror, posing away, and that's the reason you want to get up and show off In front of people. | ||
"I don't feel like I'm striving after something, some | "I don't feel like I'm striving after something, some unassailable 'Yes, I'm still hanging in here' sort of thing. I'll dolt till the day I drop, probably. 'Cause I don't really know how to do anything else." | ||
Although he's maintained a solo career since he left the group Brinsley Schwarz in 1975, and was at one time the reigning king of what came to be called "power-pop" in England, most of Lowe's notoriety has been a result of his studio production of British artists Graham Parker, The | Although he's maintained a solo career since he left the group Brinsley Schwarz in 1975, and was at one time the reigning king of what came to be called "power-pop" in England, most of Lowe's notoriety has been a result of his studio production of British artists Graham Parker, The Damned and Elvis Costello. He's also produced records for Dave Edmunds, Paul Carrack, Carlene Carter, John Hiatt and the Fabulous Thunderbirds, but in nearly every case the rave reviews were not followed by large sales. And that bothered him. | ||
"I felt on a few occasions I let them down, "he says, "because ... when you're the producer, you tell 'em how it goes. You say 'Do it like this, leave that bit out, put that bit here, do that bit twice as long, sing it softly, man.' | "I felt on a few occasions I let them down, "he says, "because ... when you're the producer, you tell 'em how it goes. You say 'Do it like this, leave that bit out, put that bit here, do that bit twice as long, sing it softly, man.' |
Revision as of 01:25, 20 August 2014
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