New London Day, August 28, 1984: Difference between revisions
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Lowe was clearly an individual in the '70s lumpen world of punk rock, working with, and making famous similar individuals, producing the first few LPs by Elvis, Graham Parker, the first single by the Pretenders, and also the first LP by one of the early punk bands, The Damned. His assessment of the Sex Pistols, "It didn't matter if they could or couldn't play," was a statement that summed up the whole era. | Lowe was clearly an individual in the '70s lumpen world of punk rock, working with, and making famous similar individuals, producing the first few LPs by Elvis, Graham Parker, the first single by the Pretenders, and also the first LP by one of the early punk bands, The Damned. His assessment of the Sex Pistols, "It didn't matter if they could or couldn't play," was a statement that summed up the whole era. | ||
Lowe's latest LP, ''Nick Lowe and His Cowboy Outfit'', (Columbia) is a happy return to the | Lowe's latest LP, ''Nick Lowe and His Cowboy Outfit'', (Columbia) is a happy return to the smash and thrash of earlier epics like his ''Pure Pop For Now People'', LP. New songs like "Awesome," "Break Away," and "Half A Boy and Half A Man," (which may be a funny musical stab at Michael Jackson), sound like a mix of Tex-Mex, Country, and Rock, down at the roadhouse on a Friday night. | ||
But the best place to see Lowe and company, is at a smaller venue, where you can appreciate his nonchalance and musical wit and the fretboard work of guitarist Martin Belmont. Nick Lowe shouldn't have to open for anybody. The last song on the new LP, "Live Fast, Love Hard, Die Young," (and leave a beautiful memory), was written by Jerry Allison, of Buddy Holly and the Crickets fame. Lowe is in his 40s. Get it? Who said bar bands are bad for you? Nick's gonna be your hero too, if you live that long, right? | |||
In New Haven, Saturday, a week ago, The Lyres brought things down to bar scale, playing in front of about 70 people at the Grotto. Jeff "Monoman" Conelly has achieved legendary status in the Boston rock scene over the years, and seeing his band, the Lyres, perform, it's easy to see why. | |||
Conelly hammers his Farfisa organ with his right hand, while twirling a tamborine with his left hand, yielding a sound that's pure '60s fuzztone garage rock. Cavorting through songs off of the new LP, ''Lyres, On Fyre'', (Ace Of Hearts), like the wonderful "Don't Give It Up Now," and "Help You Ann," as well as the covers "Baby Please Don't Go," "Suzie Q," and "Soapy" the whole crowd was shimmying to shake the place. | |||
This show was what was missing at the Centrum Tuesday night. The sweat factor, where there isn't a dry brow in the place between band and audience. How do you explain the sheer exuberance of seeing Conelly and the Lyres rip the dust off the vault of rock has-beens? If people would get off the Muzak machine that is what they call modern radio, "Monoman," could be famous. | |||
The Lyres will be around again, check 'em out. Watching Conelly set up his own microphone before the show, it struck home how few individuals you can count on in rock anymore. | |||
Everybody's grabbing money and calling it self-respect. Well, Nick Lowe and Monoman are dancing in their own sweat, holding out for self-respect and fun, and while I'll always wish Elvis Costello the best, the former are my kind of guys. 'Cause they never miss a Friday night, even when it's Tuesday. | |||
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'''The Day, August 28, 1984 | '''The Day, August 28, 1984 | ||
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[[Michael Logan]] reports on | [[Michael Logan]] reports on Elvis Costello & [[The Attractions]] with opening act [[Nick Lowe & His Cowboy Outfit]], Tuesday, [[Concert 1984-08-21 Worcester|August 21, 1984]], The Centrum, Worcester, MA. | ||
{{Bibliography images}} | {{Bibliography images}} |
Revision as of 03:09, 9 August 2014
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