Sounds, February 25, 1978

Bibliography   72 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 UK & Ireland weeklies UK & Ireland magazines UK & Ireland newspapers US newspapers US rock magazines US music magazines US magazines US alternative weeklies European magazines European newspapers Canada  •  Mexico  •  Asia Australia  •  New Zealand South America  •  Africa Blogs  •  Fanzines  •  Books Online publications Sounds   1974 March 30 1976 August 14 1976 November 20 1977 March 26 1977 April 9 1977 April 30 1977 May 28 1977 June 11 1977 June 25 1977 July 23 1977 July 30 1977 August 6 1977 August 13 1977 August 20 1977 September 3 1977 September 17 1977 October 15 1977 October 22 1977 November 5 1977 December 3 1977 December 10 1977 December 17 1977 December 24 1978 January 28 1978 February 18 1978 February 25 1978 March 4 1978 March 11 1978 March 18 1978 April 1 1978 April 8  1978 April 15 1978 April 22 1978 April 29 1978 June 17 1978 September 2 1978 September 9 1978 September 16 1978 September 23 1978 September 30 1978 October 21 1978 November 18 1978 November 25 1978 December 30 1979‎ January 6 1979‎ February 3 1979‎ February 10 1979‎ February 24   1979‎ April 14  1979‎ May 12 1979‎ June 2 1979‎ July 21 1979‎ December 29 1980 January 5 1980 January 19 1980 February 2 1980 February 23 1980 March 15 1980 March 22 1980 April 5 1980 April 12   1980 May 24 1980 June 7 1980 August 30 1980 September 6 1980 October 4 1980 October 11 1980 October 18 1980 December 27 1981 January 3 1981 January 17 1981 January 24 1981 February 7 1981 February 28 1981 April 4 1981 November 21 1982 January 16 1982 June 12 1982 June 26 1982 July 10 1982 July 31 1982 September 18 1982 September 25 1982 November 27 1983 January 8 1983 June 25 1983 July 2 1983 July 16 1983 July 30 1983 September 17 1983 October 29 1983 November 5  1983 December 10 1984 January 7 1984 March 31 1984 April 28 1984 June 9 1984 June 30 1984 July 14 1984 October 20 1984 December 15 1985 March 23 1985 April 20 1985 May 11 1986 February 22 1986 March 1 1986 September 13 1986 November 29 1986 December 20 1987 January 31 1987 February 7 1987 June 27 1987 December 5 1989 February 11 1989 February 18 1989 March 4 1989 May 6 1989 May 13 1989 June 24 1989 July 15 1989 October 21 1989 December 23 — Stiffs strut their stuff David Brown Various stiffs Stiffs Live Stiffs ⅞ Though the panto season is now over for another year, here's a lively reminder to keep the kiddies (God bless 'em — Chas de Whalley) happy during these dreary winter nights. The scene is set in a London backstreet, where Baron Riviera and his pals are out hunting. Leading the pack are Twiddle D. Edmunds and Twiddle Dum Lowe. "It's my turn to be leader," cries Lowe. "You've had your chance with that Rockpile, now for my turn at the action. And who cares if you had a hit with 'I Knew The Bride' who bleedin' wrote it then, eh?" "Mind if I play guitar on it?" asked Edmunds, seemingly unaware that his partner is in fact Prince Charming. "Let's eat," snaps Lowe. But the pantry is bare and the hunt a failure. So, the Baron punishes Edmunds by banishing him from his kingdom and locks him away in a recording studio from which he was never meant to escape. Meanwhile, Lowe is cleaning the grate, when in strolls the funny little man who does odd jobs around the house, Eric "Wreckless" Buttons. His guitar won't work and his bow tie won't rotate, but he has a plan that will let Nick get to the ball at the Lyceum. However, their plans are undermined by evil Ebenezer Larry Wallis, master of turning into inanimate objects, who turns into a police car (boo, hiss etc.) and gives chase. Yikes! There is now a brief interval while Kosmo "If ya don't want the whelks don't muck 'em about," sells his perishable goods. Locked up in a high tower-block is Elvis Costello, Power Pop troubadour, imprisoned for cheap publicity stunts and making people queue outside West London boozers in the cold. "I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself" he pleads with his capturers and prays for a "Miracle Man." And lo and behold and gor blimey if they're ain't one just around the corner: Why, it's good old uncle Ian Dury and the Blockheads, who soon make everyone 'appy with a few choruses of "Wake Up And Make Love To Me" and "Billericay Dickie." So busy are the people enjoying themselves that they hardly notice as Lowe and Costello sneak away to the land of Radar, leaving Dury and Eric to live happily ever after in Stiff Manor. But all are friends and join in the chorus together with the whole ensemble as the magic spot bops along the wallchart with uncle Ian leading the chants of "Sex And Drugs And Rock And Roll." And yes, the leather zipper jacket fits Prince Charming nicely, thank you. All that and more for just £2.99, the ultimate animated programme from a never to be repeated event that summed up the summit of fun '77 — every gnome should have one. Photo by Frances Newman. Costello album Sounds Elvis Costello's first album for Radar Records is released on March 17, titled This Year's Model. Produced by Nick Lowe, it features 12 new titles by Costello. Full track listing is: Side one: "No Action," "This Year's Girl," "The Beat," "Pump It Up," "Little Triggers," "You Belong To Me"; Side two: "Hand In Hand," "Chelsea," "Lip Service," "Living In Paradise," "Lipstick Vogue," "Night Rally." Nick Lowe photo by Simon Fowler. Whirlwind Hugh Fielder Extract: "All these kids were there to see Elvis Costello and when the DJ announced us they cheered 'cos they thought we were another punk band. But as soon as we walked on there was one enormous gasp." Nigel Dixon, singer-guitarist of Whirlwind was relating the take of the band's gig at the Roundhouse the previous week. Remaining text and scanner-error corrections to come... Tags: Live Stiffs  •  Jake Riviera  •  Dave Edmunds  •  Nick Lowe  •  I Knew The Bride  •  Wreckless Eric  •  Larry Wallis  •  Lyceum Ballroom  •  Kosmo Vinyl  •  I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself  •  Miracle Man  •  Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll  •  Ian Dury  •  This Year's Model  •  Radar Records  •  No Action  •  This Year's Girl  •  The Beat  •  Pump It Up  •  Little Triggers  •  You Belong To Me  •  Hand In Hand  •  (I Don't Want To Go To) Chelsea  •  Lip Service  •  Living In Paradise  •  Lipstick Vogue  •  Night Rally  •  Rockpile  •  Jesus Of Cool  •  I Love The Sound Of Breaking Glass  •  Shake And Pop  •  Heart Of The City  •  Nutted By Reality  •  Chuck Berry  •  Jim Ford  •  Brinsley Schwarz << >> Sounds, February 25, 1978 David Brown reviews Live Stiffs. Pete Silverton reviews Nick Lowe's Jesus Of Cool. Sounds previews This Year's Model. Hugh Fielder's profile of Whirlwind mentions their Jan. 20 support set for EC. Images Photo by Frances Newman. Jesus is alright by me Pete Silverton Nick Lowe / Jesus Of Cool You know how it is. You hear one word and you're tantalised into eavesdropping on the rest. Bars at receptions are a good place for it. "So Nick (c'mon, what other Nicks are there that matter?) said to me: 'What do you see in me? I'm dirty. I'm lazy. I drink too much. I look a mess. I just don't understand what women see in me'." If he didn't he wouldn't have known to name this lump of plastic Jesus of Cool. Nor would he have split his image six ways on the cover. Professional busker come gigolo. Weekend acid rocker. Power pop balladeer (God help us all). Sharply dressed muso. Future present space musician. And last, the real Nick Lowe — bleary, bag eyed, unshaven, doing an impression of a man half asleep for five years. Poked inside those visions of Nick as seen by himself and others is what the world has been waiting for, or at least awaiting with interest — the Nick Lowe solo album. At last — eleven new songs from the man of all rock 'n' roll seasons. Well, not quite. If you're a conscientious student of the Lowe oeuvre, you'll be familiar with five of the songs, three of the performances. "So it Goes," "I Love The Sound Of Breaking Glass" and "Marie Provost" in their original form. "Shake And Pop" is "They Called It Rock" (flip-side of "Breaking Glass") with a different tune and a minor word change. "Heart Of The City" is the twice as long live Rockpile treatment. And another song, "36 Inches High," is from the pen of Jim Ford who wrote "Ju Ju Man." When I hurriedly played one side in the office, the general consensus was that they hadn't even noticed its passing. And that, I reckon, would be most people's initial reaction. Come to that, it's the story of Nick's life. He was the "star" of my local rock 'n' roll band when I was at school. And it's taken till the last couple of years for him to be widely recognised as a major talent. Anyone who'd listened to any of the Brinsley Schwarz albums could have told you that he was a supremely gifted songwriter five years ago. And he's still the same... only different. Reviewing "Breaking Glass," I said he'd yet to create an idiom of his very own. I was wrong. His uniqueness rests on the very fact that he's able to "lift," "steal" and plagiarise. Echoes are the core of rock 'n' roll, especially the hit single. What's half-known is appreciated faster. "Shake And Pop" might be "Nadine" by any other name but it's definitely Nick Lowe, not Chuck Berry. Despite the track to track differences in sound. they're all so very Lowe — sparse, carefully selected instrumentation, delicacy of touch (apart from "Heart Of The City") and understated vocals. Nevertheless, it still seems at times that there's not been quite enough effort — maybe Nick's deep down scared of laying down his art to the world... what happens if only a few critic pick up on it yet again? Lyrically, too many of the songs are little more than fragments: "Music For Money" although it is an excellent fragment. Even "Breaking Glass" is hardly a full song. Then that didn't hurt "Louie Louie" none. And sometimes, Nick's main ambition seems to be to become the poet laureate of the music biz (you call that an ambition?). "So It Goes" and "Shake And Pop" obviously but he even squeezes a line into "Little Hitler" that runs, "I'll get serious. Let me guess, why you knocked me off the guest list." But when he turns in masterpieces like "Marie Provost"' — certainly the best, most fully formed lyrics he's ever written — and JOC's answer to "Day in the Life," "Nutted By Reality" (it's both rooted in dream and composed of two, divergent tunes and sets of words), you forget the partial failures and the slightness of songs like "Tonight." I should complain. Hell, a Nick Lowe album is a thing to be grateful for. Maybe if he stopped hanging out with some of his boozy, cynical companions, he'd be able to treat his music and his audience a little more seriously. They both deserve it. If only he wouldn't call it pure pop for now people. That makes it sound like a toothpaste advert. But maybe that's what he wants. Cover and page scans.

External links

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