Genre: pop
Rating: **** (4 stars)
Title: Pure Pop for Now People
Company: Columbia
Catalog: 35329
Country/State: UK
Year: 1976
Grade (cover/record): VG/VG
Comments: minor ring, edge and corner wear
Available: 2
GEMM Catalog ID: 5024
Price: $8.00
Having formed his first band with guitarist Brinsley Schwartz while still in high school, Nick Lowe stands as a gifted writer, a talented singer and bassist and an in-demand producer. In spite of widespread success in his native England and occasional brushes with American success, for all his
talents Lowe's never enjoyed much recognition in the States. After largely unsuccessful stints with
Kippington Market and Brinsley Schwartz (see separate entries), in 1975 Lowe turned his attentions to production work.
Having worked with Graham Parker, Lowe subsequently hooked up with Stiff Record's Jake Riviera, releasing Stiff's first single with 1976's
'So It Goes' b/w (Stiff catalog number ). Additional production work for a variety of Stiff
acts including Elvis Costello and The Damned led Lowe to strike out in pursuit of a solo career.
Signed by Radar Records (Columbia picking up American distribution rights), Lowe debuted with 1978's
"Jesus of Cool". Ever sensitive to American religious sensitivities, Columbia executives quickly
repackaged and re-titled the set as "Pure Pop for Now People".
In consideration of the American audience Columbia also made several changes to the original English album's track listing substituting
'They Called It Rock' for 'Shake and Pop' (basically the same songs with different titles) and a studio version of
'Heart of the City' for the superior live version found on the UK issue. Showcasing a dazzling collection of power pop, material such as
'(I Love the Sound of) Breaking Glass' and 'Roller's Show' (yes it was about
The Bay City Rollers) aptly displayed Lowe's affection for 1960s pop, as well as his oddball and dark sense of humor
(check out the troubling 'Marie Provost'). Like the cover photo, the set found Lowe effortless skipping across musical
idioms turning in wonderful slices of reggae ('No Reason'), new wave ('36
High' - always loved the
cheesy synthesizers) and Slade-styled metal 'Music for Money'. After all these
years, it's still our favorite Lowe
outing. A major English hit, the album was inexplicably ignored by American audiences.
"Pure Pop for Now People" track listing:
(side 1)
1.) So It Goes (NIck Lowe) - 2:29
2.) (I Love the Sound of) Broken Glass (NIck Lowe - A. Bodner - S. Goulding) - 3:08
3.) Tonight (NIck Lowe) - 3:51
4.) Marie Provost (NIck Lowe) - 2:44
5.) Heart of the City (NIck Lowe) - 2:02
6.) Roller's Show (NIck Lowe) - 3:32
(side
2)
1.) They Called It Rock (NIck Lowe - Rockpile - Dave Edmunds) - 3:11
2.) No Reason (NIck Lowe) - 3:28
3.) Little Hitler (NIck Lowe - Dave Edmunds) - 2:53
4.) Nutted By Reality (NIck Lowe) - 2:45
5.) 36 Inches High (J. Ford) - 2:52
6.) Music for Money (NIck Lowe) - 2:06