At My Age

Nick Lowe | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 26, 2007)
• Original Release Date: 2007
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Yep Roc Records
• ASIN: B000Q9OD4O
• Also Available in: Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (34 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #46,226 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

When he laid down 1994's The Impossible Bird--the ninth solo album in a career that already, via Rockpile, Brinsley Schwarz, Kippington Lodge, and production work for Elvis Costello, the Damned, and the Pretenders, stretched back over 25 years--Nick Lowe probably wasn't setting out to create a four-part trilogy à la Douglas Adams. But with At My Age (which is 58, incidentally, as of the album's June 2007 release), Lowe has created a fine companion to Bird, 1998's Dig My Mood, and 2001's The Convincer. Six years was a bit too long of a wait, 2004's live Untouched Takeaway notwithstanding. And given all that time, Lowe breaks no new ground: At My Age is essentially more of the same combination of blue-eyed soul and pre-Sweetheart country-rock that characterized those previous releases. But when the results are so deliciously horn-drenched and include songs like "Long Limbed Girl," "People Change," "The Club," "Not Too Long Ago," and the delightfully malicious "I Trained Her to Love Me" ("If you think that it's depraved and I should be ashamed, so what? / I'm only paying back womankind for all the grief I got"), who's complaining? Good things have indeed come to those who waited. --Benjamin Lukoff

Product Description

Blue-eyed soul? You don't even know the definition until you've heard the sweet smoke of Nick Lowe's trademark croon. Now, later in life, Lowe's rootsy, grown-up soul has risen to the surface of what was a cracked and stripped-down artistic aesthetic in the late '70s, when he produced records for Elvis Costello, the Pretenders, and influential British proto-punkers the Damned. During his years as house producer for Stiff Records Lowe's oft-copied rough-hewn production style set the stage for the DIY philosophy of the punk revolution.

Sublimely aged in a solid oak barrel, At My Age showcases Lowe's perfection of his own unique brand of soul-soaked country-pop, resulting in an album as refined and perfectly distilled as he is. Lowe's convention-breaking phrasing shines backed by gorgeous '60s Memphis-style horns and tastefully subdued guitar hooks. At My Age displays, with Nick's signature polish, the sublime, linear connection between country, rhythm and blues, and rock 'n' roll. So, grab a drink, a smoke, and hear Americana done right...by a Brit.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Nick in all his glory, June 27, 2007

By 

[e-mail] "aka B. D. Love" (Los Angeles, California) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: At My Age (Audio CD)

The wordplay on this one would shame Shakespeare. And Nick has always been able to pull off great wordplay without anyone noticing--the hallmark of genius, in my book. The really great language, you kind of don't notice, because it seems so integral to the meaning. The melodies are just as good. You think you've heard the song a hundred times, and most happily are hearing it again, but you haven't. It's just exactly what you want from the song, that mix of absolute newness with an eerie familiarity. I cannot praise this enough.

I also cannot recommend one song over another. They are uniformly excellent.

I would point out that when I last saw him perform, in Hollywood, he had as his opening act Dan Penn and Spooner Oldham, those writers of "I'm Your Puppet," "Sweet Inspiration." "Do Right Woman" and "Dark End of the Street." The Memphis groove on this record certainly owes a debt to those gentlemen, and occasionally to some sly mariachi here and there, and real country as well.

Nick has been a priceless artist for a long time, and this adds, significantly, I think, to his body of work. I cannot think of a better songwriter. Ever. Listen to how he twists his rhymes around the melodies. And vice versa.

Great backing band as well. "Love's Got a Lot to Answer For" is a personal favorite. But you will find your own.

Bless you, Nick. (Oh, and when you play out with Geraint, let him do his "Deep in the Heart of Texas," even though Edmunds recorded it. My songwriting partner was the drunk screaming for it in Hollywood. Rome wasn't built in a day.)
Buddy

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brit-pop veteran Lowe serves up a flawless gem, August 17, 2007

By 

Gena Chereck (Nebraska, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: At My Age (Audio CD)

On his latest album, At My Age, singer-songwriter Nick Lowe -- who recently turned 58, and was a veteran of the UK pub-rock, punk and New Wave scenes of the 1970s -- continues in the same stripped-down country-soul style of his past three efforts: 1994's The Impossible Bird, 1998's Dig My Mood, and 2001's The Convincer.

Lyrically, he retains his trademark wit while increasingly offsetting his wordplay with moments of introspection, even when he's waxing optimistic about a new love: On the As Good As It Gets-inspired "A Better Man," he admits, "In my life, I've done things I'm not proud of," while on "Hope For Us All," he calls himself "a feckless man who's thrown away every single chance he's ever had." Elsewhere, he dispenses hard-earned wisdom on "People Change" (featuring harmonies from Chrissie Hynde of the Pretenders, whose 1979 debut single "Stop Your Sobbing" was produced by Lowe), expresses sympathy for fellow losers in love on "The Club," and pleads for understanding regarding his wild past on "The Other Side of the Coin" ("If I'd done all the things they say I've done, I'd be in the ground or on the run"). Most startling is "I Trained Her to Love Me," about a fellow who seeks revenge on womankind by dating girls just so he can enjoy watching them "fall apart" when he eventually dumps them (I wonder if Lowe was inspired by the 1997 indie film In The Company Of Men for this one...).

In addition to the 9 fine originals on this disc, there are 3 playful covers -- "The Man in Love," "Not Too Long Ago," and "Feel Again" -- that blend in almost seamlessly with Lowe's timelessly appealing melodies. If you've liked his recent work as much as I have, this is about as close to perfect as an album can get.

15 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Nick The Nife is Back, July 12, 2007

By 

Shaun Tatarka "rodstewartblogcom" (Montana) - See all my reviews

This review is from: At My Age (Audio CD)

Of the last four Lowe CDs, all of which stray from country to lounge to classic pop, this one is the 2nd best, trailing only the magnificent "The Impossible Bird," but much better than the uneven Dig My Mood and the hit-and-miss The Convincer. It's still a grand cry from the glory days of the late 70s--the clever phrases are still here but much of Nick's "new" music lacks melody or a musical hook that marked his rock stuff. But the the bottom line is, Nick Lowe is a true original and always has been, and if you like his style, you'll like this CD.