Nick of Time

Bonnie Raitt | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 25, 1990)
• Original Release Date: March 21, 1989
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Capitol
• ASIN: B000002UU5
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (42 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,315 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #9 in Music > Blues > Slide Guitar
  • #28 in Music > Blues > Contemporary Blues
  • #30 in Music > Rock > Singer-Songwriters

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com essential recording

Nick of Time is the watershed moment in Bonnie Raitt's recording career, the sound of a survivor finding new focus and purpose in her art after nearly 20 years of generally superb, commercially underachieving recordings. An exquisite interpretive singer and formidable guitarist who'd long ago honed her bluesy chops, Raitt raised the stakes by mixing the usual gourmet spread of smart cover choices with her own candid songs--and she knocked one over the fence with the opening track, the album's title song and a moving confession of a boomer's anxieties about age, death, and the impermanence of love. "Nick of Time" catapulted a feisty rock tomboy into a new station that made her as admired by female fans as the stage door johnnies who'd long loved her rock technique, and she covered the bet with other outside songs from John Hiatt ("Thing Called Love"), Bonnie Hayes ("Love Letter," "Have a Heart"), and Jerry L. Williams ("Real Man") that resonated with her persona as a tough, smart, but ultimately tender woman. --Sam Sutherland

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This lady needn't worry about Time..., March 8, 2001

By 

"tradervic27" (Durham, NC United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Nick of Time (Audio CD)

Bonnie Raitt just gets better with age. An old adage that could've been written for her. Her physical beauty, her love for her craft, her passion just get stronger, truer, more penetratingly *honest*.

She is one of the best blues guitarists I've ever listened to; her playing is pure emotion - not just technical skill.

Her talent makes her unique in a world of copies. She sings the powerful, sexy, yet purely feminine song of any woman, all women. Her music speaks of things we all know: love, pain, failure, regret, loss, but also growth, self-discovery, getting older, getting wiser. Renewal.

This is one of her best CD's to-date, though perhaps not *the* best. I believe Bonnie still has more songs to write... in her life as well as her studio.

A gifted musician.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wow!, March 18, 2001

By 

AntiochAndy "antiochandy" (Antioch, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Nick of Time (Audio CD)

Unless you were born after 1989 or else have dropped in from another planet since then, you have probably heard the song "Love Letter" from this album. It's only the most gritty, earthy, and outstanding torch song in rock. It was also the lead single from this album, and the rest of the album is no letdown. The songs here run the gamut from experienced toughness to aching vulnerability, hitting a lot of bases in between. Raitt's expressive singing and first-rate guitar playing take these quality songs and drive them home very effectively.

"Nick Of Time" dominated the Grammy awards and the charts in 1989, and rightfully so. It is one terrific album and earned Bonnie Raitt recognition that was long overdue. She labored long in relative obscurity before hitting it big with this one. Built on solid rock tinged with blues and country overtones, the songs here all feature mature lyrics delivered with real feeling. Listen to the title song. Nobody over thirty can fail to identify with those words. "Love Letter" is my personal favorite song, but I also especially like "Thing Called Love", "Cry On My Shoulder", "Nobody's Girl", "Have A Heart" and "I Will Not Be Denied".

This is a truly outstanding album. Give it a listen and I think you'll agree. Very highly recommended.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Grammy win gives Bonnie big breakthrough, January 13, 2005

By 

Peter Durward Harris "Pete the music fan" (Leicester England) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Nick of Time (Audio CD)

Bonnie's recording career with Warner career had ended with some critics thinking that she was finished as a recording artist. They - and Warner - were proved wrong with this, her Capitol debut album, which was more successful than any of her Warner albums. The basic blues-rock style is still there, but this album is a little smoother, so appealing to a wider public. Winning a Grammy award for this album further boosted Bonnie's career.

The album is mainly filled with moody ballads, perhaps reflecting Bonnie's personal life when the album was recorded although Bonnie only wrote two songs - the first track (Nick of time) and the last track (The road's my middle name). The tempo picks up slightly for Thing called love (a John Hiatt song, not to be confused with the completely different Johnny Cash song with a similar title), Real man and The road's my middle name.

Apart from singing, Bonnie plays an instrument on most tracks - one of piano, guitar or slide guitar. Bonnie is supported by a variety of musicians, usually between three and five per track. Two tracks feature just one instrument each, giving them a folksy feel. On Nobody's girl, Bonnie sings while Chuck Domanico plays acoustic bass. On I ain't gonna let you break my heart again, Bonnie sings while Herbie Hancock plays piano.

This is an excellent album, well deserving of all the accolades - but then, a lot of Bonnie's earlier music deserved such accolades and didn't get them.