At My Age

Nick Lowe

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 26, 2007)
• Original Release Date: June 26, 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 (32 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #7,481 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

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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

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Hope for Us All, August 11, 2007

By	James R. Morris Jr. "Vertigocat" (Asheboro, NC USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Nick Lowe is back. The man who made my favorite lp of the '80's, the sublime Rose of England, has returned with a vengeance. And I am happy to report that at age 58, he is at the top of his game, bringing to the music world a much needed top notch release just in time for summer. The doldrums have no chance to set in while this thoroughly coherent, enjoyable CD is playing. There is nary a weak track on At My Age, and like any good record, subsequent plays reveal an astonishing depth and subtlety. Rome Wasn't Built In A Day, a lovely ode to a man's romantic devotion, also serves as metaphor and testament to Nick's patience and perserverance in the music world. Indeed, how many other 70's singers are doing some of their finest work nowadays?
This is surely Nick's best since the heights of The Impossible Bird. He follows much the same template he established on that record, and the subsequent 3 releases, but this new one rocks a bit more, and the ballads seem more hopeful and wise. In a recent interview he addressed those who have accused him of not rocking as hard as he did in the late 70's with this wry assessment: "I rock as hard as I ever did. Only now it's quieter, and more intense."
This comment alone should allay any fears that the man responsible for Cruel to Be Kind (Was there a better '70's single?) and Half a Man has lost any of his wit and panache. On this new cd, I Trained Her to love Me and The Club carry on this tradition. Long Limbed Girl too, is an irresistible tune, replete with a sweet elegiac quality that permeates the entire album. And it must be said here, Is there anyone in popular music with a better sense of melody? Or for that matter, is there a better vocalist?
With this new CD, Nick Lowe- the former punk rocker, producer extrordinaire- emerges as the preeminent singer-songwriter of the new century. His command of his craft,and his knowledge of music history, is perhaps only rivaled by Bob Dylan. Like Dylan, Lowe's a stranger to no genre. Nick Lowe is no less than the Howard Hawks of popular music.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not long enough, July 5, 2007

By	Steven Lyle (Sacramento, Ca United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

As brilliant as The Convincer, but, at 33 minutes, there isn't enough of it. This album is so well produced, I, for one, would appreciate some longer pieces with more instrumental breaks. I''m grateful for the new release and am enjoying it, all the same.

6 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 (REAL NAME)

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.