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The Convincer (20th Anniversary Edition)

by Nick Lowe

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Pete
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Pete This album meant so much to me, coming to me not long after my divorce—so many of the songs resonated with what I was going through. I really admire how honest and mature Nick is in admitting his failings and shortcomings. I hope that I age even just half as gracefully as he has. Favorite track: Lately I've Let Things Slide.
Beatlerob
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Beatlerob Not sure how this record never popped up on my radar. A sharp turn from his power pop past but it suits him so well. I collect and listen to a lot of music and this one really grabbed me. Outstanding! Favorite track: Lately I've Let Things Slide.
PDD
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PDD A classic. I can't imagine why it took so long for me to discover it. Favorite track: She's Got Soul.
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  • 20th Anniversary Blue Vinyl LP + Bonus 45 Single
    Record/Vinyl + Digital Album

    The 20th Anniversary Edition of The Convincer arrives on blue vinyl and includes a bonus 45 single of three rare tracks on vinyl for the first time. Remastered from the original tapes and limited to 2,000 copies worldwide!

    Includes unlimited streaming of The Convincer (20th Anniversary Edition) via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

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1.
Homewrecker 03:08
Three, four You look like butter wouldn't melt in your mouth But I know it will, homewrecker You look like you could take candy from a baby I've seen you do it, homewrecker No one can wreck a home Better than you can And I should know, ‘cause I'm a homeless man All down to you, homewrecker You look like you could be taken for family That's your style, homewrecker I don't know what came over me That night All I know is, once I was a king Then I turned around And I lost everything All down to you, homewrecker Where am I gonna run, homewrecker You look like you could be taken for family That's your style You look like you could take candy from a baby Even a little helpless child Not safe in his bed no more You're gonna get what you got Coming to you someday, homewrecker
2.
Why do I go on fooling myself When I know you love somebody else Only a fool breaks his own heart I pretend I don't see You walking with him on the street Only a fool breaks his own heart I have to admit Even though it hurt me so I can't forget If I'm a man, I'll let you go There's no sense in holding on To an old love that's gone Only a fool breaks his own heart I have to accept Even though it hurt me so I can't forget If I'm a man, I'll let you go There's no sense in holding on To an old love that's gone Only a fool breaks his own heart Only a fool breaks his own heart
3.
With a growing sense of dread And a hammer in my head Fully clothed upon the bed I wake up to the world that lately I’ve been living in There’s a cut upon my brow Must have banged myself somehow But I can’t remember now And the front door’s open wide Lately I’ve let things slide I go to the bin I throw the laundry in And pick out the cleanest shirt Then I tell myself again I don’t really hurt Smoking I once quit Now I got one lit I just fell back into it Along with my pride Lately I’ve let things slide I go to the bin I throw the laundry in Dig out the cleanest shirt When all at once I’m seized again By exquisite hurt That untouched takeaway I brought home the other day Has quite a lot to say The evidence is clear, on every side piled high and wide About how lately I’ve let things slide I’m just about holding on But lately I’ve let things slide
4.
I've just met what could be The making of me She's got soul She's got soul Out of the blue, into my world I've found a pearl She's got soul She's got soul I've been lonely so long I stopped hoping I'd ever find someone So it just goes to show how wrong you can be Did you hear what I said? She's got soul I've just found a pearl She's got soul She's got soul I've been lonely so long I even stopped hoping I'd ever find someone Did you hear what I said? She's got soul I've just found a pearl She's got soul She's got soul She's got soul I mean she's really, really got it going on She's got soul
5.
Cupid must be angry That's all I can say How else to explain Why he's gone away I've been praying He'll come back So fervently But Cupid must be angry with me I know I've had it coming ‘Cause I've blown his every plan He must have said I've had it With this foolish man So, Cupid, if you’re listening Won't you hear my plea? And, Cupid, don't be angry with me Please reach into your quiver and deliver one last time Believe me, I've paid for each lover’s crime So, Cupid, if you’re listening Won't you hear my plea? And, Cupid, don't be angry with me Cupid must be angry Cupid must be angry Cupid must be angry Angry, angry with me
6.
I'm going back to Indian Queens ‘Cause it's been so long And I've gone wrong Every place I've been I left it all in Indian Queens So I'm gonna go back And see if it's still there In Indian Queens I left there age eighteen And soon found myself on the pitching deck Of a freighter bound for Panama By way of Santa Martin There I got in a murderous fight So I skipped north to Canada I worked for a couple in Yellowknife But the woman caused me to move on Now I'm going back to Indian Queens ‘Cause it's been so long And I've gone wrong Every other place I've been I left it all in Indian Queens So I'm gonna go back And see if it's still there In Indian Queens Drinking and brawling I drifted south Where I worked the rigs off Galveston One day a shark took a diver's leg And I dove in and drug him out He said he'd leave me everything But he died before he could sign a will Now I'm going back to Indian Queens To see what there's still there for me I'm going back to Indian Queens ‘Cause it's been so long And I've gone wrong Every other place I've been I left it all in Indian Queens So I'm gonna go back And see if it's still there In Indian Queens
7.
Do do do wah, shoobie doobie Do do do wah, shoobie doobie How can you tell me how much you miss me When the last time I saw you, you wouldn't even kiss me That rich guy you've been seeing must have put you down So welcome back, baby, to the poor side of town To him you were nothing but a little plaything Not much more than an overnight fling But to me, you were the greatest thing I've ever found And it's hard to find a good thing on the poor side of town I don't blame you for trying I've been trying to make it, too But I've got one little hang-up baby I can't make it without you So won't you tell me are you gonna stay now Stand by me all the way now With you by my side, the world can't do us down And together we can make it out of the poor side of town Do do do wah, shoobie doobie Do do do wah, shoobie doobie With you by my side, the world can't do us down And together we can make it, darling, from the poor side of town The poor side of town The poor side of town Oh, take my hand Don't be afraid Together we can make it, darling From the poor side of town Shoobie doobie
8.
I'm a Mess 03:10
I’m a mess I should be filling rooms With the sweet smell of success I’m a mess Look at what I’ve been reduced to I don’t blame you for saying no When you should have answered yes But darling, darling, darling, look at me now I’m a mess I’m a mess, I’m a wreck I’m really on the deck I’m a mess Look at how I’m living Some of these days, I’m gonna get back on my feet And quit this blue address But darling, darling, darling, in the meantime I’m a mess The smart set I used to run around with are invisible now They all cut me loose When one said that what I’ve got might just rub off on them somehow I’m a mess For want of your caress Darling, darling, darling, look at me now I’m a mess
9.
When you feel you’re all in And you've decided you can't win Tell yourself it won't be for long You’re between dark and dawn You've got too much time you can't kill Your wheels are spinning but you're standing still It's all flat and forlorn In between dark and dawn You’re so blue, you can't see One day all this will be history Now I've been a fool, but I'm not wrong You’re between dark and dawn You’re between dark and dawn Between dark and dawn That's where nothing’s always going on You'll be on the phone before too long But right now You're between dark and dawn Wait ‘til the sun comes out You’re gonna wonder what the fuss was all about You've been standing in the rain But pretty soon you’re gonna be on you way again Between dark and dawn You’re between dark and dawn Between dark and dawn You’re between dark and dawn
10.
How do you pack up a memory You can't put it in a sack Those sweet times shared You can't send them back Still through the dark They refuse not to glow I’m having to face it Those bygones won't go How does a heart go on breaking After it’s broke There’s no joy in mine now Only night like a cloak I wish I was the wind With somewhere to blow I’m having to face it I can’t find a place where Those bygones won't go And I sang the songs of the poet That describe the way, way I feel But they were only make believe This one’s all too real How does a heart go on working I don’t know I’m having to face it Those bygones won’t go Those bygones won’t go Those bygones won’t go Those bygones won’t go
11.
I’m so glad to hear about The true happiness you've found And how your wretched life Has been turned around I contrive a tear of joy For your empty night’s now at an end But what I really want to know Is has she got a friend? I'm in wonderment and awe As you tell it all anew But I've got one eye on the door Praying someone will walk through Got the other eye on my watch Is it really nearly ten? Let's cut to the chase, pal Has she got a friend? I don't want to come on strong But can we move this along Don't you see that it could be she Who'll end my memory Heaven’s never seen the light Here you go again When all I want to hear from you Is has she got a friend? I keep checking my watch Lord, it says it's after ten But all I want to know Is has she got a friend? Has she got a friend? Has she got a friend?
12.
I don't really care About tonight's affair We don't have to go The same crowd will be there Like they've been before At the last three in a row Now you're waiting in the hall And I'm on the stair Looking at you from above And I say, darling, just for a change Let's stay in and make love Please don't get me wrong I love to party long With my special girl But there’s some things in life More important Than a busy social world You say softly, darling You’re quiet tonight and you’re right ‘Cause what I'm thinking of Is take off your dress Let's stay in and make love Let's take a break Precious moments to steal Let’s forget the chattering crowd And get down to what's really real Da da da da da Da da da da da Da da da da da Da da da da da Da da da da da da Da da da da da da da I'll put on something that will groove us You may dim the light And come to me, darling Let's stay in and make love Slip off those things and love me now There's a feeling of love in here And it's you, sweet, embraceable you Just for a change Let's stay in
13.
There will never be any peace Until God sits at the conference table There will never be any peace Until God is at the conference table People are running from land to land Trying to make things alright Holding meetings after meetings and constantly seeking For what they may be thinking is right Everybody’s got a plan Made for just one man So, people, don’t you understand We’ve got to tell them There will never be any peace Until God sits down at the conference table There will never be any peace Until God is at the conference table What went on in the dark Has come to light So tell me who's to blame And what’s his name Say who’s gonna ‘fess up For all that’s been messed up After all, it was done by a man So we’ve got to tell them There will never be any peace Until God sits down at the conference table There will never be any peace Until God is seated at the conference table There will never be any peace
14.
I know this kind of feeling I’ve had to sit it out a time or two Usually it comes around When dawn’s cruel eye’s breaking through But over you I’m a different kind of blue Sad to say when it comes around these days It’s like an old friend But I’ve never seen it be like this Never has it felt like it would never end Over you I’m a different kind of blue Over you Different kind of blue Different kind of blue I’m lonely, but I can’t afford the luxury Of having you come back to me Though I’d beg you to What’s a fool such as I Going, going to do I know this kind of feeling I’ve had to sit it out a time or two Usually it comes around When dawn’s cruel eye’s breaking through Sad to say when it comes around these days It’s like an old friend Over you I’m a different kind of blue Different kind of blue Different kind of blue this time Different kind of blue Different kind of blue
15.
Mama Said 02:47
Mama said there'll be days like this There'll be days like this, mama said Mama said there'll be days like this There'll be days like this, mama said One day I went walking And everything was fine Then I met someone And I almost lost my mind But mama said there'll be days like this There'll be days like this, mama said Mama said there'll be days like this There'll be days like this, my mama said My eyes were wide open But all I could see Chapel bells were ringing For everyone but me Mama said there'll be days like this There'll be days like this, mama said Mama said there'll be days like this There'll be days like this, my mama said And then she said one day you’ll find someone Who looks at you this way Then you won’t have to worry If some get away Mama said there'll be days like this There'll be days like this, mama said Mama said there'll be days like this There'll be days like this, my mama said There'll be days like this, mama said

about

Nick Lowe's 2001 album The Convincer established him as an elder statesman of rock and roll, far removed from the ironic power popper he was in the 1970s. The album arrived in a different world than the day before, releasing on September 11, 2001. These were songs for troubled times ("I'm a Mess," "Lately I've Let Things Slide") and Nick's songwriting was never sharper, with Mojo Magazine saying "Nick Lowe has made the album of his career." For the album’s 20th anniversary, three bonus tracks are added to the album: a long-lost Lowe-original called “Different Kind of Blue,” an acoustic cover of The Shirelles’ “Mama Said,” and a stripped-back rendition of The Chi-lites’ “There Will Never Be Any Peace (Until God Is Seated at the Conference Table).”

credits

released September 17, 2021

2021 Nick Lowe Ltd. Under exclusive license to Yep Roc Records.

Nick Lowe - Vocals, Rhythm Guitar, Bass
Steve Donnelly - Lead Guitar
Geraint Watkins - Organ, Piano
Bobby Irwin - Drums

Tessa Niles - background vocals (“Let’s Stay in and Make Love”)
Richie Buckley - tenor saxophone (“Poor Side of Town,” “I’m a Mess”)
Matt Holland - flugelhorn (“Lately I’ve Let Things Slide”)
The St. Keverne Band - (“Indian Queens”)
Wayne Jackson - trumpet (“Cupid Must Be Angry”)

Produced by Nick Lowe and Neil Brockbank at RAK Studios, St. Johns Wood, London and The Barge, Twickenham, Middlesex between May 2000 and April 2001.

All songs written by Nick Lowe [Hipgnosis Notes (ASCAP)] except “Only a Fool Breaks His Own Heart” [Norman Bergen, Shelly Coburn/EMI Unart Catalog Inc. (BMI)] and “Poor Side of Town” [Lou Adler, Johnny Rivers/EMI Sosaha Music Inc. (BMI), R2M Music (BMI), Songs of Lastrada (BMI)]

Love and thanks to Austin Delone and Jim Herrington

Original design: Peta Waddington
Photography: Dan Burn-Forti

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Nick Lowe London, UK

Nick Lowe has made his mark as a producer (Elvis Costello-Graham Parker-Pretenders-The Damned), songwriter of at least three songs you know by heart, short-lived career as a pop star, and a lengthy term as a musicians’ musician. But in his current ‘second act’ as a silver-haired, tender-hearted but sharp-tongued singer-songwriter, he has no equal. ... more

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