Rockpile!
Two 45-year milestones for rock'n'roll's most underrated supergroup, plus new music from Basher.
This week, 45 years ago, Rockpile released two albums within a day of each other. The thing is, they were on two different labels and under two different names.
In the US, Repeat When Necessary was issued under Dave Edmunds’s name on Led Zeppelin’s Swan Song label, while Nick Lowe’s Labour of Lust came out on Columbia. But what if we took the (subjectively) best tracks from both albums and made one LP-length, kick-ass mixtape?
Well, say no more…
With all the tracks added together, it makes a damn good album, but apart, each record had its own distinct personality, which is what made Rockpile one of the great underrated rock’n’roll bands of all time.
Although they actually recorded much more music together (Edmunds’s Tracks on Wax 4, Twangin’…, Carlene Carter’s fantastic power-pop-country-rock set, Musical Shapes, and the odd track here and there on Edmunds’s Get It and Lowe’s Blue Nun), Rockpile would famously only issue one studio album under the Rockpile moniker, 1980’s Seconds of Pleasure. Of course, it couldn’t live up to the high standards their live shows had set before its release, but it’s still a top-notch slab of 1980 rock’n’roll power pop with a few undeniable classics.
…And the biggest news this week for Rockpile fanatics, Nick Lowe is set to release his first new full-length album in 11 years, and first with his longtime backing group, Los Straitjackets, on Yep Roc Records on September 13.
Here’s the majestic lead-off track…
Before we cut, here are a couple more Rockpile goodies. An all-too-short Danish TV concert recorded in the summer of ‘79 when Repeat and Labor were still fresh off the press, and a full-length doc from the same era.
In the comments, let me know your favorite Rockpile songs/shows/memories.
The first time I saw Rockpile was a disappointing set opening for Van Morrison in Seattle, December 1978 (my friends & I were there for Nick, Dave & Co., not Van) - BUT THEN - the morning after the Van concert we got word that Rockpile was headlining in a Portland, OR venue known as The Earth Tavern that night, so we rented a car and made the trip. And boy, was it worth it - tiny club, we were leaning on the monitors 2 feet away from the band playing on a 2-foot high stage - and they were incredible, absolutely on fire! We got invited backstage by Billy Bremner after the show and spent 2 hours hanging with them. Nick made a pass at my girlfriend (I was honored) and they were all as cool and friendly as could be - that night remains one of the greatest rock & roll experiences of my life, and I've had plenty. I'm preparing to launch a Substack of my own next month, and will be describing the whole event in more detail down the road. . .
Thanks for your post!
Saw them at Leeds Uni in 79. The Ramones, Clash, Jam, Gang of Four and Ian Dury had all played there that year but Rockpile is the concert I remember best; “we’re Rockpile, let’s do it!!” 😀😀