10 Essential & Brilliant Nick Lowe Songs

Feature Photo: Roger Green, CC BY-SA 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

There’s an elegant art to writing good pop music. Contrary to popular belief, hooks, memorable riffs, and anthemic choruses aren’t crafted easily. However, the real trick is to infuse that talent with equally impactful and insightful lyricism: a pop song with a punch. There is nobody finer at doing that, one could argue, than the legendary Jesus of Cool: Nick Lowe.

Lowe may not appear on every Rolling Stone ‘best of’ list or have any Grammy wins, although he did receive a Grammy nomination in 1993 as a member of Little Village. He remains one of the most vital and brightly beating hearts of popular music and has been for more than five decades. His hits have inspired generations of musicians, and his deep cuts have compelled listeners for years.

From his early work with Rockpile to his 2024 album Indoor Safari with Los Straitjackets, Jesus of Cool has been one of the most undeniably excellent forces of music, propelling the art’s creative energy forward for years. Here are ten of his finest songs that are very much worth revisiting.

# 10 – Christmas at the Airport – Quality Street – 2013

Quality Street: A Seasonal Selection For The Whole Family

Quality Street: A Seasonal Selection for All the Family was Lowe’s hat being thrown into the ring as a holiday tune interpreter. While his renditions of classics like ‘Children Go Where I Send Thee’ and ‘Silent Night’ were superb, the album’s highlight was his original song. In the years that followed, Lowe developed a long-running collaboration with Los Straitjackets that eventually led to the 2024 album Indoor Safari.

‘Christmas At The Airport’ is the perfect contemporary Christmas song. Lowe’s writing distinguishes lovable holiday cheer and the endless frustration of Christmas travel. “It looks like Christmas at the airport this year,” he croons. “The doors are locked and bolted; let the festivities begin!” The authenticity of Lowe’s sound works splendidly for holiday music, and ‘Christmas At The Airport’ is a tune that needs to be on everyone’s holiday playlist. It’s such a wonderful piece of music to start out our Top 10 Nick Lowe Songs List.

# 9 – Failed Christian – Dig My Mood – 1998

The only song on this list not written by Nick Lowe, ‘Failed Christian,’ deserves inclusion nonetheless. Henry McCullough, best known for his work with Wings and Spooky Tooth, died in June 2016. McCullough struggled heavily with his lifestyle and his faith and ended up pouring that emotion into the breathtaking ‘Failed Christian.’

Lowe recorded the song in 1998 for his ‘Dig My Mood’ album. For once, Lowe was the performer taking a lesser-known artist’s song and covering it, not the other way around. His version of ‘Failed Christian’ is simply haunting, an unbelievably sublime take on McCullough’s best songwriting. Since McCullough’s death, Lowe has performed the song live as a tribute.

# 8 – You Make Me – Labour of Lust – 1979

It’s easy to skip and forget ‘You Make Me,’ a tiny 1:53 long track in the middle of Lowe’s sophomore solo record, ‘Labour of Lust.’ It’s one of the most lovely gems in his entire catalog. Inspired by the Everly Brothers, whom Lowe was covering with Rockpile around this time, ‘You Make Me’ is the essence of a love ballad.

There isn’t anything on ‘You Make Me’ that doesn’t need to be there. Lowe’s soft, whispering vocals are so delicate that you can hear his lips move as he expresses each line. His acoustic guitar is even quieter, very carefully finger-strummed with emphasis on the bass notes of each chord. ‘You Make Me’ does what The Beatles’ ‘I Will’ does: manifest love in less than two minutes. It’s pure beauty.

# 7 – When I Write the Book – Seconds of Pleasure – 1980

‘Seconds of Pleasure’ is Rockpile’s only studio record, released in 1980. The ultimate demise of Rockpile was inevitable, as Nick Lowe’s solo appeal was growing too large for the group. (Similar to Rod Stewart and the Faces, for example.) At the end of the day, Rockpile gave Lowe the freedom and space to be experimental as a songwriter. He carried the songs he wrote with Rockpile with him for decades after.

One of those tunes was ‘When I Write The Book,’ an excellent foray into Lowe’s wham, bam, thank you, ma’am style of songwriting. It’s got a chorus you’ll never forget, snappy, memorably intelligent verses, and Lowe was in fine form as a frontman. Heartbreak and break-ups would remain a constant theme in Lowe’s catalog. ‘When I Write The Book’ is one of the first efforts.

# 6 – I Love the Sound of Breaking Glass – Jesus of Cool – 1978

Lowe’s debut Stiff Records release, ‘Jesus of Cool,’ was one of his most commercial successes. Between 1977 and 1980, Stiff Records dominated the music scene. ‘Jesus of Cool’ was right alongside Wreckless Eric’s ‘Whole Wide World’ and Elvis Costello’s ‘My Aim Is True.’ Lowe’s debut record captures that new wave sound perfectly.

‘I Love the Sound of Breaking Glass’ is one of the most memorable songs on ‘Jesus of Cool.’ It’s snappy and houses some of Lowe’s most eclectic backing band instrumentation. The thick bass and cascading pianos are unlike anything else in Lowe’s catalog. Although the title has often been linked to David Bowie’s ‘Breaking Glass,’ Lowe later said he was not aware Bowie had a song with that title when he wrote his. The song has become one of the most fun entries in Lowe’s discography over the years.

# 5 – So It Goes – Jesus of Cool – 1978

Similarly, ‘So It Goes’ is similar to ‘I Love the Sound of Breaking Glass.’ It’s a punchy new wave rock track that remains one of Lowe’s best. Its sharp commentary of the Cold War and oddball lyrics make it one of the highlights of his early career. “Remember the night the kid cut off his right arm in a fit to save a bit of power?” Lowe sings in the introduction. “He got fifty thousand watts in a big acoustic tower.”

Though the song never charted, it did help push Stiff Records onto the commercial stage. It was released as a single two years earlier, in 1976, when it was lauded by fans of Stiff’s quirky DIY releases. One could argue that the success of ‘So It Goes’ helped pave the way for artists like Elvis Costello to become commercially viable on Stiff.

# 4 – Sensitive Man – The Old Magic – 2011

‘Sensitive Man’ is quintessentially Nick Lowe. Released on his exceptionally good 2011 record ‘The Old Magic,’ the song continues Lowe’s exploration of heartbreak and relationship strife. Even 31 years after ‘When I Write The Book,’ Lowe was still having grief with the opposite sex.

There’s a sense of elegance to ‘Sensitive Man,’ however, that ‘When I Write The Book’ lacks. That song was infused with youth, whereas ‘Sensitive Man’ is aged. Lowe has often been around the merry-go-round, and you can hear it in his voice. His cheeky, sharp lyricism is as great as it ever was on this single, making it one of the finest parts of his late in life catalog.

(Also, ‘Sensitive Man’ has the best music video ever, depicting Marc Maron getting help from members of Wilco and Robyn Hitchcock to overcome his sensitive nature. It’s brilliant.)

# 3 – What’s So Funny ‘Bout Peace, Love and Understanding? – Untouched Takeaway – 2004

In 1979, Elvis Costello helped turn ‘What’s So Funny ‘Bout Peace, Love, and Understanding?’ into one of Nick Lowe’s most widely known compositions. Lowe had originally recorded the song with Brinsley Schwarz in 1974, and Costello’s version later brought it to a much larger audience. The song’s popularity transcended even Elvis Costello, becoming a cultural colloquialism. (Even John Lennon quoted it in a 1980 interview.)

The lyrics are so simple it’s hard to believe nobody thought to write the song before Lowe did. Truly, what is so funny about peace, love, and understanding? Lowe wanted to know because it always seemed so far out of reach. The hopeful track was, and still is, relevant to the world’s social and political climate. “Where are the strong?” “Who are the trusted?” Those are questions we’re still asking today.

(The live version of ‘What’s So Funny ‘Bout Peace Love and Understanding’ on 2004’s Untouched Takeaway is one of Lowe’s best performances of the song available on an album.)

# 2 – Cruel To Be Kind – Labour of Lust – 1979

One cannot put together a list of Nick Lowe’s finest work and not include ‘Cruel To Be Kind,’ the songwriter’s most successful song. In 1979, ‘Cruel To Be Kind’ entered the public consciousness similarly to ‘What’s So Funny ‘Bout Peace, Love and Understanding.’ This time, though, it was Lowe behind the microphone. It made Lowe a radio superstar.

That commercial success was short-lived for Lowe, but it opened an important door by showing he was talented enough to hold his own against his songwriting. People like Elvis Costello didn’t need to take his songs to the top of the charts; he could do it himself.

‘Cruel To Be Kind’ is one of those songs we all know. It’s a song ingrained in the American artistic consciousness as one of the most memorable, infectious parts of the late 1970s new wave movement. The music video was recorded at Lowe’s wedding to Carlene Carter and became one of the song’s most memorable visual documents.

# 1 – Tie – I Knew The Bride (When She Used to Rock and Roll) – The Rose of England – 1985 / The Beast in Me – The Impossible Bird – 1994

In 1979, Johnny Cash became Lowe’s father-in-law. For years, Lowe wanted to write a song for Cash, and one night, slightly intoxicated, Lowe penned ‘The Beast In Me’ while attempting his best Cash impression. Soon after writing it, he invited the Man in Black to come hear the song. Little did he know, however, that Johnny Cash would bring his entire entourage to Lowe’s home.

When prompted to perform it, Lowe choked, his voice muffled in awkward crackles, attempting to mimic Johnny Cash. Needless to say, it sounded much better to Lowe after a few drinks. Despite the embarrassing performance, Johnny Cash told his son-in-law he needed to record the song. The song had yet to be released four years after Lowe and Carter divorced.

So, Johnny Cash took it upon himself to do it, releasing his legendary cover on ‘American Recordings,’ the first in his series of releases with Rick Rubin. Seven months later, Lowe finally released his original rendition on ‘The Impossible Bird.’ Cash’s performance is terrific, but there’s inherent magic to Lowe performing his own song, solo on an acoustic guitar.

Johnny Cash was right. ‘The Beast In Me’ is Nick Lowe’s best song ever written. It balances Lowe’s signature lyrical talent with his ability to delve deep down into the recesses of his struggles to create a song everyone can relate to. ‘The Beast In Me’ is Lowe’s masterpiece.

(‘The Impossible Bird’ is also a great album in its own right, heavily featuring one of the best guitarists around, Bill Kirchen.)

On the first draft of this list, we did not include “I Knew The Bride.” We felt that song was more associated with Dave Edmunds, since that is who Nick Lowe wrote it for and, of course, Rockpile. Nonetheless, since it was indeed written by Nick Lowe, we have seen the error of our ways and not only included it on this list but put it in a tie for number one.