Born in Buxton, Derbyshire, Cole grew up in nearby Chapel en le Frith and went to New Mills Grammar School. After failing in law at University College London, he later attended (but did not graduate from) the University of Glasgow where he studied philosophy and English and met the other members of band that would become The Commotions. Their 1984 debut, Rattlesnakes, contained numerous literary and pop culture references to figures like Norman Mailer, Grace Kelly, Eva Marie Saint, Truman Capote and Joan Didion. The group produced two more albums, Easy Pieces and Mainstream, before disbanding in 1989, when Cole re-located to New York to record with legendary musicians like Fred Maher and Robert Quine (as well as a then largely unknown Matthew Sweet).
This solo setting produced two acclaimed albums, Lloyd Cole in 1990 and 1991's Don't Get Weird on Me Babe. The latter was recorded in two parts: one side continued the New York rock mastered on his first solo album, while the other side featured a session orchestra, much in the style of Burt Bacharach or Scott Walker. Although some reviewers have claimed Don't Get Weird on Me Babe (the title being a quote from the American neo-realism poet Raymond Carver) to be a creative peak, it produced significantly lesser record sales, and the contract with Capitol Records ended.
Subsequently signed by Rykodisc, Cole continued redefining his sound with Bad Vibes (1993), a collaboration with producer/remixer Adam Peters using a harder, grunge and psychedelica inspired sound. Love Story (1995) established stripped-down, largely acoustic sound landscapes with the help of Stephen Street (famous for his work with Blur and The Smiths) and former Commotions Neil Clark and Blair Cowan; the album produced a minor hit with the song "Like Lovers Do".
In 2000, after years without a contract, Cole recorded a disc with the New York band The Negatives, featuring Jill Sobule and Dave Derby of the Dambuilders. He has since released solo albums on smaller independent labels. Sanctuary Records, the company responsible for the revival of Morrissey, released Music in a Foreign Language (2003) in the U.K. Recorded largely by Cole himself (including tracks recorded directly into a Mac), the songs had a stark, folk-inspired singer-songwriter style. One Little Indian, home of Björk, released Music in a Foreign Language in the U.S.; they also collected a number of outtakes (recorded from 1996 to 2000) on 2004's Etc. and released an instrumental ambient electronica album, Plastic Wood, the same year.
Cole continued to tour, playing intimate club venues in a one-man acoustic setting. In 2004, to mark the 20th anniversary of the release of Rattlesnakes, Lloyd Cole and the Commotions reformed to perform a one-off, sell-out tour in the U.K. and Ireland. An avid golfer, he is also known for playing concerts in towns suspiciously close to famous golf courses. He also shares a passion for this sport with Alice Cooper who is said to introduce the song "Only Women Bleed" claiming "not even Lloyd Cole has written a song about menstruation" when playing live.
Cole's album "Antidepressant" was released in 2006 featuring the former Commotions guitarist Neil Clark on some tracks.
The follow-up Broken Record, released in September 2010, marked a departure from his solo recordings, as it was performed by a band of longstanding friends and working partners, including Fred Maher, Joan Wasser, Rainy Orteca, Dave Derby and Blair Cowan – as well as two musicians, Matt Cullen (guitar; banjo) and Mark Schwaber (guitar; mandolin).
An album co-funded by fans, Standards, was released in June 2013.
A studio album – Guesswork – was released on July 26, 2019 by earMUSIC.
Rolodex Incident
Lloyd Cole Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Tripped on your Rolodex
Brought up a cloud of dust
I had to take an antihistamine
Before I could move on
and assess the damage done
The fallout to contain
on which you wrote
In case of loss
In case of loss
It said return to this address
So here we are
except you don’t live here anymore
And I guess I’m leaving
I guess I’m getting around to leaving
And then again
Remember all I asked
was just a little quiet please
In Lloyd Cole's song "Rolodex Incident," the singer finds a Rolodex and begins to look through it. As they flip through the cards, a cloud of dust is stirred up causing them to need an antihistamine. The Rolodex belonged to someone who doesn't live there anymore, leaving the singer feeling a sense of loss. They come across a nondescript manuscript with the words "In case of loss" written on it with a return address. However, the person they are looking for isn't there anymore. These events ultimately lead the singer to pack up and leave.
The Rolodex is a symbol of the past and is associated with memories, as it contains names and phone numbers. The cloud of dust that is brought up represents the singer's reaction to the memories that are being unearthed. The antihistamine can be interpreted as an attempt by the singer to control their emotions and stay composed. The nondescript manuscript with the words "In case of loss" is a message from the person who left, indicating that they were leaving something important behind for the singer to find should they return.
In the last few lines, the singer mentions that all they asked for was a little quiet. This can be interpreted as a plea for peace, quiet, and stability. The singer's need for calm reveals that they are in a state of emotional turmoil, triggered by the events that occurred after discovering the Rolodex.
Line by Line Meaning
Tripped on your Rolodex
I accidentally stumbled upon your collection of contacts, which was in a Rolodex format.
Brought up a cloud of dust
The Rolodex had been sitting unused for a while and all the dust was churned up when I tripped on it.
I had to take an antihistamine
I had an allergic reaction to the dust kicked up by the Rolodex and had to take medication to combat it.
Before I could move on and assess the damage done
I had to recover from the allergic reaction I had and then assess the damage to the Rolodex and its contents.
The fallout to contain
I had to deal with the aftermath of the accident and contain it to prevent any further damage.
The nonedescript manuscript on which you wrote
A plain, unremarkable paper on which you had written something important.
In case of loss
The contents of the paper were instructions to follow in case something was lost.
It said return to this address
The instructions told the person who found the lost item to return it to a specific address.
So here we are
I followed the instructions and found myself at the specified address.
except you don’t live here anymore
Unfortunately, the person who had written on the paper did not live at that address anymore.
And I guess I’m leaving
As there was no one to return the lost item to, I had to leave the address and move on.
I guess I’m getting around to leaving
I'm slowly starting to leave, but I'm not in a rush.
And then again, remember all I asked was just a little quiet please
In retrospect, I realize that I didn't need to go through all this trouble if the other person had just given me a little peace and quiet.
Contributed by Declan W. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
michael magee
Exquisite! Essence of Lloyd for me.
Lou Cat
Just amazing, I keep coming back to this. This is home.
Sébastien Rivière
Sûrement l'un des plus beaux morceaux de Mr Cole. Puissant, sobre, un chef-d'œuvre.
Laurent Ledoux
I agree. Definitely one of its most haunting songs.
Laurent Ledoux
I agree.
amaranta arcadia castillo gómez
La mejor canción de Lloyd Cole y sobre la que quiero hacer un video.
Lou Cat
Oh, and thank you, Ramon for the effort to post this.
Niti Portanova
Beautiful.
Eileen Healy
Is Lloyd Cole an seimneoir is fearr. Fear thar álainn é. Tá sé ar fheabhas. Tá an ceal seo ar álainn ar fad. Níor chlois mé aon rud cosúill seo i bhfad i gcéin. F
Sébastien Rivière
"Haunting songs". Merci bcp Laurent. Puis je te contacter sur Fb?