Lowe began his recording career in 1966 as a member of psychedelic rock group Kippington Lodge, founded with his friend Brinsley Schwarz. That band released a few singles on Parlophone. Three years later, Kippington Lodge had changed its name to Brinsley Schwarz and its musical focus to country and blues rock.
After leaving Brinsley Schwarz in the mid-1970s, Lowe began playing in Rockpile with Dave Edmunds. In August 1976 Lowe released "So It Goes" b/w "Heart of the City", the first single on the Stiff Records label where he was in-house producer (the label's first EP was Lowe's 1977 four-track release Bowi, apparently named in response to David Bowie's contemporary LP Low) . On this and other labels, Lowe would go on to produce The Damned's Damned Damned Damned and many albums by Elvis Costello. Upon moving from Stiff to Jake Riviera's Radar and F-Beat labels, Lowe became extremely selective in his choice of production tasks.
Because the two main writers in Rockpile had contracts with different record labels and managers, albums were always credited to either Lowe or Edmunds, so there is only one official Rockpile album, from the very end of the collaboration - 1980's Seconds of Pleasure, featuring the Lowe songs "When I Write the Book" and "Teacher Teacher" - but all of Lowe's and Edmunds' solo albums from the period were effectively Rockpile albums. Rockpile's demise was hastened by a number of conflicts, not between the group, but their management.
Lowe's best-known song from this era is probably "I Knew the Bride When She Used to Rock 'n' Roll" (a reworking of Chuck Berry's "You Never Can Tell", a.k.a. "Teenage Wedding"). On the 1977 Live Stiffs compilation with a pickup band called Last Chicken in the Shop, he virtually sneers out his contempt for all concerned; in 1985, fronting Nick Lowe and His Cowboy Outfit on the album The Rose of England, he hasn't changed the words, but the tone is entirely different, even affectionate. The latter recording featured Huey Lewis & the News as his backing band.
In 1979, Lowe married country singer Carlene Carter, daughter of country singers Carl Smith and June Carter Cash and step-daughter of Johnny Cash. He adopted her daughter, Tiffany Anastasia Lowe. The marriage with Lowe lasted until the mid-1980s, but they remained friends, and Lowe remained close to the Carter/Cash family; he and Johnny Cash played and recorded together, and Cash recorded several of his songs.
After the demise of Rockpile, Lowe toured for a period with his band Noise to Go and later with The Cowboy Outfit, which also included the noted keyboard player Paul Carrack. Lowe was also a member of the short-lived mainly studio project Little Village with John Hiatt, Ry Cooder, and Jim Keltner.
In 1992, "(What's So Funny 'bout) Peace, Love, and Understanding" was covered by Curtis Stigers on the soundtrack album to The Bodyguard, an album that sold over fifteen million copies. Because Lowe received royalties from these sales, he suddenly found himself a millionaire. Freed from commercial constraints, Lowe has recorded more solo albums in his own very individual style to critical acclaim.
Lowe played Glastonbury 2011, performing a short solo set of Brinsley Schwarz tracks on The Spirit Of 71 stage, where they played back in 1971, before heading to the Acoustic Stage for a full band show.
Lowe performed as an opening act for Wilco in their North American tour, September 2011. He performed solo with acoustic guitar.
His more recent albums include
At My Age (2007)
The Old Magic (2011)
I Love The Sound Of Breaking Glass
Nick Lowe Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Especially when I'm lonely
I need the noises of destruction
When there's nothing new
Oh nothing new, sound of breaking glass
I love the sound of breaking glass
I love the sound of its condition
Flying all around
Oh all around, sound of breaking glass
Nothing new, sound of breaking glass
Oh all around, sound of breaking glass
Nothin' new, sound of breakin' glass
Safe at last sound of breaking glass
I love the sound of breaking glass
Deep into the night
I love the work on it can do
Oh change of mind
Oh a change of mind
Sound of breaking glass
All around, sound of breaking glass
Nothing new, sound of breaking glass
Breaking glass, sound of breaking glass
Sound of breaking glass
Sound of breaking glass
Sound of breaking glass
Sound of breaking glass
Sound of breaking glass
Sound of breaking glass
The lyrics to Nick Lowe's song "I Love The Sound Of Breaking Glass" are about the joy and comfort that can be found in destruction. Lowe sings about how he loves the sound of breaking glass, particularly when he's feeling lonely and there's nothing new happening in his life. He finds solace in the chaos and noise of destruction, as it distracts him from the monotony of his existence.
The sound of breaking glass is a visceral and cathartic experience for Lowe, and he enjoys it even more when it happens late at night. He revels in the chaos and disorder that breaking glass represents, and feels that it gives him a certain power and agency in a world that can often feel overwhelming and out of his control. The final lines of the song suggest that the breaking glass represents a kind of release or freedom for Lowe, allowing him to feel safe and secure at last.
Overall, the lyrics to "I Love The Sound Of Breaking Glass" are a reflection on the human desire for excitement and change, even if that change comes in the form of destruction or chaos. By embracing the sound of breaking glass, Lowe is able to tap into his own sense of rebellion and defiance, and find strength in the midst of what might otherwise feel like a mundane and uneventful life.
Line by Line Meaning
I love the sound of breaking glass
Breaking glass is something that makes me happy
Especially when I'm lonely
This happiness is pronounced mostly when I'm alone
I need the noises of destruction
I yearn for everything that signifies destruction
When there's nothing new
When nothing worthwhile is happening to me, I seek to listen to the sound of breaking glass
Oh nothing new, sound of breaking glass
When there is a lack of excitement in life, the sound of glass breaking provides a novelty
Deep into the night
I feel this way mostly when it's very late
I love the sound of its condition
I enjoy hearing the noises that result from the broken pieces and their scattered condition
Flying all around
I appreciate the sound of the broken pieces scattering in every direction
Oh all around, sound of breaking glass
The glass breaking sound echoes around and provides a rush
Safe at last sound of breaking glass
I am relaxed when the sound of breaking glass occurs
Nothin' new, sound of breakin' glass
The sound of breaking glass is like a new experience when everything else is mundane
Oh a change of mind
I might change my mind about my love for this sound
Sound of breaking glass
The sound from breaking glass
All around, sound of breaking glass
The sound of breaking glass is all-encompassing
Breaking glass, sound of breaking glass
The sound of breaking glass reminds me of glass breaking
Sound of breaking glass
The sound of glass breaking
Sound of breaking glass
The sound of glass breaking
Sound of breaking glass
The sound of glass breaking
Sound of breaking glass
The sound of glass breaking
Sound of breaking glass
The sound of glass breaking
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: ANDREW PAUL BODNAR, NICHOLAS ORAIN LOWE, STEPHEN ANTHONY GOULDING
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@lelandthomosoniii4743
2 my short lived friend from the Bar down Houghs Neck.
He did demolistion..demolition...
+ never heard of this song.
Bought the CD.
Gave it to him on Christ mass
He was very depressed and drinking way too much cuz his father and died...
Like every other time I would play this on the jukebox when he came in...
Another one of his friends invited to a party and then gave him some white powder he thought I was like cocaine....
It was fentanyl from China,,,( Jina
He died.
It was an accident.
@mikkelbrodersen4020
Found this in a forum:
"Nick brought in Chaz Jankel of the Blockheads and let him hear the track in the control room- they chatted about ideas and Nick who was producing sent him down to the studio and said to him that he wasn't much used to mic'ing up piano's so go all over the keyboard at various volumes, chords, runs etc to see if the set up works.
Chaz plays it through once and kind of finds his way about the chords and works out what he might play for the recording.
After 1 take , Chaz says "how's the levels and we ready to roll?"
Nick says 'we are done here'
Chaz 'What?'
Nick 'that's it, thats the take, finished"
Chaz has supposedly been embarrassed by the 'sound check' ever since and wanted to do it 'properly'"
@ianbell7342
nick lowe ... what a talanted man loved this and all his work . seemed to be a down to earth guy ❤
@GreenManalishiUSA
A throwback to the time that Nick Lowe now humorously refers to as his "brief career as a pop star". A brilliant song from one of the all-time songwriting greats.
@AlanGeorgeBates-oj9zr
Classic 70"s song can't be beaten.
@garytwitchett9359
Always reminded me of "Sound and Vision" in feel, then Bowie subsequently records his own "Breaking Glass"
@216cheri1
Perfect songs to drop on a playlist
@ethanhill9460
I agree. Bowie's BREAKING GLASS is among my all categories all time favorite songs.
@djlewis5149
I believe the Bowie link is deliberate. Nick Lowe called an e.p. ‘Bowi’ as an affectionate riposte to Bowie calling his album ‘Low’
@colingeddes2172
@@216cheri1 petfect song allround.
@bobosims1848
Yeah, so I'm not entirely crazy for always intuitively associating this song with David Bowie. Actually, ever since it was first published, I hear Bowie's style in the instrumentals of this song as well.
@WelshJASON42
Will never leave him alone in my greenhouse again!