Nick Lowe

Nicholas Drain Lowe (born 24 March 1949) is an English singer-songwriter, musician and producer.

What's so funny 'bout Peace, Love, and Understanding?

Song lyrics

I knew the bride when she used to rock and roll.

Baby, you got to be cruel, you got to be cruel to be kind.

• As I walk through
  This wicked world
  Searchin' for light in the darkness of insanity,
  I ask myself
  Is all hope lost?
  Is there only pain and hatred, and misery?

  And each time I feel like this inside,
  Theres one thing I wanna know:
  What's so funny 'bout Peace, Love, and Understanding?

  • "(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love, and Understanding" on The New Favourites of Brinsley Schwarz (1974); the song later became a hit as sung by Elvis Costello. (Nicke Lowe performance - Elvis Costello & Nick Lowe joint performance)

• So where are the strong
  And who are the trusted?
  And where is the harmony?
  Sweet harmony —
  'cause each time I feel it slippin away, it just makes me wanna cry:
  What's so funny 'bout Peace, Love, and Understanding?
  • "(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love, and Understanding" on The New Favourites of Brinsley Schwarz (1974)

• I knew the bride when she used to rock and roll.
  • "I Knew the Bride" on Dave Edmunds' album Get It (1977) (Dave Edmunds and Nick Lowe performance)

• And so it goes and so it goes
  But where it's goin' no one knows.
  • "So It Goes" on Jesus of Cool (1978) - (1978 performance)

• I pick myself up off the ground to have you knock me back down
  Again and again and when I ask you to explain
  You say, you've got to be...
  Cruel to be kind in the right measure
  Cruel to be kind it's a very good sign
  Cruel to be kind means that I love you
  Baby, you got to be cruel, you got to be cruel to be kind.
  • "Cruel to Be Kind" on the single Little Hitler / Cruel to Be Kind (1978) (Top of the Pops 1979)

• Even if I was really prolific — which I'm not — I think I'd always put at least a couple of covers on my record. I think it's a sort of healthy thing to do. It shows that you're not totally self-obsessed.
  • "Nick Lowe" interview with Noel Murray at the A.V. Club (27 June 2007)

• I've always felt quite like an outsider. I don't really belong in the mainstream, and I quite like that.
  • "Nick Lowe" interview with Noel Murray at the A.V. Club (27 June 2007)

• You know, the actual punk music, I didn't care for at all. I thought it was all rubbish, really. It was the attitude, the way that things were being shaken up, that excited me more. I still liked people who were good, you know? Who could actually play. Even though The Damned were a punk group, they played great. As did Elvis, and as did Ian. They were the ones who interested me. Not some of those daft punkers, especially the ones who had people who were actually pretty good musicians sort of pretending to play badly. That was just so stupid, and missed the point completely, I thought. So it was the people who were true to themselves, I think, that were the exciting ones.
  • "Nick Lowe" interview with Noel Murray at the A.V. Club (27 June 2007)

External links

• Official site
• Allmusic
• Nick Lowe at IMDb
• Press kit for "Quiet Please..."