Dave Edmunds - vocals, guitar; Billy Bremmer - vocals, guitar; Nick Lowe - vocals, bass; Terry Williams - drums
For about five years in the late '70s and early '80s, the UK-based supergroup, Rockpile, captivated audiences around the world. Driven by their infectious energy and the imagination of the group's principle songwriter, Nick Lowe, the quartet churned out many rollicking performances, including this one, captured at the world-famous Palladium in New York City.
While Lowe may have been the group's driving creative force, Dave Edmunds' powerful vocals and melodic guitar work helped set the group apart. His smooth, confident voice is perfect for Rockpile's brand of punchy power-rock. Though Edmunds and Lowe may have grabbed the headlines, Billy Bremmer's impressive, tasteful lead playing perfectly complements the strong melodic sensibilities of his bandmates. Terry Williams' powerful drumming rounds out the band's straight forward rock 'n' roll.
Though the set is relatively short, it is long on highlights. "So It Goes," which is one of their most famous songs, is at its rollicking best, and "Crawling From the Wreckage" expertly builds on the palpable energy created by "So It Goes." The Elvis Costello-penned "Girls Talk" features razor hooks that will get lodged in the listener's head. Rockpile close out the set with an awesome version of another famous Elvis' "Jailhouse Rock" and bring down the house with "They Call it Rock."
This recording finds the underrated band enjoying a fine vein of form. It is a must-hear for any fan of Nick Lowe or Dave Edmunds.
Rockpile was a supergroup founded by Welsh musician Dave Edmunds. In 1970, Edmunds was to go on tour in support of his 1970 release, Rockpile, and he founded a touring band called Dave Edmunds and Rockpile. Though it only featured one member who would stay with the band, drummer Terry Williams, it would be the tiny flame that would spark what became a very successful group.
After the tour, Rockpile split up until, in 1974, Edmunds met the lead singer of a local pub-rock group Brinsley Schwarz, Nick Lowe. In 1976, Lowe and Williams assisted Edmunds on his 1976 solo LP, Get It. The trio, plus guitarist Billy Bremmer, began touring as Rockpile. Though the group's name would only appear on one album, 1980's Seconds of Pleasure, in reality, the group recorded four albums together. Two of them, Tracks on Wax 4 (1978) and Repeat When Necessary (1979), were released as Dave Edmunds solo albums, and 1979's classic Labour of Lust was credited solely to Nick Lowe.
Though the four-piece never had any massive hits, all four of their releases were greeted warmly by critics and consumers. They were never really a "singles band," as all of their albums are remembered for their consistently excellent pop songs.