Ken Tucker on the State of the Music Industry

Six albums the British songwriter recorded between 1982 and 1990 are being reissued in remastered versions. Critic Ken Tucker singles out Party of One as being among Lowe's finest works.

Rock critic Ken Tucker compares two new solo albums by Dave Edmunds ("Closer to the Flame") and Nick Lowe ("Party of One").

Rock musician and producer Nick Lowe. Lowe was a main figure of the British pub-rock scene in the early 70s, then in the late 70s Lowe joined forces with Dave Edmunds to form "Rockpile." At the same time, Lowe was producing albums for artists such as Elvis Costello and Grahm Parker. Lowe went solo in 78, and had hits with "I Love the Sound of Breaking Glass," and "Cruel to be Kind." His production credits during that period included The Pretenders, the Fabulous Thunderbirds, and John Hiatt.