(What's So Funny About) Peace Love And Understanding

The band I play in has recently been working this song up. It's a great one, for sure, but we went with it because we were having such a hard time choosing which of Elvis Costello's songs to play. When in doubt, it's always good to go with one that has a positive lyrical message, which is something that isn't all that common for Elvis Costello, who is well known as a biting and incisive lyricist, especially in his early work.

The sleeve of the Nick Lowe single.

"What's So Funny About Peace Love And Understanding" served well as the closing track on Costello's 1979 album, "Armed Forces", but it first saw release as the B-side of Nick Lowe's UK single for his song, "American Squirm". The B-side was credited to Nick Lowe and his Sound. The photo on the picture sleeve should have served as enough of a hint of what was up, as it shows Lowe sitting with Costello's custom Fender Jazzmaster guitar. This was an oddly appropriate move as Lowe was serving as Costello's producer at the time, and was typical of the less constricted environment of the early New Wave. Lowe had written the song in 1974 during his tenure with the now-legendary British pub rock band, Brinsley Schwarz. The Brinsley's original is often comparatively described as a sigh of desperation whereas Costello's recording is a wake up call.

Over the nearly 40 years since it was written, the song has been covered often by a cornucopia of musicians, both unknown and famous. Some of the better known names who've done a version of it include Midnight Oil, The Flaming Lips, The Wallflowers, and Steve Earle, among many others. None of them, however, manage to accomplish anything with the arrangement, so they're all pretty much the same. The only person able to do anything of any variance with the song has been Nick Lowe himself, who has taken to closing his live shows in recent years with a stripped down acoustic rendition that serves to amplify the plea for reason in the lyrics

A very high-selling cover version of the song was included on the soundtrack album for the 1992 film "The Bodyguard", which sold 17 million copies in the United States alone. This version was performed by singer Curtis Stigers, who was being marketed at that time as another mulleted Michael Bolton type. I have to confess here that due to my not ever being a Whitney Houston fan to any degree, I've somehow managed to avoid this album for all these years, despite its omnipresence when it was popular. So while it may seem odd, I honestly haven't ever given the Curtis Stigers version any sort of fair listen until very recently. I'm not thrilled with it, as it is so much of its time, and comes off to me as overwrought karaoke. It's as artificial as anything Bolton himself would have released, but as always, you can listen for yourself.

As late as the mid 90's, a blockbuster hit like "The Bodyguard" could be beneficial to smaller acts on a record label, as the hit would provide enough funding for the record company to promote the less popular bands and support them on the road. But as we all know, this business model is long gone. According to Will Birch's seminal book on British 'Pub Rock' music, "No Sleep Till Canvey Island", the songwriting royalties alone from Stigers' version of the song made Nick Lowe rather wealthy, although Lowe has long asserted that he used most of the money to support a subsequent tour with a full band. But whatever version of the truth you prefer, all it can take is getting just one song onto a successful album (or even used for a dog food commercial) for a songwriter to be able to support themselves for many years. It's another fine lesson in why it's important for songwriters to always hang on to their publishing rights.

Brinsley Schwarz in Amsterdam, 1974

The original recording by Lowe's band, Brinsley Schwarz, appeared as the lead-off track on their 1974 album "The New Favourites of Brinsley Schwarz". The record was produced by Welsh guitar master Dave Edmunds, whose later work with Lowe would result in one the greatest bands that ever rocked a house, Rockpile. Two other band members, keyboardist Bob Andrews and guitarist Brinsley Schwarz himself, would go on to join Graham Parker and The Rumour, and make some of the best Rock music of the late 70's and early 80's

Lowe's songwriting had taken a decidedly more Pop direction with the "New Favourites" album, and the band closed out their recording history with quite possibly their very best album. Here's the not-heard-often-enough original version of "What's So Funny About Peace Love And Understanding" as performed by the mighty and fabled Brinsley Schwarz. It almost sounds like a demo for the Costello version, doesn't it?

There are plenty of reissues of the original albums, as well as a few compilations of Brinsley Schwarz music available at The Big A, or through your local, well-curated record shop. Well worth your investigating.

Nick Lowe has worked himself into the best second wind career resurgence I can think of since the resurrection of Aerosmith in the late 80's. But unlike them, Nick did it by thoroughly reinventing himself and his music. He's been most embracing of being age-appropriate in his writing and his live presentation, and being comfortable with that. The wild days of Rockpile are long behind him, but the lyrical twinkle in the eye has been honed to a razor sharpness. He never could have written a tale as touching as "Stoplight Roses" back then, just as he wouldn't be likely to write a driver like "Heart Of The City" now. Nick Lowe is making some of the best music of his life and we all need to do ourselves a favour and enjoy it while he's still feeling like doing it. Cheers, Basher!

I've said it before, and it bears repeating. Who of us, back in 1977, would have pegged Elvis Costello as someone who would still be churning out meaningful, relevant work nearly 40 years on? He's amassed a hefty catalog of work over the years, involving several record companies and multiple reissues, some of which have gotten a tad pricey, particularly the multi-disc deluxe editions. So shop and choose wisely, but do indulge, especially his first few from the late 70 and early 80's. 

If you're truly interested in obtaining a copy of The Bodyguard soundtrack, you don't need any specialized assistance. Honestly, try your local Goodwill store.