| Nils | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | June 1979 | |||
| Studio |
| |||
| Genre | Heartland rock | |||
| Length | 39:11 | |||
| Label | A&M | |||
| Producer | Bob Ezrin | |||
| Nils Lofgren chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [1] |
| Christgau's Record Guide | C+ [2] |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [3] |
Nils is the fourth solo studio album by Nils Lofgren, released in June 1979.
With mainstream success continuing to elude Lofgren, A&M brought in Bob Ezrin in 1979, to oversee Nils. Ezrin was known for his successes with Alice Cooper, Pink Floyd, Lou Reed, and Kiss. Lofgren: "The label said they wanted to bring in co-writers, and I said that I didn't do that. Ezrin said, 'What about Lou Reed?' And I said, 'Well, yeah, okay. That would be cool.'" Lofgren watched a football game at Reed's Greenwich Village apartment and the two struck up a friendship. In the middle of the night Reed would call Lofgren and dictate lyrics over the phone. Their collaborations appeared across Nils and Reed's The Bells , also released in 1979. Ezrin also brought in contributions from Dick Wagner, who'd worked with Reed, Kiss, and Cooper ("Only Women Bleed" and "You And Me"). Wagner and Reed co-wrote "I'll Cry Tomorrow" a sequel of sorts to "I Never Cry" (1976) by Wagner and Cooper. [1] With such hit makers at his side, Lofgren felt certain that Nils would be his breakthrough and that songs like "Shine Silently" would be hits. [4]
Before performing an extended version of "Shine Silently" on Dutch TV show 2 Meter Session Lofgren noted that it was a personal favorite and the single a moderate hit in Holland. [5]
All tracks composed by Nils Lofgren, except where indicated.
Technical
Special effects on "No Mercy" recorded at Madison Square Garden
| Chart (1979) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums (Kent Music Report) [6] | 96 |
| Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) [7] | 50 |
| German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [8] | 21 |
| Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan) [9] | 35 |
| US Billboard 200 [10] | 54 |
Robert Alan Ezrin is a Canadian music producer and keyboardist, best known for his work with Lou Reed, Alice Cooper, Aerosmith, Kiss, Pink Floyd, Deep Purple, Peter Gabriel, Andrea Bocelli and Phish. As of 2010, Ezrin's career in music had spanned four decades and his production work continued into the 21st century, with acts such as Deftones and Thirty Seconds to Mars. Ezrin is the winner of three Juno Awards. In 2011, he was awarded the Special Achievement Award at the 2011 SOCAN Awards held in Toronto. On 29 December 2022, Ezrin was named an Officer of the Order of Canada, the second-highest civilian honour in Canada.
Destroyer is the fourth studio album by American hard rock band Kiss, released on March 15, 1976, by Casablanca Records in the US. It was the third successive Kiss album to reach the top 40 in the US, as well as the first to chart in Germany and New Zealand. The album was certified gold by the RIAA on April 22, 1976, and platinum on November 11 of the same year, the first Kiss album to achieve platinum. The album marked a departure from the raw sound of the band's first three albums.
Peter Gabriel is the debut studio album by the English singer-songwriter and producer Peter Gabriel, released on 25 February 1977 by Charisma Records. After his departure from the progressive rock band Genesis was made public in 1975, Gabriel took a break to concentrate on his family life. In 1976, he began writing material for a solo album and met producer Bob Ezrin, who agreed to produce it. Gabriel hired several additional musicians to play on the album, including guitarist Robert Fripp and bassist Tony Levin. The album was later known as Peter Gabriel I or Car, referring to the album's artwork produced by Hipgnosis. Some music streaming services refer to it as Peter Gabriel 1: Car.
Welcome to My Nightmare is the debut solo studio album by American rock musician Alice Cooper, released on February 28, 1975. It is his only album for the Atlantic Records label in North America; in the rest of the world, it was released on the ABC subsidiary Anchor Records. Welcome to My Nightmare is a concept album. Played in sequence, the songs form a journey through the nightmares of a child named Steven. The album inspired the Alice Cooper: The Nightmare TV special, a worldwide concert tour in 1975, and his Welcome to My Nightmare concert film in 1976. The ensuing tour was one of the most over-the-top excursions of that era. Most of Lou Reed's band joined Cooper for this record.
Alice Cooper Goes to Hell is the second solo studio album by American rock musician Alice Cooper, released in 1976. A continuation of Welcome to My Nightmare as it continues the story of Steven, the concept album was written by Cooper with guitar player Dick Wagner and producer Bob Ezrin.
Muscle of Love is the seventh and final studio album by American rock band Alice Cooper. It was released in late 1973, the band played its last concert a few months later.
Lace and Whiskey is the third solo and tenth overall studio album by American rock singer Alice Cooper, released on April 29, 1977 by Warner Bros. Records.
Berlin is the third solo studio album by American rock musician Lou Reed, released in October 1973 by RCA Records. A concept album, Berlin tells the story of a couple's struggle with drug addiction and abuse. Initially, critical reception was mixed but appraisals of the album have warmed over the years: in 1973 Rolling Stone declared the album "a disaster", but by 2012 the album was ranked No. 344 on its list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.
Little Criminals is the fifth studio album by American singer-songwriter Randy Newman. Like most of Newman's work, the album eschews traditional pop-music themes in favor of musical story-telling, often featuring quirky characters and cynical views. The first song on the album – "Short People" – became a hit single in its own right. The album itself peaked at #9 on the US Billboard 200 chart, Newman's highest-charting album to date.
DaDa is the eighth solo studio album by American rock singer Alice Cooper, released on September 28, 1983, by Warner Bros. Records. DaDa would be Cooper's final studio album until his sober re-emergence in 1986 with the album Constrictor.
Richard Allen Wagner was an American rock guitarist, songwriter and author best known for his work with Alice Cooper, Lou Reed, and Kiss. He also fronted his own Michigan-based bands, the Frost and the Bossmen.
Rock 'n' Roll Animal is a live album by American musician Lou Reed, released in February 1974 by RCA Records. In its original form, it features five songs, four of which were initially recorded by The Velvet Underground. Reed's band included Pentti Glan (drums), Prakash John (bass), Ray Colcord (keyboards), and Dick Wagner and Steve Hunter (guitars).
The Bells is the ninth solo studio album by American rock musician Lou Reed, released in May 1979 by Arista Records. It was recorded in binaural sound at Delta Studios in Wilster, West Germany. Production was handled by Reed with Michael Fonfara serving as executive producer. Three out of nine songs on the album are the product of a short-lived writing partnership between Reed and Nils Lofgren. More of the team's work appeared on Nils' solo studio album Nils, released the same year. Lofgren released his version of "Stupid Man" as "Driftin' Man" on Break Away Angel (2001). Lofgren resurrected five songs he wrote with Reed in the late 70s on Blue with Lou (2019).
Cry Tough is a 1976 album from Nils Lofgren. The follow-up to his solo debut, Cry Tough is another offering of Lofgren-penned pop/rock. Notable for the title track and the songs "It's Not a Crime", "Mud In Your Eye" and "Can't Get Closer", "Cry Tough" also includes Al Kooper on keyboards.
I Came to Dance is the third solo studio album from Nils Lofgren.
Night After Night is the second live album by Nils Lofgren, released in 1977. It was released as a double LP.
Stephen John Hunter is an American guitarist, primarily a session player. He has worked with Lou Reed and Alice Cooper, acquiring the moniker "The Deacon". Hunter first played with Mitch Ryder's Detroit, beginning a long association with record producer Bob Ezrin who has said Steve Hunter has contributed so much to rock music in general that he truly deserves the designation of "Guitar Hero". Steve Hunter has played some of the greatest riffs in rock history - the first solo in Aerosmith's "Train Kept A Rollin'", the acoustic intro on Peter Gabriel's "Solsbury Hill" and he wrote the intro interlude on Lou Reed's live version of "Sweet Jane" on Reed's first gold record.
Read My Lips is the debut solo album by Tim Curry, released in 1978. It was produced by Bob Ezrin with Michael Kamen as the associate producer. The opening track "Birds of a Feather" had already appeared a year earlier in 1977, performed by its composers Carole Pope and Kevan Staples on Rough Trade Live! Direct to Disc, the debut album of their band Rough Trade. The song "Sloe Gin" was covered by Joe Bonamassa in 2007 on his album of the same title.
Welcome 2 My Nightmare is the nineteenth solo album by American rock musician Alice Cooper, released in September 2011. Peaking at No. 22 in the Billboard 200 it is Cooper's highest-charting album in the US since 1989's Trash. The album is a sequel to his 1975 album Welcome to My Nightmare.
Barn is the 41st studio album by Canadian-American singer-songwriter Neil Young and his 14th with American rock band Crazy Horse. The album was released on December 10, 2021, by Reprise Records. A stand-alone film of the same name directed by Young's wife Daryl Hannah was also released for streaming and on Blu-ray.
