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Rating: Those who have been around for a few decades will surely remember a guy with an enormous signature quiff who was popular around the mid-'80s with two hits like "WOULDN'T IT BE GOOD" and "I WON'T LET SUN GO DOWN."
Both hits were present on the debut album "HUMAN RACING," from which you could already sense that this pocket-sized Englishman had immense talent, enough to distinguish and appreciate him (and in those times, it was a real feat) among the many Duran Duran clones. The genre could only be a danceable techno-pop, but good old Nik managed to "Humanize it" with a successful mix between electronic and traditional instruments, such as a prominently featured funky bass, and above all, thanks to an exquisite melodic search. The result, considering we're talking about easy listening, was objectively very pleasing.
We will see him rise to glory again the following year (1984) with the excellent "Riddle," which confirms he was not a one-hit wonder, a more mature album where the sound gradually loses its previously marked techno-pop imprint, flowing toward a pop "easy-smart-listening" with his unmistakable touch. This was followed by two more albums "Radio Musicala" (1986) and "Works" (1990), equally valid works but completely ignored by the general public. Perhaps a bit frustrated by not receiving the critical (and sales) recognition he deserved, Kershaw withdraws from the public scene but continues to work in the music field, writing (we imagine at a fairly high price) his pieces for other performers. Nine years roll by, and arriving at 1999, our friend decides it's time to "step back onto the field," but without causing any harm... quite the opposite...
The opening track of "15 MINUTES", "SOMEBODY LOVE YOU", sweeps away in one stroke all the electronic scrap of his previous productions to immerse completely in the warmer waters of catchy and quality pop rock. This track is the synthesis of all that will follow in the next 12 tracks. Frequent melodic variations, a captivating chorus, and a brief and intense guitar solo give us a new Nick who decisively changes course and musical genre while maintaining his compositional flair. "15 MINUTES" is an intense album. It may not have actually taken him 9 years to compose, but the result is that we witness a well-considered work (without a doubt...), excellently arranged and produced. Noteworthy is "YOUR BRAVE FACE" perhaps the best track where it's impossible not to mimic the delightful guitar riffs, the exceedingly enjoyable and driving "MADE IN HEAVEN", the eponymous track "15 MINUTES" with a goosebump-inducing chorus. The more subdued and atmospheric "BILLY", "FICTION", "SHINE", and "FIND ME AN ANGEL" where one seems to hear the best of A-HA, or the pressing "STICK AROUND" and "GOD BLESS".
The final gem is the regenerated "WOULDN'T IT BE GOOD", rearranged with the use of just one acoustic guitar. Even on the first listen, it's hard to understand why works like this haven't even graced the airwaves, considering the genre is more than accessible and intended for the masses.
This album reaffirms the pop music dogma. Talent and style do not go hand in hand with success... And our Nik will be more frustrated than before.
Tracklist Lyrics and Videos
01 Somebody Loves You (05:02)
Sear of faces
Rolling on the big wave
Wish that I could dive right in
Shiny faces,
Glowing in the light rays
Smiling at me, sink or swim
I put my words upon their lips
I put my body at their finger tips
And
It feels like somebody loves you,
somebody understands
It gets like you gotta be there
you gotta see those hands
It's my party
I don't have to impress
I don't have to try too hard
Yeah it's my party
I don't have to care less
I can always play my part
They know my face and they know my name
They know my shamelessness
but not my shame
And
It feels like somebody loves you,
somebody understands
It gets like you gotta be there
you gotta see those hands
Reaching out, reaching up for somebody
And I'm the only one they see
Lucky break just as well they don't realise
That I need them much more
than they need me
Hello home boy
Welcome to the real world
Say what planet have I been on
Time to wake up
Time to smell the roses
Who's gonna love me when they've gone
What will I do without my wishing well
What will I say if I can't talk about myself
I may be crazy, you can call me mad
I call it simple you call it sad
But
It feels like somebody loves you,
somebody understands
It gets like you gotta be there
you gotta see those hands
09 Fiction (04:18)
If you wrote a book with a page for
each memory
And put it in hardback for people to buy
The critics would laugh, yeah they'd call
it ridiculous
And sit around waiting for Porky to fly
The truth is stranger than fiction
And I must believe what I see
But the truth is stranger than fiction to me
If they made a film of the book of the memory
With Bobby De Niro and Demi De Moore
You'd sit in your seat with your popcorn
and chocolate
And wonder aloud at the point of it all
The truth is stranger than fiction
And I must believe what I see
But the truth is stranger than fiction to me
If it can happen it will happen it has
happened already
If you don't understand, no reason and
no rhyme
Don't ask why
If someone had told you you'd be where
you are today
You'd of thought they were crazy and laughed
in their face
And I never thought I would long for the
memory
I never thought I would get to this place
But
The truth is stranger than fiction
And I must believe what I see
But the truth is stranger than fiction to me
The truth is stranger than fiction to me
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