BY ED KING There’s no need to lecture me on the deceptively breezy charms of the music of this month’s wondergirl, sassy British upstart Lily Allen. As any gimmick-hungry yob who’s ever hoped to dig gold from
rock ‘n roll will tell you, writing and selling a catchy little pop song is a bitch. I’d been hearing so much about this Lily Allen, seemingly out of the blue, for the last month that I feared I’d fallen a few more steps out of touch with Today’s Happening People. It wasn’t as bad as I’d feared: last week I learned from Dan DeLuca that her “Album of the Year,” Alright, Still, has yet to be released in the US. OK, so this is the latest example of the hype machine in full force, this is the music industry’s version of Hollywood films that manage to land Academy Award nominations before anyone but a few dozen critics in New York and Los Angeles have seen them. Of course, I’m expected to believe that the overnight success of the “cheeky” Ms. Allen has been wholly accidental and self-driven through the powers of MySpace. You know what, I’ll buy this story. I’m sick of being a bitter cynic. Have you been keeping up with this girl’s blog? It’s outrageous! She’s taken shots at a Spice Girl and Bob Geldof! What’s next, she’ll declare there’s no Beatles or Stones in 2007? Power to the People! Let’s face it, ever since Boy George rode off on that white horse the world’s been waiting for something to fill the void left behind by Culture Club. And honestly, we missed the boat here in the States in fully appreciating the ska-lite pop of Madness. Redeem us, Lily, and while you’re at it, grant us older folks forgiveness for thinking Blondie jumped the shark with “The Tide Is High.”
LILY ALLEN “Littlest Things”