Following the release of Mainstream, and limited touring and promotion in support of it, Cole left the Commotions. The chance to write and record new types of songs was the motivating factor. The band announced their break up in 1989, with Polydor Records in the UK and Capitol Records in the USA signing the frontman to a solo contract. There really were high hopes that he would become a major star under his own steam. The debut material was written and recorded in New York.
The singer revealed, in late 1989, that the sound would be a radical departure from that of the Commotions, although he did let on that keyboardist Blair Cowan was someone he was still working alongside but that much of the newer rock-type guitar sound would be the work of Robert Quine, regarded by many as one of the unsung heroes of American guitar music in the 70s and 80s. The other main musicians were Fred Maher and a highly thought of but relatively unknown back then bass player named Matthew Sweet.
The first Lloyd Cole single came in January 1990 "No Blue Skies", there was no mistaking who the vocalist was, but the slower almost AOR pace of the song was a bit of a shock to those of us who danced round the indie discos to the previous singles. The album came out a month later. The sleeve, featuring a heavily bearded and long-haired frontman, was an instant giveaway that this was not going to be an indie-pop album. Its thirteen songs stretched out to over 53 minutes and while there were none that stood out as obvious chart singles, there were some that became instant favourites among fans and remain part of the live repertoire, back then he said: The Commotions had been a certain kind of pop band; a thoughtful pop band. I wanted to do everything the Commotions had not done; I wanted to make stupid rock 'n' roll or beautiful.
Cole lived in a studio apartment in lower Manhattan where, over the
course of six months, he wrote the songs for his first solo release.
Turning his living space into a recording studio to demo ideas and
sounds, he had to move his bed into the kitchen to make space for all
the equipment. The songwriter found the New York environment and
atmosphere inspiring, "I wrote more songs in those months than I had
done in the previous couple of years."
All of the album was recorded and mixed at Right Track Studios in Manhattan with the exception of "No Blue Skies" which was recorded at Skyline Studios in NYC and mixed at Maison Rouge in London. This period in Cole's life would later be the subject of the self-referential song "I Tried to Rock". A self-deprecating song in which the singer makes
light of the dramatic change in music, and his own lifestyle, after his
move to New York.
Cole made a conscious decision to change and evolve his lyrical style from that which he used in the Commotions. A new approach saw him less afraid to attempt more obvious themes and simpler narratives, "You get to the point, in writing, where the obvious is the best thing to do. I shied away from that for a long time. I think you have to be a better writer to use the obvious, and still make it sound fresh." The album opened with the track "Don't Look Back", which was about how people become more attracted to faith the older they become and the closer to death they get. The song's protagonist is based on character traits Cole feared he could attain. "No Blue Skies" was the first song released, it was a simple song; boy leaves girl or girl leaves boy, bitterness. That's what I like about it, it's so simple," said Cole. The song was the last to be written and recorded for the album after Cole was told the album needed a lead single. After writing most of what would become "No Blue Skies", he was so pleased with it that he arranged for the song to be recorded immediately. Still in the process of writing the lyrics and structuring the song, in the studio he performed a rough vocal track to guide the other musicians. This would be the only vocal track recorded, after he was reluctantly convinced by the other musicians that it could not be bettered. "A Long Way Down" based on the themes of excess and materialism but also serves as a song about a comedown. It was written for an unreleased film about a Glaswegian artist who becomes entangled in the New York high life, losing his values and sense of perspective in the process. The song "Undressed" has a double meaning, Cole explained: "Half the song is about nakedness, and the other half about emotional nakedness and, vulnerability. That's why it opens with the line, 'You look so good when you're depressed', because women do. It's really unfair!.
Before
the album was released, Cole began publicising the album in Paris,
staying on in the city after enjoying a honeymoon. Large cardboard cut
outs of the singer were displayed in record shops across Europe during
the early days of the record release. Three singles were released for the album; "No Blue Skies" debuted just
under a month before the release of the album to heighten anticipation,
with a music video also produced. "Don't Look Back" followed, again with
an accompanying music video. The final single was "Downtown", which would become a moderate radio success reaching number five on the US Modern Rock charts, making it Cole's most successful song in the US. The song was also included in the soundtrack for the film Bad Influence which starred Rob Lowe. The music video for the song featured excerpts from the film.
