“Look Sharp”, “I’m The Man” and “Beat Crazy” are the essential Joe Jackson New Wave albums. In “Beat Crazy”, we see Jackson starting to move on to new musical pastures. While his New Wave phase is my favourite, I continue to enjoy his writing and music on his later albums such as “Night and Day”.
“I’m The Man” is my favourite Joe Jackson album. The whole album rocks in the New Wave vein, with elements of reggae/ska that add a little spice. Joe Jackson touches on many issues in his own witty, musical way.
“On Your Radio” taps into the angst of growing up & finding your way. Love with its many attributes, including poignancy, awkwardness, infidelity & slyness, is addressed in “Geraldine and John”, “It’s Different for Girls”, “Get That Girl”, “Kinda Kute” & “Amateur Hour”.
The song “I’m the Man” rolls up our materialism perfectly, and presages today’s addiction to celebrity culture and all the attendant consequences.
The disillusionment with, and surrender to, the workaday world runs through “The Band Wore Blue Shirts” and “Friday”. The need to reject all this madness & fakery is in “Don’t Wanna Be Like That”.
Supporting all this is a very tight band, and a well produced album. Everything is crystal clear and you can focus on whichever element you want.