The Weekend Needle Drop 2016 52 Weeks 52 Albums
By Middagh Goodwin
Week Two of the New Year and as we continue to mine gems from my record collection we come across an ultra rare version of Joe Jackson debut. Today we will be taking my Double 10″ LP of “Look Sharp” for a spin, released in 1979 on A&M these slaps of wax still sound amazing. The track order is a little different then on the 12″ version but with the additional 8″ of playing area the audio fidelity is really impressive. In the time of Punk in the UK Joe Jackson’s had just enough edginess mixed with ear candy to win over the public. The album reached #40 in the UK and broke the Top 20 in the US.
The album is full of hits and one great song after another from the first song “One More Time” to the title track “Look Sharp.” Lets delve into a couple of my favorite songs off the album.
Track 3 on Side 1 is one of Jackson’s best known songs “Is She Really Going Out With Him” a Love Song about someone else’s girl. The song has been heard in TV and movie soundtracks and was covered by Sugar Ray. The song reached #13 in the UK and #21 in the US.
Track 2 on Side 4 Got the Time has been covered by Thrash Metal band Anthrax and German Rock/Punk band the Donots. It is a frantic song about new obligations and duties. It is song for anyone who leads a hectic lifestyle.
I saw Joe Jackson on the “Heaven and Hell” Tour with Willie Hines at Bimbo’s 365 nearly 20 years ago and he opened his own show with a medley of hits, many from “Look Sharp” and then came back to the stage and performed the “Heaven and Hell” album in it’s entirety. Quite an amazing performer and if we are lucky Joe Jackson will be doing a show at the Gallo Center later this year.
Well that is all for me this week, but I will be back with another choice picks from my collection over the next 50 Saturdays.
