Beat Crazy is the third album by Joe Jackson, released in October 1980, and credited to the Joe Jackson Band It was a relative disappointment commercially, peaking outside the Top 40 in both the UK and the United States, with its singles failing to chart.
Beat Crazy was intended to be a stylistic departure from Jackson's first two albums, but, as Jackson recalled, the band lacked a clear direction during the recording. Jackson later stated that he felt the album "didn't really work". He explained,
The stereotypical difficult third album, in which we tried to change the formula a bit without quite knowing how. It's darker than the first two, and the reggae influence is more pronounced. There's some good stuff on it (I especially like the title track and 'Biology') but it’s not quite the triumphant swan song of this band.
A direct reggae influence is heard on such dub-style cuts like "In Every Dream Home," while more of a pastiche approach is evident on tracks like "Mad at You." Jackson even riffs off of Linton Kwesi Johnson's dub poetry sides with the dancefloor politics of "Battleground," while also laying down some straight ska on "Pretty Boys."
One also gets intimations of the sophisticated jazz-pop songwriting of Night and Day with torching gems like "One to One." As is the case on most of his albums, Jackson covers a wide array of topics here, including modern relationships, feminism, club life, and the social fringe. A solid effort.
Side A
A1. Beat Crazy - 4:15
A2. One to One - 3:22
A3. In Every Dream Home (A Nightmare) - 4:30
A4. The Evil Eye - 3:46
A5. Mad at You - 6:02
Side B
B1. Crime Don’t Pay - 4:25
B2. Someone Up There - 3:47
B3. Battleground - 2:33
B4. Biology - 4:31
B5. Pretty Boys - 3:41
B6. Fit - 4:43
Notes
Release: 1980
Format: LP
Genre: New wave, punk rock, ska
Label: A&M Records
Catalog# AMLH 64837
Vinyl: VG+
Cover: VG+
Prijs: €10,00
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