Joe Jackson Hope And Fury 2026

Jackson is often called a stylistic chameleon, and indeed he has dabbled in jazz, jazz-pop, classical, jump blues, English music hall, and movie soundtracks. But the vast majority of his work has been his bread and butter, pop-rock. He rode in on the new wave with his 1979 debut Look Sharp!, and he has produced some 28 studio and live albums in the last four and a half decades. His Steely Dan-esque jazz-pop Night And Day from 1982 was his biggest hit. He has toured regularly behind almost every release, always puts on a good live show, and is generally well-received in the press. Why he hasn't sold more records is beyond me, but every one of his stylistic diversions most likely turned off a portion of his audience.

This one is not a diversion, it is straight up pop-rock with smart lyrics, solid tunes, a crack ace band, and Jackson's solid vocals. I'm Not Sorry, Made God Laugh, Fabulous People, After All This Time and End Of The Pier are all highlights, but the whole record is a good listen straight through. It compares well to Big World, Blaze Of Glory, Laughter And Lust, and Volume 4. 

If you haven't heard those, where have you been? Maybe you gave up after his late-nineties non-pop outings. Check this new one out, and when you realize you gave up on Jackson too soon, go back to his catalog. There's plenty of smart song craft available there.

Joe Jackson Summer In The City 2017

Here's one for the vinyl lovers in the crowd. Originally released only on CD in 2000, and now receiving the deluxe 180 gram vinyl treatment from Intervention Records, the performance merits the top-quality LP pressing.

Recorded live at Joe's Pub in Manhattan, and featuring Jackson at piano, Graham Maby on bass and Gary Burke on drums, the trio looks back at some nice Jackson catalog choices and well as several tasty covers, including Eleanor Rigby, Ellington's Mood Indigo, Steely Dan's King Of The World, Dobie Gray's The "In" Crowd, and the title track.

The Fools In Love/For Your Love medley is excellent and features some seriously rumbling bass from Maby (For LP lovers looking to see how well their vinyl system presents electric bass, this might be a good test track). Be My Number Two, Home Town, and It's Different For Girls are all solid. The "In" Crowd owes more to Ramsey Lewis' jazz version than the Dobie Gray original, and this and the version of Mood Indigo show off Jackson's skills on both piano and arranging.

Overall the song selection is a real crowd pleaser. The arrangements for trio are consistently interesting, Jackson is in good voice, and the band cooks. The recording itself is exceptional. That this recording followed several of Jackson's extended jazz and classical works in the ninties gave hope to those that admired his more pop leanings.

And now you can enjoy it on your turntable. There's been plenty of good ones from Jackson, and he's produced more than his share of live documents, but this is a special outing that captures a unique band playing some fine updated arrangements of Jackson classics  and covers. You might even like it as much as I do.