Joe Jackson "Rain"

Let’s get it out of the way: I’m a Joe Jackson fanatic. I own pretty much all of his records, even the “difficult” ones. I often get annoyed that the average music fan only knows him for “Is She Really Going Out With Him?” and “Steppin’ Out” when genius works like “Awkward Age”, “Man In The Street” and “One To One” sit without being heralded as some of the best compositions of the last fifty years. I also get a tad annoyed at Ben Folds fans not readily admitting that the guy has been ripping of Joe’s catalog and sound - possibly unwittingly - for the duration of his career.

With all of that being said upfront, I’m not under any delusions that Mr. Jackson changed the face of music or anything. It’s more like music changed the face of Joe Jackson, and thanks to him, the more astute fan who looks beyond a simple greatest hits album has access to some really wonderful albums that literally touch on every style of music you can think of. Want some angry young man doing proto-punk? Pick up a copy of I’m The Man and wonder what the hell all the fuss over My Aim Is True was all about. Need a swing fix? Give 1981’s Jumpin’ Jive a shot and see where the big band resurgence of the ’90s really took root. If you want some classical compostions, you can always look toward Will Power and Symphony No. 1. And it goes on, whether you want to hear some dub, bossa nova, salsa, or good old fashioned rock and roll.

Joe has been road-testing the songs from Rain for the better part of three years, and I’ve seen early reports of this album calling it a “return to form.” It isn’t, and that’s because the guy never lost the plot. He just wasn’t always willing to smile for the camera. Dude likes to write whatever he’s in the mood to play, expectations be damned. But really, if you wanna get technical, 2003’s Volume 4 not only reunited the original lineup of the Joe Jackson Band, but was also his most consistently brilliant set of tunes since Big World back in 1986. Does Rain continue that trend of harkening back to the Joe Jackson sound of yesteryear while retaining the forward thinking integrity that’s earned him such a rabid cult following? Sure, why not?

Seriously. There are really no bad Joe Jackson records. There are only Joe Jackson albums that the listener doesn’t understand yet. And this one is just peachy on the first, fifth and seventeenth listens. Rain sees Joe focusing on his piano, while his original bassist and drummer - Graham Maby and “Desperate” Dave Houghton, respectively - don’t overplay one bit, instead serving the songs’ needs in a respectful manner.

On Rain, you’ll find uptempo winners like “Invisible Man” and “Too Tough” right off the bat, but it’s the more melancholy stuff that resonates best. “Wasted Time” is a great example, with its superb utilization of Joe’s underused falsetto and a stop-start chorus that keeps you guessing. You’ll also dig the extended jazzy workouts that bookend yet another falsetto marathon called “The Uptown Train”. The hardcore fans will recognize “Citizen Sane” from recent bootlegs, and they’ll be happy to know that the
song really benefits from the rhythm section here, whereas Joe tried to express the snarky anti-drug du jour sentiments with a solo piano reading as recently as 2005 . . . and it simply wasn’t as effective. The total highlight of the record for this listener is the high energy thumper “King Pleasure Time”. I don’t have a good reason for this, either. As soon as that song kicks in, I’m chair-dancing like crazy.

Joe Jackson has made another great record. It’s called Rain. It’s highly enjoyable, and you won’t even notice that there’s not a single electric guitar over the albums forty-seven minute running time. It’s just a really, really good, solid collection of songs. Now it’s just a matter of getting it in the ears of those that aren’t aware of Joe’s compostional power. . .

- Marc