Customer Reviews

Just Can't Stop It

5 star:		(45)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I, literally, wore this album out in '81 during my freshman year at art school (records were made out of vinyl then). It was a favorite then and has stood the test of time--toe-tapping from the first track to the last, great lyrics and music. The original is an excellent record--a true classic. So I was very excited to see this reissue (now I could give my second time worn vinyl record a rest).

So why only 4 stars you may be asking yourself. Tears of a Clown, which is one of the the most amazing covers ever recorded, has been omitted from this reissue. SACRILEGE! Those responsible should hang their heads in shame.

They can be found on the compilation CD This Are Two Tone which is still in print (and available at Amazon).

I read all the reviews of this cd with regards to the two singles (Ranking Full Stop, Tears of a Clown) being omitted.
I was thinking to myself, 'Well my cd has both tunes.' This is why you should always purchase a great band's music as soon as you can. Record companies love to decide what is good and what isn't, what should be included, what shouldn't, etc. All to sell the almighty greatest hits collection, which in my opinion greatest hits never have the best songs of a particular group anyway.

This is one reason downloading became so popular in the first place.

This is one of my favorite albums of all time. Why the 4-star rating instead of a 5-star rating? The re-issue drops two songs from the original pressing: Tears of a Clown & Ranking Full Stop.....What happened??

The best album of the 1980's, and still relevant today. Every single track on here is a winner. Most people know tracks like "Mirror In The Bathroom", "Hands Off...She's Mine" and "I Can't Get Used To Losing You", but other tracks on here such as "Two Swords", "Click Click", "Twist and Crawl" and "Noise In This World" are lesser known, but dynamite tracks. People born too late to have experienced "The Beat" now have a second chance with the three main albums all being released on CD.

This, along with The Specials (The Specials) is one of the two of the defining masterpieces of the 2nd Wave of ska. However, unlike the Specials, they give credit where credit is due -- crediting Prince Buster with "Rough Rider," whereas the Specials did *not* credit Toots & the Maytals with "Monkey Man," basically ripped off "Al Capone" by Prince Buster, threw some nonsense lyrics together, and voila "Gangsters". They kept the "Don't Call me Scarface," and in lieu of "Al Capone's Guns don't argue" at the beginning, "Bernie Rhodes (their manager) knows don't argue"...
Ok, enough of that. Both are masterpieces in their own right, but "I Just Can't Stop It" takes the cake, IMHO. And I've been listening to ska for quite a few decades now...and just came from seeing the Beat (as they're known in England; unfortunately an American band named the Beat had them precursor their name with thier country of origin...) for the 2nd time in 6 months. They played over 2.5 hours straight through, and are at the top of the list of energetic bands I've ever seen. And live, they are much different than they are on record -- both are brilliant, in their own special way. My favorite song off the CD, "Twist & Crawl," which is more new wave/mod meets ska, became an insane dub-fueled monster live.
If you are a fan of music, especially one of the 3rd wave of ska (e.g. Sublime, No Doubt, to name the most famous...and who blended punk rock with ska) and want to know some of the origins of the music, even though Sublime covers Toot's "54-46 Was My Number" and never covers any of the 2nd generation (even looking through my prodigious Sublime bootleg collection), this album is for you. And for those wondering what ska is, this is for you...it is a masterpiece. It's better than any ska anthology you'll find IMHO.

First released in 1980, The English Beat's (known in the UK simply as The Beat they added the name English to their moniker to avoid confusion with a California based also band called The Beat) "I Just Can't Stop" it is not only possibly the single greatest album of the later 70's/early 80's ska revival, it is one of the greatest album of the late 70's/early 80's punk/new wave scene.

Already full of nonstop, infectious boppin' tunes the band's US label added two songs to the original album -- "Rankin' Full Stop," and a cover of Smokey Robinson and the Miracles' "Tears of a Clown" that had been stand alone singles in the UK. By omitting those songs from this CD reissue the album has been restored to its original running order and, as a previous reviewer noted, becomes the album the way the band intended for it to be heard.

But all of that is really pretty moot because this is still a great, great record with songs like "Best Friend," "Mirror in the Bathroom, "Hands Off She's Mine," and "Wine and Grind/Stand Down Margaret" (ah, the days of the anti-Thatcher/Reagan anthems) that compel you to hit the repeat button on your CD remote over and over.

Ignore the reviewers who don't know the history of this album and get this -- the complete and original version of one of the all time great albums.

I saw the Beat at what I heard was their last headlining concert, at the Greek Theater in Berkeley, and what a treat! They were promoting Special Beat Service, and while it seemed that more than half the crowd had never really heard the band before -- they just came for the happening -- EVERYBODY was dancing. And NOONE could get enough. "Who's that guy doing the cool rap-type thing!" "Who's the old guy with the saxaphone!" "Where can I get an album!" Just Can't Stop It is their masterpiece, their most eclectic but unified, their most cool/tough political stance, and their most danceable album. How they get so many feet moving, so many smiles, and such a feeling of unity while at the same time hitting such uncompromising political notes is a magical feat. From "Click, Click" to "Big Shot" to "Stand Down Margaret" (banned in England upon release) a sweet teaspoon of musical sugar helps the medicine go down. These guys are a timeless Class Act. Go Feet!

I've had this album since about 1983, and I still listen to it on a regular basis. I can't think of any other music I can say that about. A true classic.

I can't be as generous as some reviewers who gave this cd the full five stars, even though it lacks "Ranking Full Stop" and "Tears of A Clown". But I can't condemn it entirely either. This is still a great collection of beautifully crafted tunes. I keep coming back to this cd and I never tire of it. I don't think it's for nostalgic reasons: I have other cd's for that. Plainly, these are gorgeous tunes, better than most that came out that year. Atmospheric, alternating between the energetic ("Mirror in the Bathroom", "Twist and Crawl") and the moody (Dave Wakeling doing a beautiful [and underrated] version of Andy Williams' "Can't Get Used to Losing You"), these songs remain as vital as they were twenty-odd years ago. And Saxa... not enough can be said about his ability to fit his horn into any arrangement.

I would argue that English Beat was NOT the best ska band ever, only because they didn't really limit themselves to it. Too much is going on in these melodies. And if you were lucky enough to see them live, their improvisations were extremely complex. This is not to imply that ska is "simple", but it is a singular, distinct sound. English Beat had way too many sounds.