Customer Reviews

Look Sharp

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It's easy for many -- especially music industry writers -- to dismiss Joe Jackson as a pop musician who possessed nothing more than delusions of grandeur, due to his forays into jazz and classical shortly after his first two smash albums. A pompous musician, or a true artist? Regardless of what side you're on, there's one thing you can't deny: Joe Jackson was/is one crafty, talented S.O.B., and I feel he's a force to be reckoned with.

_Look Sharp!_ is a smash album with ridiculously catchy tunes, infectious melodies, cynical and ambivalent lyrics, and snappy rhythms that'll be impossible *not* to bop your head to. There is literally not one boring, unlistenable tune to be found here: every track is jam-packed with energy, taste and charisma. While the lyrics are quite sarcastic (and hilarious in spots), the music is impossibly upbeat, and refrains from depressing wallowing: leave it to wisecracking Joe to turn something so self-deprecating and sarcastic into something peppy and upbeat -- it almost makes you wonder if Joe is celebrating his own dissatisfactions with love and life. Either way, infectiousness and intelligence are so rare to come by in one package. But Joe Jackson delivers big-time in this department. "One More Time" is a perfect example of how Joe makes something miserable sound so peppy and fun: listen to those ironic, almost masochistic lyrics. Yet the music is so driving, tasty and energetic. Of course, many already know "Is She Really Going Out With Him?" featuring those semi-hilarious, yet reflective lyrics, and the muted riff on the verses. "Throw It Away" is a fast-paced, energetic rocker, with Joe howling in certain parts of the track. The title track many may have heard as well: a snappy, tasty number exhibiting excellent musicianship. Listen to the sophisticated arrangement in the vocal harmonies during the closing parts of the chorus. "Fools In Love" is a reggae-rock number that pretty much speaks for itself, title-wise: the lyrics and Joe's vocal delivery crack me up hysterically. Hilarious stuff. And later, to close out the album, "Got The Time" is a fast-paced, energetic rocker in the style of "Throw It Away."

Want something ludicrously catchy and snappy? Want something subtly sarcastic and sneering, but at the same time, utterly reflective, moving and funny? Want some upbeat music good for cruising with your girlfriend, or otherwise? Pick this album up, along with _I'm The Man_. Both are essential Joe Jackson albums.

Joe Jackson's "Look Sharp!" is one of the few albums in any genre of music that contains no weak tracks whatsoever. The consistency of excellence on this album never ceases to amaze me whenever I listen to it, and it's extremely unfortunate that there are more good songs on this album than on all the rest of the admittedly extremely talented Jackson's albums combined. And for my money, "Is She Really Going Out With Him?" was the top pop single of 1979, and "Look Sharp!", the song, wasn't far behind.

If you don't think that a pop album can be a start-to-finish masterpiece, listen to "Look Sharp!" and be very quickly disabused of that notion. I just wish that Jackson could have sustained this torrid pace through some of his other albums, but that would be a little much to ask of anybody.

Obviously the greatest album that Joe Jackson will ever make, and one of the 100 greatest albums in the history of pop and rock. Get it

How often have you bought a CD only to find out that only 2 or 3 tracks were worth listening to? This is not one of those CDs. Joe Jackson has put out some enjoyable and even intriguing work since, but this, his 1979 debut, is still the best thing he's ever done. Every single song is a gem.

If you play this CD loud and really listen to it, by the time you're done, you feel like you've experienced something. Then you have no idea what to play next that could match the energy of this CD. The funny thing is that the young people I work with have never heard of Joe, yet if this was released new today, it would be a HUGE seller - the music here is timeless. Now if they only picked the best songs (instead of the weakest) to play on the radio, maybe Joe could find favor with the masses.

Joe Jackson's debut album "Look Sharp!" was recorded in 1978 & originally released in January of 1979, & what a superb debut it is. Yes, the similarity between Jackson and Elvis Costello (the latter of whom already had two albums out prior to 1979) are inevitable, but Joe simply had Elvis beat in terms of both vocal power and sheer songwriting ability.

Clearly this album was a cathartic experience for Joe--track upon track shows him letting off a ton of steam, & when you match this with the consistently deathless hooks, & punchy performances from the original Joe Jackson Band, the result is an album that is simply electrifying. This is one of those albums where the big hit is merely the tip of the iceberg--"Is She Really Going Out With Him?" is certainly a good tune, but it's kind of thin and annoyingly in-your-face--it makes perfect sense that Joe has come up with various different reworkings of this song over the years for live performance, seemingly as a compromise--this way the fans can't accuse him of totally avoiding this signature tune, yet it also gives Joe the satisfaction of knowing he's not merely pandering to his audience. "Is She Really Going Out With Him?" gets totally blown away by most of the rest of the songs on this album. In general, he sticks with hyperactive "New Wave"-ish rock & roll throughout the album, and it really feels like one of those albums that gets knocked out very quickly, which it was. That's not to say though that there's no variety--he gets in a strong dose of reggae on the sarcastic media slam "Sunday Papers" and on the mellow "Fools In Love", and there's also a funkiness to the ultra-catchy "(Do The) Instant Mash" which has incredibly witty & highly amusing lyrics, as well as an infectious, bluesy guitar lick. "Pretty Girls" is a blast--it starts off humorously similar to Manfred Mann's "Do Wah Diddy", & the song is about guys being utterly powerless when it comes to living in a world full of beautiful girls, & expresses a desperate desire for it to be otherwise with some truly mind-blowing lyrics. Each 'side' (in vinyl terms) ends with a thrilling fast-paced gem--"Throw It Away" is a cathartic rant, & the uncanny "Got the Time" is about the frantic rush people find themselves in to get things done. The uptempo, pleading album opener "One More Time", the bouncy feel-good pop of "Baby Stick Around", & the strutting title track are all gems as well. As much credit as Joe deserves, you've really got to hand it to Graham Maby (bass guitar), Gary Sanford (guitar), and Dave Houghton (drums)--their performances on this album are incredible. Few artists in music history have been as tirelessly determined to show their versatility & to make 'Big Statements' as Joe Jackson has--the result has been a career with considerable ups and downs, however, this debut album left no doubt about Joe's songwriting genius. To put it a certain way, this is where it all began for Joe--"Look Sharp!" is, without question, a must-have album. This standard CD version is perfectly fine, & it's certainly not a bad deal if you see it dirt cheap, however in 2001, this album was re-released with 2 bonus tracks, & that version is unquestionably preferrable to this older one and is worth paying a bit more for.

"Look Sharp" is amazing. It's been a part of my life, both in the vinyl and CD formats, for about 15 years. Joe Jackson has done some great (and not-so-great) work, experimenting in different genres for over 20 years, but this is where it all started. Easily one of my all-time favorite discs, and one of the strongest debut albums I've ever heard. This is raw, angry JJ, unlucky in life and love. The songwriting is excellent, and the band is at the top of their form. Great for parties! If you like JJ, also check out "I'm the Man," "Night & Day" and the excellent "Jumpin' Jive" (among others).

I remember when this came out in 1979. Van Halen was still "new", yet here was this sound - this amazing, fabulous sound - from a scrawny Brit. Well, my Rock allegiance turned that day. Joe and others of that ilk (Squeeze, XTC, The Police (early stuff), Costello, etc.), paved the way for the "new wave" of music. And the explosion that followed has not been duplicated since.

To this day I cannot listen to this album without shaking my head in amazement at the incredibly tight drumming, the melodic Rickenbacker bass lines, the sharp staccato of those guitar chords, and of course Joe's slightly flat but always on target vocals.

This album is a MUST have for any musician. And make no mistake, these guys are Musicians (with a capital M).

Enjoy.

i think 'steppin out' is one of the best songs of all time, i have probably left it on repeat in excess of 100 times. i used to spin records at parties and i loved to close my set with that song. i was only really familliar with that album ('night and day') until.....a taco bell commercial came along.

i saw it many times, it featured (what i later learned to be) about 15 seconds of 'one more time'. i marveled at it every time it came on....who is this band? who is that singer? "they are going to be huge!", i thought. what a unique, driving sound. bordering punk but classy enough to be huge pop radio.

i started googling the bits and pieces of lyrics i could detect and then i found my answer. with eyes wide and mouth agape i could not believe it was my beloved joe jackson. needless to say i got the whole album immediately. when i saw it was his debut i was further blown back.

i had a multi hour train ride to meet a stranger in a far away city. i was armed only with my old (original) ipod shuffle loaded only with this album. as has been said 100s of times on this page and elsewhere, this album is so damn good top to bottom. the pieces fit together like a puzzle. it subscribes to an old culture when albums were albums, not just collections of random songs. you cant listen to only a couple songs, nor will you want to. the pseudo reggae of 'fools in love' is probably my favorite. like 'one more time', and basically the rest of the album (and everything else he has ever worked on) graham maby really shines in the role as bassist. i could go on and on -- just get this fast and turn it the hell up.

It's been said that Joe Jackson and Elvis Costello were characteristic of the "angry young man" singers and musicians of the 70's and 80's. While I've never been a fan of Costello I can tell you that Joe is angry on just about all of his albums and no more so than on this one, his debut. Look Sharp! is one short, to-the-point song after another and it works like a charm. From the great opening track "One More Time" to the fever-pitched final cut "Got the Time", Joe pretty well vents about everything. Other great tunes include "Fools in Love" which has Joe doing one of his best piano melodies ever, "(Do the) Instant Mash", "Throw it Away", and the title song. If you're new to JJ, start here and work your way up.

A brilliant, accomplished debut, Look Sharp! established Joe Jackson as part of that camp of angry, intelligent young new wavers (i.e., Elvis Costello, Graham Parker) who approached pop music with the sardonic attitude and tense, aggressive energy of punk. Not as indebted to pub-rock as Parker and Costello, and much more lyrically straightforward than the latter, Jackson delivers a set of bristling, insanely catchy pop songs that seethe with energy and frustration. Several deal with the lack of thoughtful reflection in everyday life ("Sunday Papers," "Got the Time"), but many more concern the injuries and follies of romance. In the caustic yet charming witticisms of songs like the hit "Is She Really Going Out With Him?," "Happy Loving Couples," "Fools In Love," and "Pretty Girls," Jackson presents himself on the one hand as a man of integrity seeking genuine depth in love (and elsewhere), but leavens his stance with a wry, self-effacing humor, revealing his own vulnerability to loneliness and to purely physical attraction. Look Sharp! is the sound of a young man searching for substance in a superficial world - and it also happens to rock like hell.