By 1980 The Jam had conquered all before them, and seemed to churn out great hit singles for fun. Following two absolute classic albums, did they still have it?
I'd loved the previous two albums, yet don't recall being bowled over with this. I certainly didn't buy it at the time, and I'm not sure why, whether I was disappointed or just skint.
Anyway, for a quid at the charity shop, let's see if it's stood up to the last 40 years.
I can see why it didn't have the impact of All Mod Cons or Setting Sons. It has songs every bit as good as on those albums - the no 1 hit Start, with its distinctive baseline, biting lyrics, still fantastic; That's Entertainment, simple yet powerful, a beautiful stream of consciousness observation of the everyday; But I'm Different Now, a reminder of how effective a simple pop love song can be; the gently jaunty Boy About Town. All great songs, but much else isn't nearly as strong.
Pretty Green and Monday open up the album pleasantly without raising an eyebrow, Set The House Ablaze starts with the feel of Eton Rifles, but seems to go nowhere, and Music For The Last Couple has something engaging about it.
And the overall impression is that too many of the songs are just not strong enough. I read that Paul Weller didn't want to release this album at the time, as he felt there weren't enough strong songs, and I feel he may have been right. However this isn't a bad album, there are moments of greatness, but following two absolute masterpiece albums, the solid is inevitably disappointing.
3* - plenty of great songs to enjoy, but a lot that is quite ordinary
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