This must be the best 80′s album of the 21st Century – what, I hear you say am I on about?
Well, its almost like I’ve just entered a Time Machine, pressed 1983 into the remote and bingo I’m back watching Joan on Top of the Pops singing ‘Drop the Pilot’ (didn’t everyone look really happy back then?), we’re all wearing seat belts in the UK as it becomes law, we’re all watching the final episode of M*A*S*H breaking the record for the most watched episode, Michael Jackson’s Thriller album hits #1 on the US charts, and Phil Lynott performs his final show with Thin Lizzy in Nuremberg, Germany.
I almost feel like I’m there – why? Because Joan’s new album is full of the 80′s – big catchy choruses, simple song structures, delightfully naive themes, bouncy bass lines and wonderful cheesy lyrics. But its a cheese that has matured and now tastes superb ready now to eat and enjoy.
Basically as with all my Albums of the Months, its a complete album, full of good songs, well produced with Joan playing all the instruments except drums and its an album that I think will pass the acid test – I’ll still want to listen to it in 6 months, 2 years time.
Did you know that apart from making wonderful music Joan has performed for Nelson Mandela, received an MBE from the Queen and an Ivor Novello Award, recently completed a BA (Honours) in History and presented a series of excellent documentaries on Radio 4 to her many accomplishments.
She also has a good taste in guitarists with her top 5 being Mark Knopfler, John Williams, the classical axeman best known for the tremulous “Cavatina” on the soundtrack to The Deer Hunter, Bonnie Raitt, the flame-haired country singer of “Love Has no Pride”, Bert Jansch, the rumpled veteran folkie of Pentangle, the late-1960s band and Russell Lissack, the twentysomething, floppy-fringed Essex vegetarian from Bloc Party.
To conclude my review, her new album is a gift – a gift from an unique performer full of spirit and stylish confidence full of Joan. I wasn’t 100% sure I should have it as my Album of The Month as it fails to fit into what most of my readers like, but then I thought “Hey this site is all about great music….and this is great music – hope you enjoy.
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Must be honest, I don’t get too much of the 80′s on this. Well, not my version of the 80′s at any rate. It’s still catchy, though. Enough to make me wanna hear more ? Dunno. But then, I never was that much into Ms Armatrading to start off with. Good road trip stuff maybe.
Note to Laughing Dog – to put simply I found the samples from this album quite dreary and vividly remind me why I lived in Europe for most of the 80’s, namely to escape mind-numbing and tiresome music like this.
To put simply – mmm?
Hey Mr Ken I quite like the samples from this album and I was like 8 when she was famous – gotta give it a go
I think I am going to have to agree with UncleRD and Ken, nothing much on offer for me here.
I did find Ken’s comment a bit unusual. Now, I am no expert at this, I was hardly over to Europe through the ’80′s – but why would you leave the UK to escape the tedious music and then go to Europe, the land of bland Europop?
Maybe I missed something, and if so then I sure need a bit of enlightenment, but wasn’t Europe just overflowing with dire teenypop at the time?
Given the choice between Armatrading or Euro teenyboppers, I know what decision I would have come to. Luckily, at that time, I was well into heavy and prog rock so the UK was the place to be.