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.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | One More TimeJoe Jackson | Joe Jackson | Play | 03:17 | 7 MB | 21 MB |
| 2 | Sunday PapersJoe Jackson | Joe Jackson | Play | 04:22 | 10 MB | 27 MB |
| 3 | Happy Loving CouplesJoe Jackson | Joe Jackson | Play | 03:08 | 7 MB | 18 MB |
| 4 | Throw It AwayJoe Jackson | Joe Jackson | Play | 02:53 | 6 MB | 18 MB |
| 5 | Baby Stick AroundJoe Jackson | Joe Jackson | Play | 02:37 | 6 MB | 16 MB |
| 6 | Look Sharp!Joe Jackson | Joe Jackson | Play | 03:22 | 7 MB | 20 MB |
| 7 | Fools in LoveJoe Jackson | Joe Jackson | Play | 07:54 | 18 MB | 52 MB |
| 8 | (Do The) Instant MashJoe Jackson | Joe Jackson | Play | 03:11 | 7 MB | 18 MB |
| 9 | Pretty GirlsJoe Jackson | Joe Jackson | Play | 02:54 | 6 MB | 16 MB |
| 10 | Got the TimeJoe Jackson | Joe Jackson | Play | 02:51 | 6 MB | 17 MB |
| 11 | Is She Really Going Out With Him | Joe Jackson | Play | 03:35 | 8 MB | 19 MB |
| 40 mins | 91 MB | |||||
| 40 mins | 248 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aldo Bocca | Assistant Engineer |
| 2 | Brian Griffin | Photography |
| 3 | Brian Griffin | Photography |
| 4 | Hot Rod Hewison | Engineer |
| 5 | Dave Houghton | Drums |
| 6 | Joe Jackson | Arranger, Composer, Harmonica, Keyboards, Piano, Primary Artist, Vocals |
| 7 | David Kershenbaum | Producer |
| 8 | Graham Maby | Bass, Vocals |
| 9 | Michael Ross | Art Direction |
| 10 | Gary Sanford | Guitar |
![King Pleasure Time [The Remixes] - Joe Jackson](https://photos.eruce.com/thumbs/0b5/5d4/1dc/c4e/c4e/217/8852376b1cb1c1386748a749a8923296_250x250.jpg)
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |
| CD Quality | FLAC | 16bit 44.1kHz | FLAC is an audio coding format which uses lossless compression. Digital audio in FLAC format has a smaller size and retains the same quality of the original Compact Disc (CD). |