What's perhaps most immediately apparent is that, in contrast to his earlier work and at odds with the hyper-kinetic cover art, this album has a very claustrophobic, doom-laden atmosphere about it. The likes of 'The Evil Eye' and 'In Every Dream Home (a Nightmare)' (Yes, that's 'NIGHTMARE,' not 'Heartache.' The Roxy Music cover would no doubt be interesting, but that's not what this is) are very creepy indeed, and 'Mad at You' is really one of the most nasty songs you'll ever hear. 'Someone Up There' is a very desperate lost love song, and probably the album's instant classic. The ominous dub number 'Battleground' is a searing little treatise on race relations. Even a lighter song like 'Biology' is lent something of an edge by the album's production values. I would say that the one real weak link is 'Pretty Boys'--I suppose in its defense one could note that its critique of prefabricated teen idols is as relevant now as it ever was, but let's face it: it was never exactly a weighty issue, and the music isn't very exciting.

I can't really say anything else negative about this CD, however: Beat Crazy is probably Jackson's second or third best album, a must for fans and casual listeners alike, and it's completely idiotic that it's so decidedly out-of-print. A lot of Jackson's mid-period albums are similarly unavailable, but they're generally pretty readily available. This one is in very high demand and very low supply. About the best you can hope for, until someone finally gets around to re-releasing it, it to go on ebay and try not to get gouged *too* viciously. But if you are, you can take comfort in the knowledge that it's probably worth it.


Why Is This Out Of Print?   March 27, 2004
4 out of 4 found this review helpful

For some reason (licensing problems probably) Joe Jackson's best titles are not being made anymore. Beat Crazy is another great recording. Every track is excellent. Joe's politics are deeply entwined in his songwriting. But he's really just saying let people be people and try to love one another. Not a bad message.

Get it if you can find it.

[DW]


Great CD, but is it misrepresented on Amazon?   November 2, 2005
E. P. Eckart (SLC, UT, USA)
3 out of 3 found this review helpful

I am glad that this CD is available (a great one of JJ's, long out of print), but nowhere on the copy I received does it state that it is the remastered 2005 reissue. The only date I see anywhere is 1980. Does anyone have a comment about this?



It's A Crime   February 20, 2004
Daryl A. WESTFALL (White House, TN USA)
3 out of 3 found this review helpful

It's an absolute crime that this CD is out of print. This album represented my introduction to the world of Joe Jackson, and is still one of the best of his early releases. Many of the songs ("Beat Crazy", "The Evil Eye", "Mad At You") delve into Joe's dark (and sometimes manic) psyche, with a few detours into romance ("One To One"), race issues ("Battleground"), and prejudice ("Fit"). "Fit" is the rock-n-roll brother to the softer "Real Men" (from "Night And Day") and deftly straddles the fine line between message and preachiness.

There are so many good things that can be said about every single song on this album. The only complaints that I can make, and these are minor complaints, are "One To One" with it's somewhat clumsy socio-political laundry list, and "Crime Don't Pay" with it's abrupt shift halfway through the song into rambling instrumental.

BEST TRACKS: "Mad At You" with it's unhinged Hitchcockian tension (check out the video if you can); "Biology" with it's matter-of-fact recitation of the mechanics of lovemaking; and the title track's mockery of the generation gap.

But don't overanalyze - get this album. Whatever you have to do to get it, GET IT.