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40 years ago today, this was released. I had pre-ordered mine and - after weeks of speculation at school - I collected it from Downtown Records in #Romford. I was in my 4th year at Forest Lodge school, in nearby Collier Row (where I lived at that time). #TheJam #SoundAffects40
I’d been a Mod since the revival first took off a few months earlier. As a 13-14 year old in 1980, my political (and other) awakenings had really begun. #TheJam were a massive part of that. I’d first listened to ‘All Mod Cons’ in the summer of ‘79 (a year after its release)...
... and had been instantly hooked as a Jam fan. In early 1980, I had pre-ordered ‘Going Underground’ (and the accompanying ‘live’ EP). During the summer of that year I’d ‘caught up’ by buying ‘In the City’, ‘This is the Modern World’ and the superb ‘Setting Sons’....
In the summer, I pre-ordered ‘Start!’ - their 2nd No.1 of the year. But, above all else, I anticipated the release of their new album: ‘Sound Affects’.
I wasn’t disappointed. It’s a superb album, fully encapsulating the context of its time.
I wasn’t disappointed. It’s a superb album, fully encapsulating the context of its time.
Britain was in its 2nd year of Margaret Thatcher’s premiership. Unemployment and social tensions were rising (the latter would explode into violence in 1981). Youth sub-culture was prominent (not that you could guess any of that from this photo).
And so, ‘Sound Affects’ was released. And here’s my very amateur (but semi-contemporary) review of it.
Pretty Green - Perfect opener. Catchy bass opening, but memorable, mostly (for me), for it’s middle eight...
Pretty Green - Perfect opener. Catchy bass opening, but memorable, mostly (for me), for it’s middle eight...
“And they didn’t teach me that in school,
It’s something that I’ve learnt on my own,
That power is measured by the pound or the fist,
It’s as clear as this’. #TheJam
It’s something that I’ve learnt on my own,
That power is measured by the pound or the fist,
It’s as clear as this’. #TheJam
Next, comes ‘Monday’. A progression on ‘I Need You (For Someone)’ and ‘English Rose’ and with an initial vocal (especially ‘live’) not unlike Bowie. #TheJam #SoundAffects40
‘But I’m Different now’ is a rip-roaring, pure pop song, about the promises we (men and women) have probably all made at some time or other. #TheJam #SoundAffects40
‘Set the House Ablaze’ - A classic #TheJam track, denouncing the Far Right: ‘The leather belt looks manly, the black boots butch, but oh what a bastard to get off’. Terrific hook, too.
Next, comes ‘Start!’ - already a No.1 - followed by ‘That’s Entertainment, possibly the album’s most famous track and reputedly written by a drunk Paul Weller in 10 mins. #TheJam #SoundAffects
Decrying the enforced substitutes for genuine entertainment, no song does more to encapsulate the bleakness of the time. Certainly, as a working class kid growing up in the east of London, it resonates greatly.
‘Dream Time’ opens side 2 (apparently originally called ‘Supermarket’), followed by my personal favourite track ‘Man in the Corner Shop’. To think Weller was only 22 when he wrote this, astounds me still. Quasi-religious (and inaccurate) elements aside, it’s a fabulous track.
‘Music for the Last Couple’ at least gave me a chance to try out my new stereo speakers. Otherwise, the weakest track by far. #TheJam #SoundAffects40
‘Boy About Town’ - possibly the earliest indication of the direction Weller was headed on and which would ultimately lead to The Style Council. Nevertheless, a great track: ‘I glide up street, I glide down street’. #TheJam #SoundAffects40
‘Scrape Away’ concludes this fabulous album. Dripping with political cynicism and the most delicious of bass lines. Weller’s lead guitar rift, seeing out the track to ‘la puissance c’est tous, c’est la puissance dont tu as besoin’, is also a highlight of the entire album.
In summary, it was an album that was a huge part of my formative years, born out of a particularly tempestuous social environment. I loved it then, and I love it now. #TheJam #SoundAffects40
