[rating=4.50]
Joe Jackson is one of those few artists that despite getting on in years, he can still make biting music. Rain, recorded with three-fourths of the original Joe Jackson Band [ Jackson (vocals/keyboards), Graham Maby (bass/vocals) and Dave Houghton (drums/vocals)] in his new adopted city of Berlin is stripped to the bare essentials but sounds as youthful as any album in his 30 year career.
After years of steering away from rock in favor of jazz and symphonic recordings, the cigarette and real ale champion has returned to form as nearly every style of his 30 + year career is represented on Rain, with the predominant piano based song craft of his Night and Day albums.
Jackson’s distinctive piano is nailed on “Too Tough” as he hits falsetto harmonies and sneering shouts as “I couldn’t tell you why you should go to hell/But I don’t want to be that tough.” And make no mistake about it all of Jackson’s “angry man” lyrics are still poignant and darkly insightful, with a flash of sexual frustration and aloofness.
Now it’s Jackson’s piano playing that’s pronounced, as “Too Tough,” “Citizen Sane” and the swing anthem “The Uptown Train” are built around sticky piano themes (the later is a revamp of Ramsey Lewis Trio’s “In Crowd”). Although the piano is dominating, “Rush Across the Road” is an example of how a song stripped to almost the bare essentials can sound rich, while “Wasted Time” and “Solo Jackson proves Jackson can still pen a stirring ballad.
Joe Jackson makes records worth listening to and his compositions and career of work is too often overlooked. Rain is no exception, as 2008 marks the year one of Jackson’s strongest recordings to date.