Joe Jackson just fuckin' rules.

[CanuckAmok]

Real Men:

Take your mind back - I dont know when
Sometime when it always seemed
To be just us and them
Girls that wore pink
And boys that wore blue
Boys that always grew up better men
Than me and you

Whats a man now - whats a man mean
Is he rough or is he rugged
Is he cultural and clean
Now its all change - its got to change more
cause we think its getting better
But nobodys really sure

And so it goes - go round again
But now and then we wonder who the real men are

See the nice boys - dancing in pairs
Golden earring golden tan
Blow-wave in the hair
Sure theyre all straight - straight as a line
All the gays are macho
Cant you see their leather shine

You dont want to sound dumb - dont want to offend
So dont call me a faggot
Not unless you are a friend
Then if youre tall and handsome and strong
You can wear the uniform and I could play along

And so it goes - go round again
But now and then we wonder who the real men are

Time to get scared - time to change plan
Dont know how to treat a lady
Dont know how to be a man
Time to admit - what you call defeat
cause theres women running past you now
And you just drag your feet

Man makes a gun - man goes to war
Man can kill and man can drink
And man can take a whore
Kill all the blacks - kill all the reds
And if theres war between the sexes
Then therell be no people left

And so it goes - go round again
But now and then we wonder who the real men are


It's Obvious:

There was a man in the jungle
Trying to make ends meet
Found himself one day with an axe in his hand
When a voice said ";Buddy can you spare that tree
We gotta save the world - starting with your land";
It was a rock 'n' roll millionaire from the USA
Doing 3 to the gallon in a big white car
And he sang and he sang 'til he polluted the air
And he blew a lot of smoke from a Cuban cigar

And the stars are looking down
Through a hole in the sky
And if they can see, they cry
That's obvious

And the walls are coming down
Between the west and the east
You don't have to be a hippie to believe in peace
That's obvious . . . obvious

There was a kid in the city selling crack to get by
Got caught one day with a gun in his hand
When a voice said, ";Okay, get 'em up in the air
You're too young to live like this
But you ain't too fast to die.";
Just another foot-soldier in a stupid little war
Another sound-bite on the American scene
Caught between the supplier only dreaming of money
And the demand of the man with money
Who needs a little help to dream

So we starve all the teachers
And recruit more Marines
How come we don't even know what that means
It's obvious

And the walls are coming down
Between the eagle and the dove
You don't have to be a hippie to believe in love
That's obvious . . . obvious


It's Different for Girls:

What the hell is wrong with you tonight?
I cant seem to say or do the right thing
Wanted to be sure youre feeling right
Wanted to be sure we want the same thing

She said - I cant believe it
You cant - possibly mean it
Dont we - all want the same thing
Dont we
Well who said anything about love
No not love she said
Dont you know that its different for girls
Dont give me love
No not love she said
Dont you know that its different for girls
Youre all the same

Mama always told me, save yourself
Take a little time and find the right girl
Then again dont end up on the shelf
Logical advice gets you in a whirl

I know - a lot of things that
You dont - you wanna hear some
She said - just give me something
Anything
Well give me all you got but not love
No not love she said
Dont you know that its different for girls
Youre all the same


Is She Really Going Out with Him?:

Pretty women out walking with gorillas down my street
From my window Im staring while my coffee grows cold
Look over there! (where? )
Theres a lady that I used to know
Shes married now, or engaged, or something, so I am told

Is she really going out with him?
Is she really gonna take him home tonight?
Is she really going out with him?
cause if my eyes dont deceive me,
Theres something going wrong around here

Tonights the night when I go to all the parties down my street.
I wash my hair and I kid myself I look real smooth
Look over there! (where? )
Here comes jeanie with her new boyfriend
They say that looks dont count for much
If so, there goes your proof

Is she really going out with him?
Is she really gonna take him home tonight?
Is she really going out with him?
cause if my eyes dont deceive me,
Theres something going wrong around here

But if looks could kill
Theres a man there whos more down as dead.
Cause Ive had my fill
Listen you, take your hands off her head
I get so mean around this scene

Is she really going out with him?
Is she really gonna take him home tonight?
Is she really going out with him?
cause if my eyes dont deceive me
Theres something going wrong around.

[Heidi]

1. Right on.

And Tom Robinson Band, too. :thumbsup:

[CanuckAmok]

8. Tom Robinson signed all my TRB records!

I shot an HIV awareness PSA with bhim around 1995, and I dug my records out of storage so he could sign 'em.

He was very funny; he was. like, "Ah...so you're the guy who bought these!"

[Heidi]

10. You're not the _only_ one who bought his music.

CMW and I love Tom Robinson! :thumbsup:

My favorite Tom Robinson song, with lyrics and mp3: http://www.bothways.com/both2003/gtbg.htm

[Hissyspit]

2. I recently bought all his stuff on CD, including the expanded version of

"Night and Day." The entire "Mike's Murder" soundrack is out on some collection, too.

Great fun stuff.

Trivia: "It's Different For Girls" reached #101 on the Billboard charts.

[madrchsod]

3. i have a really nice unplayed vinyl record

of his..should i play it or just stare at the grooves? joe is cool...

[CanuckAmok]

4. If it's "Look Sharp!" you should play it. You don't want to piss those...

..shoes off. They're by Denson, you know.

[Monk06]

6. Do not run a needle over potentially valuable vinyl. I have an original

Vinyl copy of the UJ3ERK5 first and only
album. Punk bands have been covering "Eisenhower
and the Hippies" off that album since the late
seventies.

My copy is unopened and shrink wrapped. It doesn't
get rarer than that.

Plus I live with the drummer; Kitty "La Machine" Byrne
and went to art school with the rest of the band. So
there's that.

[CanuckAmok]

7. I just sold an unplayed copy of "If You Love Me Snort My Load"...

...by Nig Heist.

I don't really have a reason to add this to the conversation, except I really like typing "If You Love Me Snort My Load".

[Monk06]

16. Gotta admit. I think you beat me on the obscure vinyl side.

[CanuckAmok]

17. It's no tthat obscure....

Nig Heist were formed by one of Black Flag's roadies, and they made that album. It was pretty popular in the Western US, and there are even a couple of Nig Heist fan sites out there.

Yours is far more obscure. Any record with a member you actually know on a personal level is bound to be obscure.

[wildhorses]

5. oh yeah!!!

:thumbsup:

[driver8]

9. Joe rules!! I had the pleasure of seeing him in a small theatre in

Los Angeles called the El Rey. We were maybe 30 feet from Joe -- it was like having him in your living room.

Anyhow, he was on tour for his Heaven and Hell album. He came out to start the show with just him and a piano and announced to us that he was starting with "Look Sharp" and was working his way through all of his albums; he played one or two (or three) from each one. Joe was in a great mood that night and was joking and telling stories.

I have been to a lot of shows in my life but that is one that I will never forget.

[CanuckAmok]

11. wow, that's great....

That small venue story reminds me of one time I saw David Bowie.

He was in Vancouver playing a supporting roll in a movie called "Exhuming Mr. Rice", and he had a few hold-days in hish schedule. When he found-out his schedule, instead of leaving town and doing whatever David Bowie likes to do on his days off, he flew his session band to Vancouver and held a show in the outdoor ampitheatre of the "Plaza of Nations", which seats about 2,000 people tops.

The local 'classic rock' station handled booking the short-notice event, and, of course, it sold out very quickly. But this was right around the time that "Earthling" came out, and Bowie only did a couple of his classic numbers before launching into the electronic-sounding "Earthling" album. Much of the 'classic rock' crowd left(!), and within a half-hour of the show, there were maybe 1,000 of us in the crowd. Bowie was having a great time, it was obvious. He was interacting with the crowd, telling jokes, goofing around with the band (who were obviously stoked about playing live as opposed to session work). It was an amazingly positive vibe.

One of those "never forget" shows you mentioned.

But I'd love to see Joe Jackson at a small venue. I saw him open for the Who once, but that was like 20 something years ago, and we were so far back it lookd as if we were watching a musical ant-farm.

JJ toured with the original "Look Sharp!" line-up a few years ago, and booked into a small venue in Vancouver, but it was during the absolute worst part of my dvorce, so I didn't go. :(

[WCGreen]

12. One of my favorite all times songs is Steppin' Out.....

He was involved with the William Shatner Song out last year...

Common People.....

[pink-o]

13. I saw Joe just about 26 years ago...

I was 25, and it was in a tiny venue in Berkeley called the Zellerbach Theatre. When we all got up to dance in the aisles, security came and started to throw us back into our seats. At that point, Joe came up to the mike and yelled: "You leave those people the fuck ALONE!".

Security immediately backed off and we danced for the rest of the night.

You better believe Joe RULES!!!!

[taterguy]

14. But he doesn't rock

Because his songs are skimpy on guitar parts, at least according to the esteemed rock critic Ronald Thomas Clontle

[xmas74]

15. Agreed.

Not much to add just absolutely agreeing w/ you.

[NC_Nurse]

18. Love Joe!

I saw him at NC State years ago - the Steppin' Out tour. It was wonderful!

I miss him! :-)

What's he been up to?