He started off learning to play the violin but soon switched to piano. From the age of 16 he played in bars, and won a scholarship to study musical composition at London's Royal Academy of Music. Jackson did not like the prospect of being a serious composer, and moved towards pop and rock.
His first band was Arms and Legs which collapsed after two unsuccessful singles. He then spent some time in the cabaret circuit to make money to record his own demos.
In 1978 a producer heard his tape, and got him signed to A&M Records. The album Look Sharp! was recorded straight away, and was released in 1979, quickly followed by I'm the Man and Beat Crazy in 1980. He also collaborated with Lincoln Thompson in reggae crossover.
The Joe Jackson Band was very successful and toured extensively. After the breakup of the band, Joe took a break and recorded an album of old-style swing and blues tunes, Jumpin' Jive, featuring songs of Cab Calloway, Lester Young, Glenn Miller, and most prominently, Louis Jordan. He went on to record Night and Day, an album that paid tribute to the wit and style of Cole Porter (and less directly, to New York City) and was his last album to hit the Top 10, peaking at #4.
He recorded another record that was heavily influenced by jazz, pop and jazz standards, and salsa, Body and Soul, which hit #20, containing the hit You Can't Get What You Want ('Til You Know What You Want).
Jackson followed with Big World, a three-sided double record (the fourth side consisted of a single centring groove and a label stating "there is no music on this side"). The instrumental Will Power set the stage for things to come later, but before he left pop behind he put out two more cerebral and celebratory albums, Blaze of Glory and Laughter and Lust. For some years he drifted away from the pop style, going on to be signed by Sony Classical in 1997, which released his Symphony No. 1 in 1999 for which he received a Grammy award.
Night and Day II in 2000 lacked strong pop hooks though, as usual with Jackson, displayed fine lyrics and some elegant songwriting. Volume 4 in 2003 reunited the original band and was well received. A promotional CD, bundled with the initial release, of the 'live' band playing some of Jackson's strongest material was widely admired.
Jackson is also an author, having written A Cure for Gravity, published in 1999, which Jackson has described as a "book about music, thinly disguised as a memoir". It traces his early musical life from childhood until his 24th birthday. Life as a pop star, he suggested, was hardly worth writing about.
In 2004 Jackson performed a cover of Common People with William Shatner for Shatner's album Has Been.
He has actively campaigned against smoking bans in both the USA and the UK, writing a 2005 pamphlet The Smoking Issue and issuing a satirical song (In 20-0-3) on the subject.
In 2008 the album Rain was released by Joe Jackson. Like its predecessor Volume 4, it featured members of the 'Joe Jackson Band', this time minus guitarist Gary Sanford.
Currently he lives in Kreuzberg, Germany.
Discography:
1979 - Look Sharp!
1979 - I'm The Man
1980 - Beat Crazy
1981 - Jumpin' Jive
1982 - Night and Day
1983 - Mike’s Murder, (Soundtrack)
1984 - Body and Soul
1986 - Big World
1987 - Will Power
1988 - Live 1980/86
1988 - Tucker, (Soundtrack)
1989 - Blaze of Glory
1991 - Laughter & Lust
1994 - Night Music
1997 - Heaven and Hell
1999 - Symphony No. 1
2000 - Summer in the City: Live in New York
2000 - Night and Day II
2002 - Two Rainy Nights, (Live)
2004 - Volume 4
2004 - Afterlife, (Live)
2008 - Rain
2011 - Live Music, (Live)
2012 - The Duke
Invisible Man
Joe Jackson Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
One, two
Hey, can you hear me now
As I fade away
And lose my ground?
Maybe you'd like to know
If I was still around
Now I'm made of smoke
You see through to me
It's the strangest joke
You can't touch the invisible man
Can't touch the invisible man
Can't stop the invisible man
Why do the lights go down
Or run to someone new?
Well, let them learn
I used to own this town
Now I'm watchin' you
Now it's my turn
Now I'm made of mist
Will you know
When you've been kissed?
Can't touch the invisible man
Can't touch the invisible man
Can't stop the invisible man
Now I'm almost free
Disappearing
Don't cry for me
You can't touch the invisible man
Can't touch the invisible man
Can't stop the invisible man
Can't stop the invisible man
Can't touch the invisible man
Can't touch the invisible man
You can't stop the invisible man
Can't stop the invisible man
Can't touch the invisible man
Can't touch the invisible man
The lyrics of Joe Jackson's song Invisible Man seem to be about a person who feels invisible and unnoticed in a society that only values fame, fortune, and recognition. The song begins with the singer acknowledging that he is fading away and losing his ground. He wonders whether anyone can hear him or listen to what he has to say. The tone of the lyrics is melancholic, and the use of smoke and mist as metaphors implies the character's insignificance and inability to capture people's attention.
As the song progresses, the character reflects on his past when he used to "own this town," meaning that he was successful and respected in his community. However, something has changed and now he is watching others take his place. The lyrics suggest that the character has now become invisible due to his lack of status or because he has been forgotten. He questions the reason for the lights going down and why people run to someone new, as if trying to understand what he has done wrong to be cast aside.
In the end, the character accepts his fate and acknowledges that he is almost free. The phrase "Don't cry for me" implies that he has come to terms with his predicament and no longer seeks recognition. The repetition of the line "You can't touch the invisible man" reinforces the idea that the character is now untouchable and unreachable, as if he has passed onto another dimension where he is no longer bound by society's expectations.
Line by Line Meaning
One, two, three, four
Counting off the start of the song
One, two
Continuing the countdown
Hey, can you hear me now
Asking if anyone can hear the singer
As I fade away
Implies the artist is disappearing
And lose my ground?
Questions whether the artist is losing their hold on life
Maybe you'd like to know
Suggesting there's something the singer wants people to know
What I'd have to say
Offering information to anyone who would listen
If I was still around
Indicating the artist is no longer present
Now I'm made of smoke
Describing the artist's incorporeal state
You see through to me
Others are able to see that the artist isn't there
It's the strangest joke
The singer finds it bizarre that they now exist only as mist
Can't touch the invisible man
The artist is untouchable now
Can't stop the invisible man
The singer cannot be contained or held back anymore
Why do the lights go down
The singer is questioning why things are getting darker
Or run to someone new?
Wondering why people leave when the situation gets difficult
Well, let them learn
The artist is letting go of resentment towards those who have left
I used to own this town
Recalling a time when the artist had more power
Now I’m watchin' you
The singer is still present, even if people can't see or touch them
Now it's my turn
The singer is ready to take action, even if they can only do so as a ghost or specter
Now I'm made of mist
The transition to a less solid state is complete
Will you know
Wondering if anyone will notice the artist slipping away
When you've been kissed?
Continuing the play on the word 'invisible' by suggesting the artist has kissed someone without them realizing
Now I'm almost free
The singer's condition could be seen as a kind of freedom
Disappearing
The artist is becoming less and less present
Don't cry for me
The singer is trying to comfort those who care about them
Can't touch the invisible man
Reaffirming the singer's untouchable status
You can't stop the invisible man
Reiterating that nothing can hold the singer back now
Can't touch the invisible man
The artist remains untouchable
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: JOE JACKSON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind