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
Mood Indigo
Joe Jackson Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You ain't never been blue,
Till you've had that mood indigo.
That feelin' goes stealin' down to my shoes
While I just sit here and sigh, "Go 'long blues".
I always get that mood indigo,
Since my baby said goodbye.
I'm so lonely I could cry.
'Cause there's nobody who cares about me,
I'm just a poor fool that's bluer than blue can be.
When I get that mood indigo,
I could lay me down and die.
You ain't never been blue; no, no, no,
You ain't never been blue,
Till you've had that mood indigo.
That feelin' goes stealin' down to my shoes
While I just sit here and sigh, "Go 'long blues".
The lyrics of Joe Jackson’s “Mood Indigo” are a poignant depiction of a person’s intense feelings of loneliness and despair. The singer suggests that his listeners have never experienced true sadness until they have felt the “mood indigo”. The song describes how this feeling slowly creeps in and takes hold of his entire being, all the way down to his shoes. The “blues” become so overwhelming that he cannot even muster the energy to shake it off.
Jackson’s use of the phrase “Mood Indigo” as a metaphor for the singer's depression is interesting in itself. “Mood Indigo” is actually a jazz standard from 1930, written by Duke Ellington with lyrics by Irving Mills and Albany Bigard. The song has been covered by numerous artists, including Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, and Nina Simone. Jackson’s version adds a modern twist to the classic song, casting it in a more introspective light. The song’s mournful tone and haunting melody underscore the profound sense of loss that permeates the lyrics.
Line by Line Meaning
You ain't never been blue, no, no, no,
You have never experienced deep sadness or depression.
You ain't never been blue,
You have never felt as dismal as I have.
Till you've had that mood indigo.
Until you have experienced the specific sadness I am feeling, you do not know sadness.
That feelin' goes stealin' down to my shoes
The sadness I feel penetrates down to the depths of my being.
While I just sit here and sigh, "Go 'long blues".
I have no choice but to sit and let the sadness consume me.
I always get that mood indigo,
I frequently find myself feeling this same sadness.
Since my baby said goodbye.
Since my significant other left me.
And in the evenin' when the lights are low,
Especially in the evening, when the world is dark and quiet.
I'm so lonely I could cry.
I feel incredibly isolated and have a strong urge to cry.
'Cause there's nobody who cares about me,
I have no one who is concerned for my well-being.
I'm just a poor fool that's bluer than blue can be.
I feel like a pitiful and foolish person who is sadder than anyone could imagine.
When I get that mood indigo,
When I find myself feeling this deep sadness.
I could lay me down and die.
I feel so consumed by sadness that the idea of death seems preferable.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Duke Ellington, Irving Mills, Barney Bigard
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind