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
Obvious Song
Joe Jackson Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
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 this world-starting with your land."
It was a rock 'n' roll millionaire from the USA
Doing three to the gallon in a big white car
And he sang and he sang 'till he polluted the air
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, "OK, 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 the 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
The lyrics of Joe Jackson’s “Obvious Song” talk about how the world is in a state of chaos and the need for peace, highlighting different incidents that emphasize the need for change. The song starts with a man in the jungle trying to make ends meet, only to be stopped by a rock ‘n’ roll millionaire from the USA who asks him to spare a tree to save the world. The millionaire, however, contradicts his actions by singing till he pollutes the air and blows smoke from a Cuban cigar. The song brings out the irony of how we start to change things for the better but end up contradicting our actions. It then moves on to talk about a kid in the city selling crack to get by, who is caught one day with a gun in his hand. He is brought down by two conflicting powers, the supplier who dreams of money and the demander who needs a little help to dream. The song highlights the confusion and misplaced priorities that exist in the world.
Furthermore, the song emphasizes how the division between the rich and the poor is becoming more profound, and the world is getting polarized into various segments. Jackson then takes a dig at how we treat our teachers and how we recruit more marines. Finally, he emphasizes the need for love and peace, highlighting how the walls between the west and the east are coming down, and we need to believe in love to work towards a better world.
Line by Line Meaning
There was a man in the jungle
The singer is introducing a setting where a man in the jungle is struggling to survive.
Trying to make ends meet
The man is doing his best to find a way to sustain himself.
Found himself one day with an axe in his hand
One day, the man got a hold of an axe, which could potentially help him with his needs.
When a voice said "Buddy can you spare that tree
The man heard a voice asking him to spare a tree from being used or chopped down.
We gotta save this world-starting with your land."
The voice explained that the world has to be saved by starting with protecting the land, which includes the man's surroundings.
It was a rock 'n' roll millionaire from the USA
The voice was coming from a millionaire who made it big in the rock music scene and is from the USA.
Doing three to the gallon in a big white car
The millionaire was driving a big white car and wasting gasoline at only three gallons per mile.
And he sang and he sang 'till he polluted the air
The millionaire kept singing and singing, but his excessive action ended up polluting the air.
And he blew a lot of smoke from a Cuban cigar
Additionally, the millionaire kept smoking a Cuban cigar and blowing a lot of smoke, further contributing to air pollution.
And the stars are looking down
The artist is shifting to a new subject, where he observes the stars in the sky below him, all from his current setting.
Through a hole in the sky
The singer is describing that he sees these stars through a hole in the sky, possibly an opening in the atmosphere or due to air pollution.
And if they can see, they cry
The stars seem to be crying, symbolically representing the damage done to the earth caused by human actions, such as pollution.
That's obvious
The singer highlights that the cry of the stars is obvious evidence of the harm done to the earth.
And the walls are coming down
The singer now comes in terms with the state of the world divided by political and ideological walls of hatred that are slowly coming down.
Between the west and the east
These walls are breaking between the West and the East, two major regions of the world separated by geopolitical conflict in the past.
You don't have to be a hippie to believe in peace
The artist asserts that one doesn't have to be a hippie to believe in peace, calling for everyone to be a part of this growing movement for peace.
That's obvious...obvious
The artist emphasizes again that the growing belief in peace should be an obvious thing for people to follow and adopt.
There was a kid in the city selling crack to get by
The singer transitions us to the story of a kid selling crack in the city to survive.
Got caught one day with a gun in his hand
The kid was caught holding a gun by authorities one day, likely a law enforcement officer.
When a voice said, "OK, get'em up in the air
Surprisingly, in this scene, the voice is asking the kid to raise his hands up in the air.
You're too young to live like this
The voice is then heard telling the kid that he is too young to be living and getting involved in this kind of life.
But you ain't too fast to die."
The voice then warns the kid that despite his young age, he is not fast enough to outrun death, calling for the kid to reevaluate his life choices.
Just another foot-soldier in a stupid little war
The singer comments on how the kid's story is not unique and how many others are caught up in stupid little wars that nobody truly benefits from.
Another sound-bite on the American scene
The kid's story is likely to become just another small piece of news on the American media scene.
Caught between the supplier only dreaming of money
The kid is in a dilemma where he is caught between a supplier who only dreams of money from selling drugs and those who demand and consume these drugs.
And the demand of the man with the money
The people who have money are the ones who demand and consume these drugs, further complicating the situation with poverty and power.
Who needs a little help to dream
The singer highlights how these people with money suffer from intense pressure from the reality that they need drugs to fuel their dreams and imaginations.
So we starve all the teachers
The artist makes a sweeping statement that we starve all the teachers, likely referring to the lack of education and enlightenment regarding the underlying truth of the drug problem.
And recruit more marines
Instead, the demand for more marines to fight wars around the world increases, diverting resources from more pressing and effective educational initiatives.
How come we don't even know what that means
The singer raises an overarching question on whether the society, in general, knows what it is doing and whether its actions are aligned with its long-term goals and purposes.
It's obvious
The singer emphasizes that such a question should be addressed since it's an obvious problem in today's society.
And the walls are coming down
The artist brings back the imagery of walls coming down, reflecting on how these walls don't just exist on ideological and political levels but also in the lives of people struggling with poverty, addiction, and violence.
Between the eagle and the dove
The walls that are coming down are between the harsh, combative eagle and the peaceful, gentle dove, basically between violence and peace.
You don't have to be a hippie to believe in love
Finally, the artist emphasizes that the growing belief in love should not just be labeled as a hippie thing but an essential value and belief for everyone to hold on to.
That's obvious...obvious
The singer reiterates the urgency and the need for these values to be acted upon and their realizations to be more apparent to the world.
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: JACKSON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@chaz6645
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
@johnhogthrob1167
Perfect....send up of popular music in the late 80's. Joe is genius...and still is
@GrizrazRex
One of the last great 80's-style music videos as the 90's began. They don't make 'em like this too much any more.
@PeterBrown-mz4nv
Once again, more great music and very adult lyric and subject matter from the brilliant Mr. Jackson.
@inatl17
Don't know how I've never seen this video until now as I've always liked this song and of course always been a fan of Joe Jackson
@shrew972
Same here
@mariannehettinger
I'm the blonde of the three dancers. Was a fun gig, great song;-)
@kevinspahr6632
I'm the brunette...lol.
@trfesok
Did you actually meet Joe, or were your scenes shot separately from his?
@mariannehettinger
@@trfesok I met him, we were on set with him working together.
@acekelly1000
I've seen some of Joe Jacksons interviews. He seems like a down to earth good guy. I'm guessing your a model/dancer. That's pretty kool that you got to meet him. And yes; definitely a great song. 👍