Why Sound Affects Is Not The Best Jam Album

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101Walterton
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Why Sound Affects Is Not The Best Jam Album

Post by 101Walterton »

Because none of the tracks make the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. Simple as that.
There are some brilliant tracks (That's Entertainment / Start) and there are no bad tracks on it. You could even make an argument that it is the bands most consistent album. But without one of those Weller songs that makes your pulse race and your brain release endorphins it cannot be the best.

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Re: Why Sound Affects Is Not The Best Jam Album

Post by muppet hi fi »

i'd say Setting Sons and the attendant singles is the best, but they never released a remotely "bad" record, not even Modern World.

Sound Affects, The Gift, and the various singles and EPs post-'81 were a whole new direction for the band - a more organic sound and mix, less heavily guitar dominated, but still just as, erm, affecting.
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Re: Why Sound Affects Is Not The Best Jam Album

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I put AMC over setting Sons (just) plus the singles either side of AMC are some of their best tracks.

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Re: Why Sound Affects Is Not The Best Jam Album

Post by Marky Dread »

The only Jam songs that makes those hairs stand up for me are Tube Station and Private Hell.

However as a complete album package Sound Affects is my fave just. It has a little bit of everything.
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Re: Why Sound Affects Is Not The Best Jam Album

Post by muppet hi fi »

Marky Dread wrote:The only Jam songs that makes those hairs stand up for me are Tube Station and Private Hell.

However as a complete album package Sound Affects is my fave just. It has a little bit of everything.
wow, really? "Thick As Thieves" made me weep when it came out - as a worldly 15 year old.
"Going Underground" i thought was as spine-stiffening as "Anarchy In the UK" or "Complete Control". "That's Entertainment" could choke me up too. i agree about "...Tube Station" though.
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Re: Why Sound Affects Is Not The Best Jam Album

Post by Marky Dread »

muppet hi fi wrote:
Marky Dread wrote:The only Jam songs that makes those hairs stand up for me are Tube Station and Private Hell.

However as a complete album package Sound Affects is my fave just. It has a little bit of everything.
wow, really? "Thick As Thieves" made me weep when it came out - as a worldly 15 year old.
"Going Underground" i thought was as spine-stiffening as "Anarchy In the UK" or "Complete Control". "That's Entertainment" could choke me up too. i agree about "...Tube Station" though.
None of those you mention come close to "Anarchy in the U.K." for me. As soon as Rotten says "Right now" followed by that manic chuckle I'm hooked and it holds me in it's spell right up to the "Destroy" fade. Never heard a vocal so sharp it just came out of nowhere and cut through everything else around.

All those you mention are fantastic songs and faves of mine "Going Underground" comes close but I still prefer it's B-side "Dreams of Children" which was supposed to be the A-side 'til Polydors pressing plant in Germany messed things up.
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Re: Why Sound Affects Is Not The Best Jam Album

Post by 101Walterton »

Agree with Tube Station, Going ZUnderground.
I would add to that list A Bomb, When You're Young, Botterfly Collector.

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Re: Why Sound Affects Is Not The Best Jam Album

Post by Marky Dread »

This review from the BBC sums up pretty neatly how I feel about the album.

BBC Review


The best Jam album ever according to Weller celebrates its 30th.


Lou Thomas 2010



On Sound Affects’ opener, Pretty Green, Paul Weller barks about one use for his money in a teeth-gnashing staccato: "I’m gonna put it in the juke box". But would Woking’s mod icon ever have guessed songs of his own would cause frantic searching for change three decades later?

Weller reckons The Jam’s fifth album, now celebrating its 30th anniversary, was their best work. It’s easy to hear why. Pretty Green is so good listeners don’t even notice it hasn’t got a chorus, just tense verses and a power-chord pre-chorus that disperses like spilt beer across a bar floor.

Set the House Ablaze is even better than that, a terrifying but terrific look at fascism on the rise in Europe at the dawn of the 80s. Sounds worthy in print, but marry talk of fighting fascists with a dangerous, paranoid guitar scrape and a whistled melody full of menace and the result is utterly thrilling. Bloc Party certainly thought so when they nicked the riff for Helicopter.

Start!, the album’s first single, is an almighty clang of metallic soul – half Wire, half Motown. Weller insisted the label release it as lead single despite the label’s protestations. It went to number one.

There is pathos amid the modish flavours and brilliant Bruce Foxton basslines. Scrape Away is a classic for those desperate to leave it all behind, and Monday – thankfully far less depressing than its namesake – combines the melancholy of Embarrassment-era Madness with Byrds jangle.

There isn’t a bum song on Sound Affects, but a special mention must go to its best. Of the countless songs about working class British life released in the last three decades, it’s strange one so ostensibly slight is so breathtaking. It may just be a list of simple things we’ve all done, seen or heard, with an ironic chorus, acoustic guitars and no drums, but so what? If That’s Entertainment doesn’t move you on some level you deserve to have your speakers burnt in front of you.
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Re: Why Sound Affects Is Not The Best Jam Album

Post by Marky Dread »

Oh and it has the best cover art to boot.
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Re: Why Sound Affects Is Not The Best Jam Album

Post by 101Walterton »

Marky Dread wrote:This review from the BBC sums up pretty neatly how I feel about the album.

BBC Review


The best Jam album ever according to Weller celebrates its 30th.


Lou Thomas 2010



On Sound Affects’ opener, Pretty Green, Paul Weller barks about one use for his money in a teeth-gnashing staccato: "I’m gonna put it in the juke box". But would Woking’s mod icon ever have guessed songs of his own would cause frantic searching for change three decades later?

Weller reckons The Jam’s fifth album, now celebrating its 30th anniversary, was their best work. It’s easy to hear why. Pretty Green is so good listeners don’t even notice it hasn’t got a chorus, just tense verses and a power-chord pre-chorus that disperses like spilt beer across a bar floor.

Set the House Ablaze is even better than that, a terrifying but terrific look at fascism on the rise in Europe at the dawn of the 80s. Sounds worthy in print, but marry talk of fighting fascists with a dangerous, paranoid guitar scrape and a whistled melody full of menace and the result is utterly thrilling. Bloc Party certainly thought so when they nicked the riff for Helicopter.

Start!, the album’s first single, is an almighty clang of metallic soul – half Wire, half Motown. Weller insisted the label release it as lead single despite the label’s protestations. It went to number one.

There is pathos amid the modish flavours and brilliant Bruce Foxton basslines. Scrape Away is a classic for those desperate to leave it all behind, and Monday – thankfully far less depressing than its namesake – combines the melancholy of Embarrassment-era Madness with Byrds jangle.

There isn’t a bum song on Sound Affects, but a special mention must go to its best. Of the countless songs about working class British life released in the last three decades, it’s strange one so ostensibly slight is so breathtaking. It may just be a list of simple things we’ve all done, seen or heard, with an ironic chorus, acoustic guitars and no drums, but so what? If That’s Entertainment doesn’t move you on some level you deserve to have your speakers burnt in front of you.
Don't disagree but listening to the album yesterday made me realise that it just doesn't excite me the way AMC and SS does.

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Re: Why Sound Affects Is Not The Best Jam Album

Post by Marky Dread »

101Walterton wrote:
Marky Dread wrote:This review from the BBC sums up pretty neatly how I feel about the album.

BBC Review


The best Jam album ever according to Weller celebrates its 30th.


Lou Thomas 2010



On Sound Affects’ opener, Pretty Green, Paul Weller barks about one use for his money in a teeth-gnashing staccato: "I’m gonna put it in the juke box". But would Woking’s mod icon ever have guessed songs of his own would cause frantic searching for change three decades later?

Weller reckons The Jam’s fifth album, now celebrating its 30th anniversary, was their best work. It’s easy to hear why. Pretty Green is so good listeners don’t even notice it hasn’t got a chorus, just tense verses and a power-chord pre-chorus that disperses like spilt beer across a bar floor.

Set the House Ablaze is even better than that, a terrifying but terrific look at fascism on the rise in Europe at the dawn of the 80s. Sounds worthy in print, but marry talk of fighting fascists with a dangerous, paranoid guitar scrape and a whistled melody full of menace and the result is utterly thrilling. Bloc Party certainly thought so when they nicked the riff for Helicopter.

Start!, the album’s first single, is an almighty clang of metallic soul – half Wire, half Motown. Weller insisted the label release it as lead single despite the label’s protestations. It went to number one.

There is pathos amid the modish flavours and brilliant Bruce Foxton basslines. Scrape Away is a classic for those desperate to leave it all behind, and Monday – thankfully far less depressing than its namesake – combines the melancholy of Embarrassment-era Madness with Byrds jangle.

There isn’t a bum song on Sound Affects, but a special mention must go to its best. Of the countless songs about working class British life released in the last three decades, it’s strange one so ostensibly slight is so breathtaking. It may just be a list of simple things we’ve all done, seen or heard, with an ironic chorus, acoustic guitars and no drums, but so what? If That’s Entertainment doesn’t move you on some level you deserve to have your speakers burnt in front of you.
Don't disagree but listening to the album yesterday made me realise that it just doesn't excite me the way AMC and SS does.
Each to their own mate. I like the fact that Weller tried new ideas and succeded brilliantly.
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Re: Why Sound Affects Is Not The Best Jam Album

Post by Heston »

When I have some time I will give a more detailed answer, but I think AMC and SS are better than SA.
There's a tiny, tiny hopeful part of me that says you guys are running a Kaufmanesque long con on the board

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Re: Why Sound Affects Is Not The Best Jam Album

Post by 101Walterton »

Went out and bought a second hand copy of The Gift on vinyl this morning so that I can compare it as it is meant to sound (was the only Jam album I never bought although have all the tracks elsewhere).

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Re: Why Sound Affects Is Not The Best Jam Album

Post by Marky Dread »

Heston wrote:When I have some time I will give a more detailed answer, but I think AMC and SS are better than SA.
They're no Destroyer that's for sure. :shifty:
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Re: Why Sound Affects Is Not The Best Jam Album

Post by Marky Dread »

All Mod Cons/Setting Sons/Sound Affects are three fantastic album and it's a close run thing.

All Mod Cons contains a straight cover of "David Watts" (I prefer the original any day) and the track "Fly" feels out of place. I would've replaced "David Watts" with "News of the World" which fits in with the album better.

Setting Sons contains another cover a very rushed "Heatwave" better suited to a B-side in my opinion. If only Weller had spent more time on his concept album. It would've been THE Jam album. "Smithers-Jones" pales by comparison to the version released as a B-side to "When You're Young". Swap the version of "Smithers-Jones" with the B-side and ditch the cover of "Heat Wave" in favor of "Strange Town" and now your talking.

Sound Affects is Wellers/The Jam most musically diverse album and everything works brilliantly with no weak tracks even the experimental "Music for the Last Couple" is a fantastic track with a brilliant drum sound. At just over half an hour it never fails to impress.
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