Joe Jackson: his best albums ranked, according to Ultimate Classic Rock

US magazine Ultimate Classic Rock has dedicated an in-depth feature to Joe Jackson, publishing a ranking of his albums "from worst to best" with the aim of highlighting the evolution of an artist who has never stopped reinventing himself. "Throughout his career Joe Jackson has done everything he could to shake off the label fans and critics pinned on him at the start, in their attempt to pigeonhole him," notes Michael Gallucci in the introduction. "Initially grouped, alongside Elvis Costello, Graham Parker and other key figures of the era, among the Angry Young Men who emerged from the new wave scene born out of pub rock in the late Seventies, Jackson soon overturned every expectation, constantly changing style from one album to the next. As this ranking shows, his discography is a continuous crossing of genres. After his first two albums of brilliant new-wave-inflected pub rock, Jackson embarked on a musical quest that would become the defining trait of his career. From big-band swing to urban jazz, from concept albums to forays into classical music, he quickly shed his early labels. Inspired as much by the places he lived in as by the music around him, Jackson stamped a strong personal mark on all his albums, even when they weren't overtly autobiographical." According to Ultimate Classic Rock, there is a common thread running through the debut "Look Sharp!" (1979), the masterpiece "Night And Day" (1982) and "Hope And Fury" (2026), even if it isn't always obvious on the surface. The ranking, the magazine further notes, does not include the soundtracks "Mike's Murder" and "Tucker", released in the Eighties.
The real blunder UCR makes, however, is failing to include the essential "Big World" from 1986, perhaps because it was mistaken for a live album due to the way it was recorded. A serious mistake, which we hope was caused only by this kind of misunderstanding.

So here is the ranking of Joe Jackson's best studio albums according to Ultimate Classic Rock magazine (full feature here).

20. Night Music (1994)
19. Will Power (1987)
18. Heaven & Hell (1997)
17. The Duke (2012)
16. Night And Day II (2000)
15. Symphony No. 1 (1999)
14. Rain (2008)
13. Volume 4 (2003)
12. Blaze Of Glory (1989)
11. Fool (2019)
10. Hope And Fury (2026)
9. Laughter & Lust (1991)
8. Fast Forward (2015)
7. Beat Crazy (1980)
6. Mr. Joe Jackson Presents Max Champion In What A Racket! (2023)
5. Joe Jackson’s Jumpin’ Jive (1981)
4. Body And Soul (1984)
3. I’m The Man (1979)
2. Look Sharp! (1979)
1. Night And Day (1982)

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