Joe Jackson – "Someone Up There" (1980)

The way you looked at me I knew

That we’d be coming to an end

It happened just by chance

I just spent an hour listening to snippets of Joe Jackson songs, trying to decide which one was most worthy of being chosen for the 2 OR 3 LINES “SILVER DECADE” HALL OF FAME.

I can’t remember when I’ve enjoyed an hour more. I bought several Jackson LPs back in the early eighties, and listened to them a lot – but I never bought CDs of his albums or downloaded MP3s of his songs, so it’s been a long time since I’ve listened to his music.

Joe Jackson in 1980

What that hour taught me is that Joe Jackson may have been be the best songwriter of the “Silver Decade.”  I think Elvis Costello and Chrissie Hynde are worthy contenders for that title, but Jackson may have the edge when it comes to the sheer number of great songs he wrote.

Jackson’s body of work is remarkable for its stylistic range.  Whether you’re in the mood for an up-tempo, guitar-driven power-pop song or a haunting, piano-accompanied ballad, he delivers the goods.  

His lyrical versatility is also notable.  Jackson can pen pointed, sardonic lyrics that cut his targets down to size with the best of them, but what he really excels at are bittersweet songs – emphasis on the bitter, not the sweet – about relationships that don’t end well.

The singer in those songs – including today’s featured song – is never sure exactly what went wrong, but he knows there’s no fixing it.

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To say that it was difficult for me to choose one Jackson song for the newest 2 or 3 lines hall of fame is an understatement.

I would sample one of his songs and decide that it was the one worthy of being honored.  Then I would dip into another song and change my mind.  

I could see myself bouncing from song to song for days and still be uncertain of which one to pick.  So I decided to just stop where I was – which happened to be “Someone Up There” from Beat Crazy, Jackson’s third studio album:

Like many of Jackson’s songs, “Someone Up There” is essentially a short story with musical accompaniment.  

Its boy-meets-girl, boy-loses girl trajectory is nothing unusual.  What is unusual is that the narrator recognizes that there was no particular logic behind the couple falling in love and then breaking up – both “happened just by chance.”

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Click here to listen to “Someone Up There.”

Click on the link below to buy the song from Amazon: