Sound Affects

I think I'm going to cry as I listen to this most-excellent album again. Been a while, and I just absolutely heart The Jam. I saw a documentary on them a few years ago, and it served only to deepen my heart-ing them. Paul Weller is very much the opposite of the full-of-himself rock star. This album should receive more attention, as should the band. Just this week, I (a relative noob guitarist) just started learning and practicing 'That's Entertainment,' one of my all-time favorite songs of all-time favorite songs. In honor of this album and band showing up in my 1001 rotation, I shall do my best to play it well, record it, and share it with friends. Make music, share music.

This list sure loves generic UK rock bands

Other bands would be proud of this to be their greatest hits

the bass is amazing

I may be biased from growing up listening to this band, but so be it. A lot of bangers on here for me, I can't not give it a 5 because I know i'll listen to this over and over again

Copy-pasting yesterday's review because it's still relevant: I don't know how many random British punk albums from the late 70s - early 80s I have left in me. Nothing grabbed me and I will sleep soundly at night knowing that I can't recall a single song, lyric or word spoken in The Jam's "Sound Affects".

Brilliant socially aware lyrics - 'That's entertainment' should be published separately and added to the National curriculum. I'd forgotten how good The Jam (well, Paul Weller) were.

New this was going to be good as the album started with Bruce Foxton's superb punchy bass playing (which continued throughout the entire album). A great MOD punk compilation with Paul Weller belting out his lyrics while playing sublime guitar. Most enjoyable!

How did The Jam never hit in the States? Peter Weller's next outfit The Style Council certainly did. But The Jam wasn't even remotely popular here. This album was released shortly after "Get The Knack" by The Knack, which was a monster hit here. I hear a lot of similarities. Maybe they were too British for America in 1980. It was our loss, because this is a gem.

I listened to all of it but cannot remember what it sounded like for the life of me

"Affect: to put on a false appearance of (something).” In this case, The Jam put on a false appearance of being an original band making original music with an original sound when, in fact, they were just biting sounds and styles and, in the case of the song "Start!", an entire (and iconic) bass line from other popular bands. And they did it on purpose. In fact, that was apparently the goal of this album. To pull enough influences from other bands to make this record successful. I guess it worked with the critics because it's on this list. But it's just not working with me. Feels like what it is: an also-ran band making a look-alike album. If this list wasn't so brit-pop slanted, there's no way this album would make the cut.

Really enjoyed this. It hit that punk/pop craving I was having. Going to have to pick up more if their stuff. Reminds a lot of the Clash, but more fun. I was hooked with the first track.

It’s great. Imagine being a teen buying this in 1980 and hearing that opening bassline for the first time

Some strange production choices — not that they're terrible, though that bass tone is very raw — it just sounds like they went out of their way to make it sound compressed. Could totally be a product of streaming music and the joys of destroying audio quality. I really liked some of the less listened-to tracks (according to the Spotify numbers), esp. "Set The House Ablaze," and was struck by the "Taxman" bassline on "Start!" I think "That's Entertainment" might be my least favorite on the album and was the only song I was familiar with coming into this. Before listening to this and All Mod Cons, I would have guessed The Jam were a prototypical ska band, which either means I'm confusing them with another band or just ignorant of who they were (or both). But I've enjoyed discovering them. BTW, "Music For The Last Couple," another with relatively few listens, was not so great. This was a 4-star album for the first 2/3 and then slid into blahville toward the end and while I'm digging The Jam, I can't quite figure why this particular album merits the 1001 classification.

After every song I was hoping the next would not be a dud. But the bops kept on coming. The bass is excellent throughout this, the guitar work was great too. I'm glad this album is good solely because I can say this. This album is my Jam.

Pop, post punk, funk...el típico grupo al que nunca le había hecho ni caso por coraje y que me revienta la cabeza con un disco inesperado. Buenas canciones, ritmos pegadizos, grandes líneas de bajo. Descubrimiento.

Paul Weller is definitely my favourite discovery from this undertaking

I just never liked Paul Weller. Don't like the Jam, don't like the Style Council, don't like his solo 'Modfather' work. Lots of people I respect really dig The Jam, and god knows I have tried many, many times over the past 40 years to understand the appeal. But I just don't. I never really understood the cult-like veneration that a certain generation of Anglophiles have for The Jam and Weller's subsequent output. At the time of its release, Weller said that he considered the album a cross between Off the Wall and Revolver. Well, Sound Affects is no Revolver or Off The Wall. I've often pegged Weller as trying on musical styles that he digs, but his copies are a bit weak. The only song that I really feel that stands up as original is 'That's Entertainment', where he says he wrote in ten minutes, which suggest he didn't have time to overthink it. 'Start', the other hand, is essentially plagiarized from 'Taxman'. 2.5 stars, rounding down for cribbing from better records to a mediocre standard.

A great album by The Jam and shows the band working together brilliantly making lively, insightful post punk. Foxton’s bass playing is outstanding, giving the album its drive and energy; Buckler’s drumming is equally energetic; and Weller brings the attitude and style to the guitar and vocals. And whilst there a few undercooked tracks (‘Music for the last couple’), ‘Start!’ followed by the exquisite ‘That’s Entertainment’ (Weller’s ‘Waterloo Sunset’) makes for a sequence of tracks any band would be proud of.

Not terrible but don’t like the voice

Sound Affects I was really into The Jam around A-Levels. I loved the Greatest Hits so I bought the Direction, Creation, Reaction box set with my Christmas vouchers. It was all their albums and singles plus b sides and outtakes, but I never really listened to it much. It had two studio albums per disk so it never felt like each album was distinct, so I just used to listen to the Greatest Hits. A lot of their singles really were quite incredible - In the City, The Modern World, News of the World, Down in the Tube Station, Eton rifles, Going Underground, Start!, That’s Entertainment, Funeral Pyre, Absolute Beginners, Town Called Malice, Bitterest Pill, Beat Surrender - so I think their albums tend pale in comparison, and to me, despite this one, All Mod Cons and Setting Sons being very good, they don’t quite have that killer, go to album. Pretty Green is a banger, great bass of course, and I love the sitar in the outro, indicating the Revolver influence that would become outright homage/theft on Start! I fall on the homage side, it’s a great track, especially with the horns towards the end. Monday is great, a kind of slippery melody and structure, with very I’m Only Sleeping Macca bass. I like But I’m Different Now, a bit of classic Jam punky-angry-pop, one of the few times they hit their earlier sound. Set The House Ablaze I love, one of their best album tracks, the psychedelic influenced riff and marching bass in the verses are great and I really like how it breaks into the very Jamian chorus. I like how Dream Time starts off dreamy and backwards and psychedelic sounding before ending as a tight bass, drums and power-guitar song with a great chorus and some lovely horn embellishments. I love the 60s Kinksian feel of Man in the Corner Shop and its ruminative lyrics. Music for the Last Couple is obviously ska/2-tone influenced and I love the guitar break bass and piano refrain against the parts with the melodica. Boy About Town I remember from that box set, a great catchy melody and a great song, with lyrics that I think deliberately nod to I’m Only Sleeping. And Scrape Away has great, slightly sinister new wave-ish feel, mainly due to Foxton’s excellent bass line, and a great, righteously frustrated lyric. And of course there’s That’s Entertainment, possibly their greatest song. Fantastically bleak, evocative lyrics, you feel the greynes and the early 80s-ness, with one of my favourite lines ‘Two lovers kissing amongst the scream of midnight, two lovers missing the tranquility of solitude’. Superb. Foxton is consistently excellent on this album, the Macca/Revolver inspiration is clear, but he also adds a great urgency and ominousness to some of the songs. Even with that I think you can hear Weller chafing against the limitations of the trio format and their sound. They always had wider influences and a classic 60s pop and soul in their sound but you, and despite Rick Buckler being a very good drummer and the soul and funk influences being apparent, there is still a tinge of a punky thudiness to his drumming, and in retrospect The Style Council seems like the obvious next chapter. There’s a lot of great lines and lyrics and some interesting things happening musically, even if they are sometimes a bit buried in the mix, but I really enjoyed this, especially on repeat listens, and it has re-ignited my interest in The Jam. Started a straight ahead 4 but I think I’ll tip into 5. 🫙🫙🫙🫙🫙 Playlist submission: Obvious but That’s Entertainment

"Sound Affects" is the fifth album by English rock band the Jam. New wave, mod revival, punk rock and power pop are all fair descriptors of their music. It's was their first album that they co-produced, along with Vic Coppersmith-Heaven. The bandmembers were Paul Weller (guitar, vocals, keys, sitar), Bruce Foxton (bass, vocals) and the late Rick Buckler (drums, percussion). Commercially, the album hit #2 in the UK and #72 in the US and had wide-spread critical praise. "Pretty Green" opens with a funky bass line and ticking drums. A driving guitar with echoing pyschedelic effects. Weller singing about Money? Weed? The music in "Setting the House Ablaze" sounds just like the title. A wavering guitar. Pounding drums. Anxiety sounding. Wow, they've summed up Bloc Party in one song. The song builds intensity and ends with a "la-la-la" chorus and sped up marching drums. The band had been listening to the Beatles' "Revolver" while recording this album and that comes out clearly in their first single "Start!" as Foxton's bass line is directly taken from "Taxman." The drums keep a tight beat and Weller's slashes his guitar with a post-punk edge. A song about technology forcing people apart. I think the only Jam song I heard on US radio in the 80's was "That's Entertainment" and it's still played quite a bit. An acoustic guitar. Bass in the forefront . A rattling percussion. Weller is singing about slices of everyday British working-class life. Great song. "Man in the Corner Shop" is their only song in which the whole band wrote. A Byrds-esque guitar and a forward bass and drums. A song about socio-economic classes. This album is loaded with short, rapid-fire and thumping songs. Along the way, we hear shades of the Kinks, the Beatles and the Byrds, a post-punk guitar, power pop and even an area of pyschedelia. The bass is front and center in the mix which I always like. This is really a great album. In fact, the previous two albums "All Mod Cons" and "Setting Sons" are also great. All three are highly recommended.

I really liked this. Never heard of this group before, but I hear so many other groups that I enjoy in this album.

First 5 in a long time. Excellent

I dig it, The Jam are such an underrated gem. I got a lot of mileage out of this album today. It bangs.

Though the band has been quite forward about the influences, The Beatles' Revolver is very much present from the get go. The guitar is punchy, and the bass is acrobatic and front and center. There are a lot of new wave artists, but the Jam infuse it with a bit of mod flair and attitude that makes me hesitate to just lump this album in with post-punk. The drum work owes a lot (again as stated by the band) to Michael Jackson's Off the Wall, and drive the album forward without seeming out of place. It is a supremely well crafted and enjoyable album

I have liked this album since I first heard it in the early 1980s.

I can't believe I haven't heard them before

I really enjoyed this! Very catchy melodies with some rough rock edges. Tell me the bassline in "Start" is not "Taxman"

God bless Paul Weller.

This is the sound of Weller coming into his own, both as songwriter and musical leader. Though it only hints at the extent of the evolutions to come, the songs are very well balanced and nuanced, with crisp production and strong, almost flawless execution. "That's Entertainment" and "Monday" and "Man in the Corner Shop" are the top cuts.

Kind of a popier version of The Clash. Handful of really catchy songs mixed with some less memorable ones.

Sound Affects is the fifth studio album by The Jam, originally released in 1980. This list is actually starting to warm me up to British post-punk. The first thing that caught my attention on this record is the rhythm section. The drummer and bass player are locked in throughout the whole album. I also love how the bass is mixed. It reminds me a lot of reggae/dub. It was probably intentional because this list has taught me that a lot of these groups were inspired by the rude boy movements at the time. Another thing that's interesting about this album is you can kinda hear the transition from post-punk to new wave. I'm not sure about the origins of The Jam, but I can assume they're from the more harder punk scene, like the Sex Pistols. This record contains a mix of that harder punk edge, as well as softer, more poppy new-wave tracks. While not my favorite style of music, it's interesting to hear transitional albums for bands. Especially when those transitional albums are between two huge genres.

Probably the best of the Paul Weller related albums I’ve been assigned so far - based off The Style Council (abysmal) and his solo record Wild Wood (cloying adult contemporary), I didn’t have a lot of hope, even if All Mod Cons was pretty good. This one I liked well enough, it has a good variety and the punk edge I was initially expecting from him when I first was assigned Wild Wood. I would have to agree with Mr. Weller, this the best Jam album (at least in my limited experience with them).

Not sure who’s dreaming of Monday, fuckin Brits. All 80s and no 80s hits 🤔

I liked this album, but at some point it became background noise. Meaning nothing grabbed me, nothing made me want to pay attention and buy in, it was just there in the background being non offensive. It could have been music on the speakers of a clothing store just playing and I would bop my head but never feel like I was into it. I would also say everything sounded exactly the same, I didn't realize I was halfway through without looking at the song list because they all sounded the same. I don't rate them so low because the music was bad, it was actually pleasant. I rate them low because compared to others on this list, I just don't get what they bring to the table that makes it so special.

Tuned the fuck out

This is so far the best Paul Weller project this list has forced on me, and it's still pretty meh. It's like a mix of an Elvis Costello who is a worse songwriter with an XTC that has less interesting instrumentation.

Just ok.

I honestly just didn't have many feelings about this album. It was fine. Favorite track: Monday

Fun instrumentals.

it's like the beatles but somehow even worse

I was a big Jam fan in the early 80s in my early teens. Then seemingly gave them a miss, following their split, and never got on with the musical style of the Style Council or Paul Weller’s solo material. Listening to this after an absence of forty odd years it does sound pretty good.

Sharing two things with the Who, an association with Mods and a belief in the bass guitar as a lead instrument; that's my Jam

Loved the stylish sound and great bass throughout. The sharp, groovy post-punk vibe really worked for me.

First album I heard by the Jam, I got a second hand copy on CD back in the 90s because it was cheap and had That's Entertainment on there. Anyway, I was surprised at the time by how good the rest of the songs were and how different they were to what I was expecting. I love how the Jam were able to update their Mod influences while sounding like nobody but themselves. Paul Weller was really developing as a songwriter at this point and his songs evoke specific feelings which still resonate and keep the songs on here sounding vital.

Brilliant album. Surprisingly progressive considering this was around the same time the cure was talking about "killing arabs". House on fire may be a little long but was a masterpiece in my mind. You can see the direction his music is taking and definitely progresses in his next album and band. Overall a short and sweet listening experience that deserves a golden star.

After a steady tide of average albums here on the 1001 we’ve finally hit some quality again. This is The Jam at their peak, this (and Setting Son’s) has the perfect mix of hope and cynicism delivered via their special brand of mod rock. There is less of the punk sound of their earlier work and they haven’t put in the soul sound present in their final album (which is also excellent) that would make the hallmark of Weller’s next project (the Style Council). Fantastic album with a brilliant closing track.

This is the 145th album I’m rating. Going into this I'm assuming it's going to be shit because it's the 80's. Adding to my Playlist - Pretty Green, Monday, But I'm Different Now, Set the House Ablaze, Start!, That's Entertainment, Dream Time, Man in the Corner Shop, Music for the Last Couple, and Boy About Town Not Adding to my Playlist - Scrape Away. All in all I liked 10/11 songs. Thankfully I was wrong about The Jam but I still think the 80's suck.

Good. It is, in fact, a jam.

Verrassende wendingen, toffe nummers!

A classic

Perfect blend of white soul and social commentary

There's a lot of 60s throw back across the album. 'Monday' has a classic Kinks sound. 'Man in the Corner Shop' a descending melody and jangly guitar, that's worthy of Small Faces. And of course they 'borrow' heavily from the Macca tradition, with the Taxman bassline - 'Start!' somehow doesn't feel stolen though; it feels a genuine tribute turned into something new, and just as good. This is an album which is a borderline top marks. A number of tunes stand apart as top tier. It has all the edge of punk whilst not being punk - it's more complex than that, with Motown influences evident ('Pretty Green'). I think the feeling of it, the energy, the right arrangements and the strength of the singles plus other hidden gems just tip it.

The first song had me wondering if I’d like this sort of punk, but by “Set the House Ablaze” I was totally hooked. These guys rock!!

David galea favorite album!!!

This was ahead of its time, full of sharp turns, and somehow even dropped ska on me. I hadn’t heard it before, and now I can’t believe it was hidden. Absolutely brilliant

Genial. No conocía a The Jam, pero sin problema podría hacerme fan. Muy buen rock, álbum breve pero poderoso. Lo disfruté bastante .

Brilliant album. That’s Entertainment is an all time classic track

This is a great album full of spectacular drums, bass and guitar. I could listen to it all day. In fact, I just did. That's Entertainment and Start! are classics for a reason (sure, Start! lifts the bassline from Taxman, but if it didn't bother the Beatles, it doesn't bother me). Boy about Town though, which I'd never heard before Is two minutes of joy. What a great song. I love the horns on this track and god, the drums are great. Hard to find a weak spot on this album. Really good from start to finish and the drums and bass are killer throughout. If Peter Weller was just a little bit stronger as a vocalist, this album would have been a monumental classic and broken through in North America. He's not quite show-offy enough for the US.

Pretty green and that’s entertainment absolute classics

Really good British rock pop

Awesome album.

Really solid album, really enjoyed it

not a dull moment, really enjoyed this

5/5. It's honestly hard for me to find a bad song on this album. It all flows well has a driving force in each song. It is giving British punk but it doesn't overstay its welcome. Each track has a great riff and instrumentation in general. Very British vocals can be a negative sometimes but it fits the energy here. Definitely influence from Elvis Costello here. A pretty solid front to back, no complaints despite the genre. Best Song: Start!, Set The House Ablaze, Music For The Last Couple

I love it when a band gives itself an accurate name. R.I.P. Rick Buckler

A perfect album. Full of energy and anger with powerful and socially important lyrics. The meanings behind the songs made in 1980 are still relevant 40 plus years later. That's entertainment' should be the national anthem. It’s the song of my youth. Favourite song: That's entertainment, start, pretty green. I could list out every track Least favourite: Nothing. its perfect Album artwork: Iconic cover

The Clash but for music geeks. A great album from a great band.

Absolutely!

Great band at the top of their powers.

Great album

A fantastic album by a fantastic band. So many great tracks; 'Monday' sounds like a classic mid sixties mod/psych record (with harpsichord a fab bass line, and harmonies), and vocally Weller sounds like David Bowie, 'But I'm Different Now' sounds like The Action or The Creation, 'Start' nicks the bass riff from The Beatles 'Taxman', 'That's Entertainment' is one of the best songs by anyone, ever (so catchy and weirdly moody). Meanwhile over on side two 'Dream Time' has a cool trippy intro, 'Man in the Corner Shop' and 'Music For The Last Couple' are more sixties influenced pop (the latter with cool ska rhythm instrumental breaks) 'Boy About Time' has a nagging where have I heard this before melody. I might have mentioned the mid sixties influences once or twice, but it's true, you can he tell Weller is nuts for the mid sixties British mod/psych/freakbeat crossover period. Great stuff.

The Jam and The Specials were the soundtrack to the 80s for me so always going to have a soft spot for this. That said, it's also a brilliant album which captured the moment perfectly.

You know, I knew this would be decent, but I wasn't expecting to be drawn in as much as I was, great album!

Love this album. Weller is a truly underrated writer and even in these punky pop song, it shines. The Jam were one of tightest three piece bands ever. The album sounds like a time capsule to being a youth in Thatchers 80s Britain.

How can you possibly go wrong with The Jam. Great record. Going to go off now and listen to some more Jam records today!

Ok so clearly I should've been listening to The Jam this whole time because this is the 2nd album I've had by them, and another 5 on first listen. It's exactly my kind of post-punk with those edgy riffs and sick basslines. Vocals are fantastic too.

Great album— tightly written and composed songs. Lyrics that can really be spit out

Pros: really fun, Paul Weller reminds me of Morrissey, not a bad song on the album Cons: sent me down a ska rabbit hole

Really great album that feels like a perfect synthesis between early new-wave and early punk rock. Tuneful and driving with fun lyricism. There wasn't a single song I didn't enjoy or felt was misplaced in the album order. Not sure if it'll make my desert island albums but it is pretty great. I'll give it a five-star because I simply can't find any fault with it.

For some reason I thought The Jam were a 60s band. Instead, this album sounds like a mix of things I can't quite place. Perhaps: The Stranglers, The Smiths, Billy Bragg, Madness, The Fall. Anyway, whatever it is, I like it. 4.5

Never thought I was into The Jam that much, but I can't knock this album. Tempted to give it 5... aw what the hell

it's actually kinda sad. every song tries so very hard to be the best song ever and in isolation, it succeeds. Paul Weller is a pop genius who probably creates his choruses directly by taking part of his life energy and spinning it into something musical. hell, even the "everyone writes on this one :)" song is actually pretty good! it would be stiff competition were it not for one inalienable fact: "That's Entertainment" is the best song ever. not my favorite song of all time, just the best song ever. you can't fight facts.

This is #day41 of my #1001albumsyoumusthearbeforeyoudie challenge, and... while I had heard the band's name before, this was my first experience with their music. Another UK '80s post-punk gem? Bring it on! For a start, this is a case in point when you judge the album by the cover. Because, well, isn't it just fascinating? I was instantly hooked on the first song, especially that bass line. It's safe to say the bass is the nerve of this record. The album echoes the works of Gang of Four, Au Pairs, and The Clash, infused with the quirky flair of the '60s. English countryside post-punk for the working class, if you will. "Monday," "Set The House Ablaze," "Start!," and "That's Entertainment" stand out as some of the many highlights. What a gem of an album! I'm on the hunt for a nice vinyl copy, I guess. Revising my initial score (a 4) and rating this a 5 out of 5. One of the greatest finds on this list. Looking forward to #day43.

A classic that is often tragically overlooked stateside.

The Jam is my jam. I had never heard them before but I really love the post-punk sound and the tone of every instrument, especially the bass. The echo on the mics give everything that cool, roomy, moody sound. Just fantastic. I love music that is melancholic and upbeat at the same time, and this album is that.

My first time listening to a whole album by The Jam. I knew it was regarded as a classic, and it contains my two favourite singles, Start and That's Entertainment, so I was interested to see if I'd like the whole thing. I thought it was excellent! Melodic as well as thought-provoking and such a great energy. Paul Weller is ace.

No-one has made anger sound as beautiful as The Jam/Paul Weller. Not heard this in its entirety for 40 odd years, when it would come through my bedroom wall courtesy of my 14 yr old Parka-clad brother. It’s as fresh now as it was then and I really enjoyed listening to it.

Listening to this all the way through which I hadn’t done for 40 years affected me more than I expected it to. Took me right back and also so appropriate all these decades later. Brilliant

Definitely my favorite album by The Jam. “That’s Entertainment” and “Start!” are masterpieces, but what really draws me in on this album are some of the deeper cut mod pop gems like “Man in the Corner Shop”. The tone of Paul Weller’s voice sounds marvelous throughout this album, but his “la la la la la” on “Man in the Corner Shop” really drives this home for me.

Seminal

Classic

Top-drawer mod noise. The bass tone is awesome throughout and the whole thing just works.

I knew I was going to enjoy this, but I didn’t realize how much. There’s real brilliance here. Excellent album.

Need to come back to this one.

Ну...ИМБИЩЕ. Это взрыв и рознос. Очень люблю группу и альб, хэзэ. Тут бесспорно 10/10.

Great album with a number of songs that could be considered ‘hits’ or at the very least, ones you’re already familiar with.

I like this one, definitely an interesting feel to the instrumentals. These early punk albums really grip me a lot more than I ever thought they would. Favorite track: That's Entertainment

A lot of nostalgia for this one. Something about Paul's voice that I really like. And the simplicity, the unpolished sound.