The Smash Hit Album (No Jacket Required - Phil Collins)

Member Name: MI9to5

Product:	No Jacket Required - Phil Collins
Date:	18/09/09 (48 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: The majority of the tracks

Disadvantages: 'Who Said I Would'

=== Phil Collins ===

Phil Collins born Phillip David Charles Collins in London in 1951 is a singer-songwriter, drummer, keyboardist and actor. He is best known as drummer and vocalist for English progresive rock group Genesis for whom he became the lead singer in 1975. His concurrent solo career has brought him worldwide commercial success and made him the Grammy and Academy-Award winning artist he is today.

=== His Albums ===

Up to date Phil Collins has released nine studio albums; Face Value (1981), Hello, I Must Be Going! (1982), No Jacket Required (1985), ...But Seriously (1989), Both Sides (1993), Dance Into the Light (1996), Tarzan Soundtrack (1999), Testify (2002) and The Brother Bear Original Soundtrack (2003). Most of his albums, barring the two Disney soundtracks of course, often deal with lost love but the songs within each album range widely in style. For example three of his most successful hits; 'In the Air Tonight', 'Sussudio' and 'Another Day in Paradise' are all massively different being drum-heavy, dance pop orientated and somewhat political respectively. It is his third solo album, No Jacket Required, that I will today be reviewing.


== No Jacket Required ==

No Jacket Required was released in January 1985 and is Collins' most commercially successful album shooting straight to the top spot in numerous countries including the UK, USA and Canada. Like all of his albums this one varies widely in style and message from track to track with tracks like 'Long Long Way To Go' holding a political message. Four of the albums tracks, three in the UK, were released as singles with corresponding videos. Two of these tracks reached the top spot in the US and all three made the top twenty in the UK. This ultimately led to the album winning the Grammy Award for Album of the Year in 1985 and it being certified 6x Platinum in the UK.

=== The Album in Short ===

If you're one of those people that aren't particularly looking for a track-by-track breakdown of the album in question then this section is for you and you can simply gloss over the track analysis if you wish. No Jacket Required is an immense album in my opinion and one that I think most people will enjoy listening to. The tracks on the album range from slow ballads and the odd politically messaged song to the fast and upbeat rock and pop tracks. All of the tracks on the album add something to the overall album worth and certainly make the listening experience a varied one. Tracks such as Sussudio and Don't Lose my Number have a pop feel and are easy to remember whilst others such as Long Long Way to Go and One More Night are more pensive but equally as unique and memorable.

=== Track Breakdown ===

ONE - Sussudio
Sussudio was the first track from the album to be released as a single. Unfortunately it only reached number 12 in the UK charts despite hitting the top spot in the US. The track has since however reached greater fame and been is mentioned in numerous moments in pop culture. The track has a real pop dance feel that is really uplifting and Collins' gravely style of vocals is really appealing to listen to. The lyrics are simple but catchy and really aided by the contagious backing track.
'Theres this girl thats been on my mind
All the time, sussudio oh oh
Now she dont even know my name
But I think she likes me just the same'
**********9/10**********

TWO - Only You Know and I Know
This track has a similarly contagious backing track but is more drum heavy than pop like the previous track. The mix of rock and pop styles is really enticing to the listener and the superb lyrics simply help to keep us wanting more. His vocal style also continues to appeal as the track plays on.
'Whenever I think I know you better
Better than I know myself
I open up and give you everything
Then you say, O.K. what else'
*********9/10*********

THREE - Long Long Way To Go
Long Long Way To Go is the track on the album with the strongest political message and it has a completely different feel to all the others. The backing music is more sombre and subtle than in the previous two and when you listen to the opening you know immediately that you aren't going to want to get up and dance to this one or even tap your foot along. The song however is in my opinion absolutely fantastic and makes a statement that we all need to hear. There is nothing of the wall or particularly shocking about this track but the matter of fact way that the points are made is what makes it so effective.
'Turn it off if you want to
Switch it off it will go away
Turn it off if you want to
Switch it off or look away'
***********10/10**********

FOUR - I Don't Wanna Know
After the previous slow and sombre track this one is the complete opposite with a heady and strong beat and a relatively fast pace. The track is catchy from the word go and one that I always remember for some reason. The lyrics themselves are nothing special but tell a good story and are brought to life by the energetic vocals and fantastic backing music.
'They warned me
Oh yes they all warned me
They told me, don't lose your heart to her
She'll never give it back, no no'
********9/10********

FIVE - One More Night
One More Night was the album highest charted single in the UK and reached the number four position in the charts. This track though is one that nearly everyone knows and it is once again different to the previous two tracks. It is much slower than the previous one but nowhere near as slow and sombre as Long Long Way to Go. The backing track is somewhat delicate but it has a steady beat and some beautiful keyboard sides that make it lovely to listen to. Collins' lyrics are also wonderfully written and his vocals not as gravely as in previous tracks but just still a delight to listen to.
'Please give me one more night, give me one more night
One more night cos I can't wait forever
Give me just one more night, oh just one more night
Oh one more night cos I can't wait forever'
*********10/10*********

SIX - Don't Lose My Number
Don't Lose My Number is a track that even Collins has admitted to not fully understanding what the lyrics mean. Others have said the track is one that is a vague sketch of a melodrama withholding the full story. Personally I'm not too bothered about all this I really like the song for what it is - whatever that is. The track has a strong heady drum beat and overall a fantastic backing track. The lyrics are then sung in Collins' usual catchy way that makes you want to sing along.
'Billy, Billy don't you lose my number
Cos you're not anywhere
That I can find you'
**********10/10**********

SEVEN - Who Said I Would
The beginning of this tracks backing music is very different to all of the others and as it progressed I wasn't sure exactly what I thought of it. Similarly when the vocals began I wasn't too certain about the track. There is something about it that just makes it difficult for me to take to it. I'm not sure whether it's the fact that at times the lyrics seem mumbled or whether it's the overall feel of the track that just doesn't suit me. Whatever it is this track is definitely my least favourite from the album.
'I'm not the only one but I do fine
I suit her purpose and I'm just her kind
I don't own her and I never could
Don't think I do, don't think I should'
*****5/10*****

EIGHT - Doesn't Anybody Stay Together Anymore
This is another of the tracks on this album that I really like. To be honest there is no real reason why it should stick in my head but for some reason it does and it remains one of my favourite tracks. The backing music is strong and heady from the word go and maybe it's this that appeals. Similarly the lyrics have some kick but also have a ballad style to them at the same to, which really compliments the overall arrangement of the track.
'My friends keep falling and they can't get up
It's the same old story
Well one says white and the other one black
It's the same old story'
**********10/10**********

NINE - Inside Out
This track is another with a strong and heady beat that makes you want to tap your foot along as the song progresses. The lyrics for this one are nothing inspired but are again performed well by Collins and do at least tell a decent story if you listen to them properly. What makes the song better is the alternation between strong and slightly overpowering beat to little if any backing track.
'I'll play the game
We'll make the same mistakes
It's all the same
If we can give and take'
********8/10********

TEN - Take Me Home
Despite the fact that Take Me Home only peaked at number 19 in the UK chart the track has remained popular with fans and continues to be performed at each live tour. There is some controversy though about what the song is all about as some believe it to be about a man not returning home or the psychological manipulations of Orwell's 1984. Collins himself however has said that the song refers to a patient in a mental institution and is much based on the novel 'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest'. The mood of this song is somewhat slow and sombre in places but it is brilliant to listen to and once you are aware of Collins' intended message the song takes on a whole new meaning and becomes more and more appealing.
'Take that look of worry
I'm an ordinary man
They don't tell me nothing
So I find out what I can'
**********10/10**********

ELEVEN - We Said Hello, Goodbye (Don't Look Back)
This track is a more than decent one to end the album on, as it has a steady beat but a ballad style that really suits both the lyrics and the vocals. It is also catchy is a non pop-like sort of way and without being cheesy. Strangely though I would have ended the album on the previous track as I think that Take Me Home summed the album up much better although the use of goodbye does give the album closure.
'Turn your head
And don't look back
Set your sails for a new horizon
Don't turn around don't look down'
*********9/10*********

== CLOSING COMMENT ==

This album is one that I am somewhat fond of and one that I find myself playing quite a bit considering that it was released before I was born. There is a great variety within the album and I think that this is what appeals to me the most. The solid mix of heady beats and subtle tunes are interchanged with fast paced tracks and slow sombre ballads. The political messages or simply general statements made in a couple of the tracks also highlight why the album has stood the test of time so well.

Summary: I completely understand why this album was and still is so popular