80's Jams #79: Joe Jackson “Steppin’ Out” (1981)

While it can be argued that it borders on adult alternative, it’s classier than that. While lots artists in the early eighties had tacked on to the money bags that ‘softer’ rock brought, guys like Paul Davis and Air Supply were schmaltzy, maudlin song writers who went for the lowest common denominator. Jackson, on the other hand, was able to sculpt solid pop rooted in traditional pop morays whilst rising about platitudes and cliché and release songs that were catchy, emotional, and heartfelt without getting all saccharin. -- Allmusic http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=33:wjfixzrrldje