Saturday 17th March

Joan Armatrading 4   And then in 1980 she released Me Myself I, possibly her best known album, and certainly a more confident, more commercial and more accessible record.   And Joan was never a show-woman, appearing in plain shirt and trousers almost always – she let her voice and the songs make the spectacle.  She was never a tool of the record companies, she always insisted on complete artistic control of her output.  How rare is that for any artist, especially a black woman.  Unfortunately many brilliant black singers, both male and female get promoted and then dropped like cold potatoes just as quickly by the record companies, dressed up in satin and silk for an album or two and then…nothing.  Joan has survived by simply being herself.  And so, the record Me Myself I.  A strange statement but one that complete defines her.  She ain’t gonna be pushed around by anyone.  And the album is a triumph.  This is a new Joan, so confident, so aware of the sound she wants and gets from her band.  Favourite songs – the title track, obviously – and Mameo Beach and All The Way From America.  Every track is different from the others and from anything else she had done before.  What a way to welcome in the new decade.  New Romantics?  Who needs ‘em with the best romantic of all in town.  This is one of my all-time favourite albums; it is just 35 minutes long – but I have often found that short albums are indeed better than long ones which go on and on forever.  Better a concise little gem that just begs to be replayed.  Oh, and the final track, a quiet sad song with a string quartet to crack the strongest heart…

Walk Under Ladders came next, and again a strong album, from opener ‘I’m Lucky’ on, it just rolls along.  Best song is ‘The Weakness In Me’, where she tackles the guilt and confused feelings when you meet a new lover, and can’t quite let the old one go; and she handles it brilliantly – torn between two lovers.   And the albums kept coming year after year.  Joan was now established as one of the long-standing great artists from the Seventies; a loyal fan base, larger and larger tours and a string of excellent albums.     The Key was also a big hit, especially the single ‘Drop The Pilot.’.  Joan was mow releasing a record every two years rather than annually and they were generally better produced – or some would say over-produced.  Technology was moving on rapidly and multiple tracks were available, but I think that generally this diminishes the power of the songs.  Too much snappy ‘eighties’ drum and synthesisers sprinkled too liberally.  Joan seemed trapped in a cycle of big albums, hit singles and big tours.  And it isn’t that the songs were any less good, it almost felt she was trying too hard.