Will Power (album)

Will Power is the eighth album by Joe Jackson.[1] Released in 1987, it is his first experiment with classical music, continued in later albums including Night Music, Heaven and Hell, and Symphony No. 1.

Will Power
Studio album by
Joe Jackson
ReleasedApril 1987[1]
Recorded1987
GenreClassical, rock
Length42:06
LabelA&M[2]
ProducerJoe Jackson
Joe Jackson chronology
Big World
(1986)		 Will Power
(1987)		 Live 1980/86
(1988)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[3]
Robert ChristgauC+[4]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[2]
MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide[5]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[6]

The album peaked at #131 on the Billboard 200 album chart.[7]

Critical reception

Reviews for Will Power were very mixed. The New York Times called the album "a major step forward by an English composer and performer who has never remained in one place for long."[8] While praising Jackson's compositional skill (including his "flair for lovely melodic passages and unpredictable, often shimmering arrangements" involving "stunning cascades of sound reminiscent of contemporary composer John Adams"), the Los Angeles Times also wrote that "the lengthy, meandering 'Symphony in One Movement' is as colorless and pretentious as the title suggests."[9] Chris Woodstra of AllMusic dismissed Will Power as "a good exercise in self-indulgence but little of anything else";[10] while Trouser Press described the album as "redolent with unrestrained pomposity... (a) trivial self-indulgence", commenting that "while Jackson may be impressed by his ability to convince an orchestra to play his melodramatically panoramic music, it’s unlikely anyone else will find this exercise especially rewarding."[11]

Track listing

All songs written, orchestrated and produced by Joe Jackson.[1]

No.TitleLength
1."No Pasaran"6:07
2."Solitude"9:37
3."Will Power"5:52
4."Nocturne"4:25
5."Symphony in One Movement"16:14

Personnel
Musicians
Production

References
  1. Strong, Martin C. (2000). The Great Rock Discography (5th ed.). Edinburgh: Mojo Books. pp. 485–486. ISBN 1-84195-017-3.
  2. Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Volume 4: MUZE. p. 532.CS1 maint: location (link)
  3. AllMusic review
  4. "Robert Christgau: CG: joe jackson". www.robertchristgau.com.
  5. MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1999. p. 583.
  6. The Rolling Stone Album Guide. Random House. 1992. pp. 350–351.
  7. "Joe Jackson". Billboard.
  8. Holden, Stephen (22 April 1987). "THE POP LIFE; ORCHESTRAL EXPRESSIONS IN JOE JACKSON ALBUM (Published 1987)" – via NYTimes.com.
  9. "* * * * Great Balls of Fire , * * * Good Vibrations , * * Maybe Baby , * Running on Empty : JOE GETS SERIOUS". Los Angeles Times. 19 April 1987.
  10. "Joe Jackson - Will Power". AllMusic. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
  11. "Joe Jackson". Trouser Press. Retrieved 22 October 2020.
  12. Thompson, Clifford (7 October 2020). Contemporary World Musicians. Routledge. ISBN 9781135939618 – via Google Books.
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