I Just Can't Stop It
I Just Can't Stop It | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Studio album by | ||||
Released | 23 May 1980 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 36:24 | |||
Label | ||||
Producer | Bob Sargeant | |||
The Beat chronology | ||||
| ||||
Singles from I Just Can't Stop It | ||||
|
I Just Can't Stop It is the debut studio album by British two-tone band the Beat, released on 23 May 1980 by Go-Feet Records in the United Kingdom. It was released the same year in the United States on Sire Records, with the band credited as "The English Beat"; in Australia, it was released on Go-Feet under the band name "The British Beat".
The album was well-received; Rolling Stone raved that the music was "wild and threatening, sexy and sharp,"[1] while AllMusic later wrote it "was a stunning achievement" which had not been diminished by time.[2]
The album was reissued on CD in 1990 by I.R.S. Records in the U.S, and in 2012 by Edsel Records in the UK and Shout! Factory in the U.S.[3]
Artwork
[edit]The "Beat Girl" icon seen on the cover and used on the band's merchandising was designed by Birmingham-based cartoonist Hunt Emerson.[4]
Critical reception
[edit]Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [2] |
Christgau's Record Guide | A−[5] |
Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [6] |
Record Mirror | [7] |
The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [8] |
Smash Hits | 9/10[9] |
Sounds | [10] |
Spin Alternative Record Guide | 10/10[11] |
Tom Hull – on the Web | A−[12] |
At the end of 1980, I Just Can't Stop It appeared in numerous lists of the best albums of the year: NME ranked it third,[13] Sounds ranked it 13th,[citation needed] The Village Voice ranked it 21st[citation needed] and OOR ranked it 41st.[citation needed] In 1995, Spin ranked the album at No. 94 in its list of the "Top 100 Alternative Albums".[14] Fast 'n' Bulbous ranked the album at number 283 in its list of "The 500 Best Albums Since 1965".[15] A 2002 poll of KCPR DJs ranked it at No. 40 in a list of the "Top 100 Records of the 80s".[citation needed] Les Inrockuptibles included it in its list of "50 Years of Rock 'n' Roll."[citation needed] Music journalist Simon Reynolds lists it as one of the five most important albums of "2-Tone and the Ska Resurrection" in his 2005 book Rip It Up and Start Again: Postpunk 1978–1984.[16] In 2016, Paste ranked I Just Can't Stop It at No. 48 on its list of the 50 best new wave albums.[17]
"Mirror in the Bathroom" was ranked at No. 3 in the NME "Singles of the Year" list[citation needed] and at No. 24 in Sounds' "Singles of the Year" list.[citation needed] In 2003, Q ranked the song at No. 517 in its list of the "1001 Best Songs Ever".[18] In 2002, Gary Mulholland included the song in his list This Is Uncool: The 500 Best Singles Since Punk Rock.[citation needed] In 2001, Michaelangelo Matos included it in his list of "The Top 100 Singles of the 80s."[citation needed] In 2006, 97x ranked it at No. 186 in its list of "The 500 Best Modern Rock Songs of All Time."[citation needed] In 1990, Robert Christgau ranked "Twist & Crawl" at No. 10 in his list of the best songs of the 1980s.[19]
Track listing
[edit]All tracks are written by The Beat (as per ASCAP: Roger Charlery, Andy Cox, Everett Morton, David Steele and Dave Wakeling),[20] except where noted. Note that despite the group author credits on the label, Saxa is not listed as a co-author of any song according to ASCAP.
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Mirror in the Bathroom" | 3:10 | |
2. | "Hands Off...She's Mine" | 3:01 | |
3. | "Two Swords" | 2:19 | |
4. | "Twist & Crawl" |
| 2:35 |
5. | "Rough Rider" (originally performed by Prince Buster & the All Stars) |
| 4:53 |
6. | "Click Click" | 1:28 | |
7. | "Big Shot" | 2:34 | |
8. | "Whine & Grine/Stand Down Margaret" ("Whine & Grine" originally performed by Prince Buster & the All Stars) |
| 3:51 |
9. | "Noise in This World" | 2:19 | |
10. | "Can't Get Used to Losing You" (originally performed by Andy Williams) | 3:04 | |
11. | "Best Friend" | 3:01 | |
12. | "Jackpot" (originally performed by the Pioneers) |
| 4:19 |
The U.S. release of the album on Sire Records added "Tears of a Clown" and "Ranking Full Stop", originally released as double A-sides of a single on 2 Tone Records in 1979 (TT 6).[20] These tracks remained on subsequent CD reissues of the album.[20]
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Mirror in the Bathroom" | 3:10 | |
2. | "Hands Off...She's Mine" | 3:01 | |
3. | "Two Swords" | 2:19 | |
4. | "Twist & Crawl" |
| 2:35 |
5. | "Tears of a Clown" (originally performed by Smokey Robinson and the Miracles) | 2:39 | |
6. | "Rough Rider" |
| 4:53 |
7. | "Click Click" | 1:28 | |
8. | "Ranking Full Stop" | 2:44 | |
9. | "Big Shot" | 2:34 | |
10. | "Whine & Grine/Stand Down Margaret" |
| 3:51 |
11. | "Noise in This World" | 2:19 | |
12. | "Can't Get Used to Losing You" |
| 3:04 |
13. | "Best Friend" | 3:01 | |
14. | "Jackpot" |
| 4:19 |
Personnel
[edit]Credits are adapted from the album's liner notes.[21]
The Beat
- Dave Wakeling – lead vocals, rhythm guitar
- Ranking Roger – toasting, vocals
- Andy Cox – lead guitar
- David Steele – bass guitar
- Everett Morton – drums
- Saxa – saxophone
Production and artwork
- Bob Sargeant – production
- Alvin Clark – engineering
- Mark Dearnley – engineering
- Mike Dunne – engineering
- Trevor Hallesy – engineering
- Nick Rogers – engineering
- Hunt Emerson – artwork
"Thanks to: John Peel, the Specials, Selecter, A/W Hunt Emerson"
Charts
[edit]Chart (1980–81) | Peak position |
---|---|
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[22] | 66 |
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[23] | 30 |
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[24] | 30 |
UK Albums (OCC)[25] | 3 |
US Billboard 200[26] | 142 |
Certifications
[edit]Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
United Kingdom (BPI)[27] | Gold | 100,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
References
[edit]- ^ Rose, Frank (4 September 1980). "The English Beat: I Just Can't Stop It". Rolling Stone. No. 325. Archived from the original on 22 April 2008. Retrieved 12 August 2007.
- ^ a b Greene, Jo-Ann. "I Just Can't Stop It – The English Beat". AllMusic. Retrieved 12 May 2004.
- ^ "Discography". englishbeat.net. Retrieved 19 November 2020.
- ^ "The Beat Girl – Noted Cartoonist Hunt Emerson Designs a 2-Tone Era Icon". Marco on the Bass. 16 December 2008. Retrieved 27 March 2019.
- ^ Christgau, Robert (1990). "The English Beat: I Just Can't Stop It". Christgau's Record Guide: The '80s. Pantheon Books. ISBN 0-679-73015-X. Retrieved 4 May 2009.
- ^ Larkin, Colin (2011). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th concise ed.). Omnibus Press.
- ^ "Albums" (PDF). Record Mirror: 20. 24 May 1980. Retrieved 2 March 2021.
- ^ Considine, J. D. (2004). "English Beat". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Fireside Books. pp. 277–278. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8. Retrieved 17 March 2010.
- ^ Cranna, Ian (29 May – 11 June 1980). "The Beat: I Just Can't Stop It". Smash Hits. Vol. 2, no. 11. p. 30.
- ^ Silverton, Peter (24 May 1980). "The Beat: I Just Can't Stop It (Go Feet)". Sounds. Retrieved 19 November 2020 – via Rock's Backpages.
- ^ Hermes, Will (1995). "English Beat". In Weisbard, Eric; Marks, Craig (eds.). Spin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. p. 127. ISBN 0-679-75574-8.
- ^ Hull, Tom (26 April 2021). "Music Week". Tom Hull – on the Web. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
- ^ "1980 Best Albums And Tracks Of The Year". NME. 10 October 2016. Retrieved 30 October 2016.
- ^ Weisbard, Eric; Marks, Craig, eds. (1995). "Top 100 Alternative Albums". Spin Alternative Record Guide. New York: Vintage Books. p. 454. ISBN 0679755748.
- ^ Best Albums Since 1965 | Fast 'n' Bulbous
- ^ Reynolds, Simon (2005). Rip It Up and Start Again: Postpunk 1978–1984. Faber and Faber. ISBN 0-571-21569-6.
- ^ "The 50 Best New Wave Albums". Paste. 8 September 2016. Retrieved 19 November 2020.
- ^ Q - 1001 best songs ever (2003)
- ^ Robert Christgau: Decade Personal Best: '80s
- ^ a b c I Just Can't Stop It (CD liner notes). The Beat. Los Angeles: Go-Feet Records/Shout! Factory. 2012. 826663-13177-B1.
{{cite AV media notes}}
: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) - ^ I Just Can't Stop It (liner notes). The Beat. Go-Feet Records. 1980. BEAT 1.
{{cite AV media notes}}
: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) - ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). Australian Chart Book. pp. 29, 46. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
- ^ "Charts.nz – The Beat – I Just Can't Stop It". Hung Medien. Retrieved 19 November 2020.
- ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – The Beat – I Just Can't Stop It". Hung Medien. Retrieved 19 November 2020.
- ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 19 November 2020.
- ^ "The English Beat Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 19 November 2020.
- ^ "British album certifications – Beat – I Just Can't Stop It". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 19 November 2020.
External links
[edit]- I Just Can't Stop It at Discogs (list of releases)