"A Slow Song" is a song by British singer-songwriter and musician Joe Jackson, which was released in 1982 as the closing track on his fifth studio album '' Night and Day''. The song was written by Jackson, and produced by Jackson and

David Kershenbaum David Kershenbaum is an American record producer and entrepreneur, born in Springfield, Missouri. He has worked with many artists including Duran Duran, Tracy Chapman, Joe Jackson, Laura Branigan, Bryan Adams, Supertramp, Cat Stevens, Elkie Br ...

. In 1983, "A Slow Song" was released as a single in the UK, becoming the fifth and final single to be taken from ''Night and Day''. It was not a commercial success as a single, but received positive critical reception. The song has been Jackson's regular concert finisher since 1982.

Background

Jackson has described "A Slow Song" as a "romantic song". In his introduction of the song during a 1983 performance, Jackson said: "It's all about being with the one you love, that special person, late one night, winding down and just waiting for the right song to have a slow dance to. You remember when the DJ at the end of the evening used to play a slow song? They don't seem to do it anymore. So if you've been in this situation, you'll understand why I wrote this song."

Critical reception

In a contemporary review of "Night and Day", Jim Bohen of the '' Daily Record'' described "A Slow Song" as an "impassioned ballad" which contains an organ solo "as eloquent as the lyric". Paul Willistein of ''

The Morning Call ''The Morning Call'' is a daily newspaper in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1883, it is the second longest continuously published newspaper in the Lehigh Valley, after ''The Express-Times''. In 2020, the newspaper permanently closed its Al ...

'' considered the song to be "an exquisite and powerful commentary on much of contemporary pop presented as re-working of the old saw 'Music has charms to soothe the savage beast'." Mike Daly of ''

The Age ''The Age'' is a daily newspaper in Melbourne, Australia, that has been published since 1854. Owned and published by Nine Entertainment, ''The Age'' primarily serves Victoria (Australia), Victoria, but copies also sell in Tasmania, the Austral ...

'' described the song a "gently rocking plea for relief from high-energy music" and praised the "nice bridging organ" and chorus' "superb hook". George Kanzler of the

Newhouse News Service Advance Publications, Inc., doing business as Advance, is an American media company owned by the descendants of S.I. Newhouse Sr., Donald Newhouse and S.I. Newhouse Jr. It owns a large number of subsidiary companies, including Condé Nast, an ...

noted Jackson's vocal performance as being "delivered in a barely held-back heavy metal singer's tone, as if

Robert Plant Robert Anthony Plant (born 20 August 1948) is an English singer and songwriter, best known as the lead singer and lyricist of the English rock band Led Zeppelin for all of its existence from 1968 until 1980, when the band broke up following the ...

were trying to cover

Dan Fogelberg Daniel Grayling Fogelberg (August 13, 1951 – December 16, 2007) was an American musician, songwriter, composer, and multi-instrumentalist. He is known for his 1970s and 1980s songs, including "Longer" (1979), "Same Old Lang Syne" (1980), and " ...

". Brett Milano of ''

The Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...

'' praised Jackson's vocal as being "his strongest on record" and noted the song's "dramatic buildup". In 2015, Dave Lifton of ''

Ultimate Classic Rock Townsquare Media, Inc. (formerly Regent Communications until 2010) is an American radio network and media company based in Purchase, New York. The company started in radio and expanded into digital media toward the end of the 2000s, starting wit ...

'' picked "A Slow Song" as his number one choice for a feature covering Joe Jackson's top ten songs. Lifton considered the song to "owe more than a nod" to "

Unchained Melody "Unchained Melody" is a 1955 song with music by Alex North and lyrics by Hy Zaret. North wrote the music as a theme for the prison film '' Unchained'' (1955), hence the song title. Todd Duncan sang the vocals for the film soundtrack.Robert Rodri ...

" and noted the "gorgeously cathartic climax".

Track listing

;7" single #"A Slow Song" - 7:13 #"Real Men" - 4:05

Personnel

* Joe Jackson – vocals, keyboards *

Graham Maby Graham Maby (born 1 September 1952), is an English bass guitar player. He has recorded and toured with Joe Jackson since his first album, appearing on most of Jackson's albums and tours. He has continued to record and tour with Jackson even w ...

– bass * Larry Tolfree – drums * Sue Hadjopoulos – percussion * Ed Rynesdal – violin Production * Joe Jackson – producer, mixing *

– producer, mixing * Michael Ewasko – engineer * Ken Tracht - assistant engineer Other * Alan Ballard, Gary Green – photography

Charts

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Slow Song 1982 songs 1983 singles Joe Jackson (musician) songs Songs written by Joe Jackson (musician) Song recordings produced by David Kershenbaum A&M Records singles