"Happy Ending" is a song by British singer-songwriter and musician Joe Jackson, which was recorded as a duet with Elaine Caswell and released in April 1984 as the second single from Jackson's sixth studio album '' Body and Soul''. 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 ...

. "Happy Ending" reached No. 58 in the UK Singles Chart and No. 57 on the US ''

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Background

In a 1984 interview, Jackson discussed the song's sound and lyrical message,

Critical reception

On its release, Frank Edmonds of the ''

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'' gave the song a 7.5 out of 10 rating and commented, "Attractive male/female vocal sparring in a catch song, even if they do seem in a hurry to see the end of it." ''

'' described "Happy Ending" as "uptempo pop" that was in "middle ground between the spontaneous-sounding R&B of " You Can't Get What You Want" and the precise craftsmanship of Jackson's '' Night and Day'' hits." David Okamoto of '' The Tampa Tribune'' felt the song deserved to be a hit and described it as "wonderfully empty-headed boy-meets-girl love song in the '60s tradition". In a review of ''Body and Soul'', Steve Pond of the '' Los Angeles Times'' noted the song "rolls along at an infectious pace while tossing out echoes of the Ronettes along the way". Eleni P. Austin of '' The Desert Sun'' praised the song's "killer tenor sax solo" that "blends into a complete brass blast". She also added, "Caswell's voice is somewhat similar to Ronnie Spector's and it lends itself quite nicely to Jackson's breathy vocals".

Track listing

;7" single #"Happy Ending" - 3:39 #"Loisaida" - 5:33 ;7" single (US promo) #"Happy Ending" - 3:39 #"Happy Ending" - 3:39 ;12" single (UK release) #"Happy Ending" - 3:39 #"Loisaida" - 5:33

Personnel

Happy Ending * Joe Jackson - vocals, alto saxophone * Elaine Caswell - vocals * Vinnie Zummo - guitar * Ed Roynesdal - piano * Tony Aiello - tenor saxophone * Mike Morreale - trumpet * Graham Maby - bass * Gary Burke - drums Loisaida * Joe Jackson - piano * Ed Roynesdal - synthesisers * Vinnie Zummo - guitar * Tony Aiello - alto saxophone * Mike Morreale - flugelhorn, trumpet * Graham Maby - bass * Gary Burke - drums Production * Joe Jackson - producer, arranger *

- producer * Rik Pekkonen - engineer * Bernie Grundman - mastering Other * Melanie Nissen - cover design * Charles Reilly - photography

Charts

References

{{authority control 1984 songs 1984 singles Joe Jackson (musician) songs Songs written by Joe Jackson (musician) Song recordings produced by David Kershenbaum A&M Records singles