Evening Standards

The Jags were a band that suffered unjustly as a result of their initial success. Over the course of their four-year existence, these four, then five fellows from London gave the world two albums and one of the most fantastic debut singles of the era; however, the very song that brought them their greatest renown also cast the shadow that stunted the growth of their career.

Formed in 1978 and signed to Island Records by 1979, Nick Watkinson, John Alder, Steve Prudence, Alex Baird, Michael Cotton and Patrick O'Toole saw their very first single, "Back Of My Hand (I've Got Your Number)," spend 10 weeks on the UK pop charts and peak at number 17. With its jangly guitars and stop-start verses, the song was a bona-fide hit and seemed destined for even greater chart heights. Unfortunately, there was this fellow named Elvis Costello who had been hanging around the charts for a couple years already and who had become the darling of the music mags and appointed King of the New Wave by rock critics everywhere. Didn't this upstart band's record sound suspiciously like Costello? The short answer was, yes, in many ways, it did. The lyrics certainly weren't at Costello's level of skewering wordplay (who else's were?!?), but Watkinson had a voice that veered very close to E.C.'s and a penchant for Costello-esque phrasing. Close your eyes and listen to Watkinson deliver the final line of the first verse ("you wouldn't phone those guys who mess around wit' choo") and, damn, that almost could be E.C. himself!

By the time The Jag's first LP, Evening Standards, hit the shelves, the unnecessary backlash had begun. The critics were bound and determined that no one should approach the throne of Costello, and wrote The Jags off as a poor imitation. Never mind that nothing else on the album sounded like Costello, but was in fact solid power pop material that by all rights should have gone over big. Really is a shame, because that first single remains to this day one of the most enthusiastic and enjoyable records of the time.

For the first time from an expanded release to wit’choo MP3 @ 320kbps

The Jags; Evening Standards

1.      Evening Standards

2.      Party Games

3.      Tune Into Heaven

4.      Last Picture Show

5.      The Tourist

6.      Desert Island Discs

7.      Woman’s World

8.      Back Of My Hand

9.      She’s So Considerate

10.   Little Boy Lost

11.   Single Vision – BWM

12.   Dumb Blonde (B’side To Woman’s World)

13.   Back Of My Hand (Radio Session)

14.   Party Games (Radio Session)