Jordan: The Comeback

Jordan: The Comeback
Studio album by Prefab Sprout
Released	August, 1990
Genre	Pop
Label	Kitchenware Records, CBS
Producer	Thomas Dolby
Prefab Sprout chronology
Protest Songs (1989) Jordan: The Comeback (1990) Andromeda Heights (1997)

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Allmusic

Jordan: The Comeback is the fifth album by English pop band Prefab Sprout, released in August 1990.

Album

Jordan: The Comeback showed Prefab Sprout continuing their musical evolution from the prickly jangle guitars of Swoon, their debut. The use of synths is more prominent, lending the album a poppier feel, and Paddy McAloon explores other genres on some songs, from samba to doo wop.

The album with its cover designed by Gerry Judah was critically acclaimed: it was nominated for Best Album at the Brit Awards, and reached #7 on the charts in the UK. It was—by Prefab Sprout's admittedly modest standards—a commercial success. The next album, 1997's Andromeda Heights, was released seven years later, with only their greatest hits collection appearing in the meantime, so the band never capitalised on its commercial momentum.

The 64-minute album was, unusually, issued as a single vinyl LP running for over 30 minutes each side.

Themes

Jordan: The Comeback is to some extent a concept album, though what the concepts are is somewhat opaque. NME described the album as covering "Love, Elvis, God and Death"—all the big topics. Allmusic described songwriter and lead singer Paddy McAloon as "chas[ing] his twin preoccupations of religion and celebrity, creating a loose thematic canvas perfect for his expanding musical palette".

Singles

Three singles were released from the album in the UK: "Looking for Atlantis", "We Let The Stars Go" and a four-track EP titled "Jordan: The EP" on which the featured track was "Carnival 2000".

Track listing

1. "Looking for Atlantis" – 4:03
2. "Wild Horses" – 3:44
3. "Machine Gun Ibiza" – 3:43
4. "We Let the Stars Go" – 3:39
5. "Carnival 2000" – 3:23
6. "Jordan: The Comeback" – 4:13
7. "Jesse James Symphony" – 2:15
8. "Jesse James Bolero" – 4:10
9. "Moondog" – 4:12
10. "All the World Loves Lovers" – 3:50
11. "All Boys Believe Anything" – 1:34
12. "The Ice Maiden" – 3:19
13. "Paris Smith" – 2:55
14. "Wedding March" – 2:50
15. "One of the Broken" – 3:55
16. "Michael" – 3:02
17. "Mercy" – 1:23
18. "Scarlet Nights" – 4:17
19. "Doo-Wop in Harlem" – 3:44