Years Go By On An Innocent Face: INXS The Swing

And I imagine you standing here
It's subliminal, so inspirational
Man of the world for all the good reasons
Take away the pain and drink the wine

~I Send a Message~

The fourth album from INXS, The Swing, continued to move the Australian band towards international stardom. While sticking with the similar sound of its first three albums, the leap they make in 1986 to Kick is nothing short of revolutionary. Also, I am the only one who is wondering where the sax is on this album?

It was my real intro to a band I love. This cassette was played adnauseam to my family, but I couldn't get enough of it. It wasn't mainstream US radio and it was so different. And trivia for you all, because I grew up nowhere near an ocean, I thought it was "jelly" not "jetty" because I had no idea what one was.

The opening track and most widely known in the States, Original Sin, also featured Daryl Hall singing with Hutchence on the chorus (because why not?).

The album is dance and keyboard oriented, and also more socially oriented, taking themes of peace, love, and social equality to test in songs such as Face the Change, Dancing on the Jetty,  and All the Voices. The band wanted Swing to echo many of their rock and funk influences. By a chance meeting, one of their influences, Nile Rodgers, who loved the band, would also become the album's producer. 

The Swing also saw the band's videos become more sophisticated and what we would continue to see with Kick. While the album did not see them rise to international fame they were seeking, it would only be a few more years before INXS would considered one of the world's most popular bands.

Track Listing
The Orignial Sin
Melting in the Sun 
I Send a Message
Dancing on the Jetty
The Swing
Johnson's Aeroplane
Love Is (What I Say)
Face the Change
Burn for You
All the Voices