The Jam - Setting Sons - Vinyl LP

UK Pressing

Setting Sons is the fourth studio album by The Jam. The group's critical and commercial favor, begun with their third album, All Mod Cons, continued through this album. "The Eton Rifles" became the group's first top 10 UK hit, peaking at #3. In contrast to its pop-oriented predecessor, this album features a much harder, tougher production, albeit with the overarching melodicism common throughout The Jam's discography.

Arguably, this is the Jam's most thematically ambitious LP. Singer, guitarist, and songwriter Paul Weller originally conceived Setting Sons as a concept album detailing the lives of three boyhood friends who later reunite as adults after an unspecified war only to discover they have grown up and apart. This concept was never fully developed, and it remains unclear which tracks were originally intended as part of the story, though it is commonly agreed that "Thick As Thieves", "Little Boy Soldiers", "Wasteland", and "Burning Sky" are likely constituents. The album remains one of The Jam's most critically favored works alongside All Mod Cons and Sound Affects.