"One More Time" is a song by the British new wave musician Joe Jackson. It was released as the third single from his debut album, Look Sharp!, in 1979. Inspired by a breakup Jackson had, the song features a guitar riff and lyrics detailing a collapsing relationship. "One More Time" was released as a single, but did not see any chart success. The song has since been highlighted as one of the best off Look Sharp! and Graham Maby's bassline has been singled out as praiseworthy.
Background
"One More Time" was written by Jackson after a breakup with his girlfriend Jill. Jackson recalled that he embellished on the end of that relationship as the song developed. He explained in his autobiography, A Cure for Gravity: The lyrics of "One More Time" feature the singer asking his ex-lover to truthfully tell him that she never loved him. Musically, the song is one of Jackson's more aggressive rock songs, featuring Joe Jackson on lead vocals and a prominent guitar riff to open the song.
Release
"One More Time" was released as the follow-up single to "Sunday Papers," also from Look Sharp!, in May 1979. Backed with the non-album track "Don't Ask Me", the single, like "Sunday Papers," was unable to chart in Britain. The single was not released in America or any countries in continental Europe, although an alternate single, "Fools in Love," was released in the Netherlands in June 1979. A live version of the song was released on a bonus CD with Jackson's 2003 album Volume 4.
Reception
Rolling Stone critic Bud Scoppa described "One More Time" as a "welcome merger of edginess and ear candy, which connected immediately with fans who couldn't abide the brutal fun of 'God Save the Queen. Josh Jackson of Paste Magazine said the song "reveal the more caustic side of Jackson’s songwriting, of which he wouldn’t quite tap into again". In 2003, an author for Billboard dubbed the song an "old favorite". Ultimate Classic Rock's Dave Lifton ranked the song number five on his list of the "Top 10 Joe Jackson Songs", noting that the placement was "a tribute to Maby, because no matter how many times we’ve listened to it, we can never predict where he's going". Glide Magazine ranked it as Jackson's 9th best song.
