Goodbye Jumbo

Goodbye Jumbo is the second studio album by Welsh-British alternative rock band World Party, released on 24 April 1990 on Ensign Records.

Goodbye Jumbo
Studio album by World Party
Released	24 April 1990
Recorded	1987–1989
Genre	Rock alternative rock neo-psychedelia pop
Length	53:22
Label	Ensign
Producer	Karl Wallinger
World Party chronology
Private Revolution (1987) Goodbye Jumbo (1990) Bang! (1993)
Singles from Goodbye Jumbo
"Way Down Now" Released: 1990 "Put the Message in the Box" Released: 1990 "Thank You World" Released: 1991

The album received generally positive reviews from critics and peaked at No. 73 on the US Billboard 200 and No. 36 on the UK Albums Chart. "Way Down Now", the album's lead single, spent five weeks at number one on the Billboard Alternative Songs chart, and follow-up single "Put the Message in the Box" reached No. 8.^[1]

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[2]
Chicago Tribune	[3]
Classic Pop	[4]
Entertainment Weekly	B+[5]
Los Angeles Times	[6]
NME	8/10[7]
Q	[8]
Record Mirror	4/5[9]
Rolling Stone	[10]
Sounds	[11]

Writing for Spin, Jon Young deemed Goodbye Jumbo a "winning opus" and said that frontman Karl Wallinger's "unabashed enthusiasm" and "ability to craft killer pop tunes" prevent the album's liberal referencing of earlier musical styles from becoming "sterile".^[12] Chicago Tribune critic Greg Kot considered the album to be heavily influenced by the Beatles' "sense of pop and studio craft", further commenting that the "biting" humour and irony in its lyrics are effectively balanced by upbeat "melodies and moments".^[3] Chris Willman of the Los Angeles Times stated that Wallinger's "Lennonisms sound somehow endemic, not affected", and that the album never lapses into "petty theft" despite its numerous influences.^[6] In Rolling Stone, Don McLeese wrote that "Goodbye Jumbo displays an ambition as broad as the emotional range of its music", and that while "Wallinger's missionary zeal occasionally belabors his messages", the music "is sufficiently vital to overpower resistance".^[10] The Village Voice's Robert Christgau, however, dismissed the album as a "dud".^[13]

At the end of 1990, Goodbye Jumbo was named the year's best album by Q.^[14] It was also voted the fifteenth best album of 1990 in The Village Voice's year-end Pazz & Jop critics' poll.^[15] At the Grammy Awards' 1991 ceremony, Goodbye Jumbo was nominated for Best Alternative Music Performance.^[16] In 2000, it was ranked 94th on Q's list of the "100 Greatest British Albums Ever".^[17]

In 2000 it was voted number 474 in Colin Larkin's All Time Top 1000 Albums.^[18]

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Karl Wallinger.

1. "Is It Too Late?" – 4:24
2. "Way Down Now" – 3:49
3. "When the Rainbow Comes" – 4:58
4. "Put the Message in the Box" – 4:16
5. "Ain't Gonna Come Till I'm Ready" – 5:05
6. "And I Fell Back Alone" – 3:57
7. "Take It Up" – 4:37
8. "God on My Side" – 4:14
9. "Show Me to the Top" – 5:15 (contains untitled hidden track beginning at 4:42)
10. "Love Street" – 4:21
11. "Sweet Soul Dream" – 4:39
12. "Thank You World" – 3:47

Personnel

Credits for Goodbye Jumbo adapted from album liner notes.^[19]

Musicians Karl Wallinger – vocals, all instruments (except as indicated), composition, design, engineering, production Guy Chambers – drum samples (1), synthesizer (3,4,9,10), sampler (4), backwards piano (5), acoustic piano (10), harmonium (11), Chris Sharrock – drum kit (2, 3, 4) Jeff Trott – slide guitar (1,3), electric guitar (2), 12-string acoustic guitar (3) Jerod Minnies – acoustic guitar (1) Martyn Swain – bass guitar (10) Chris Whitten – drum kit (1,5) Steve Wickham – violin (7) Roy Morgan – tambourine (2) Dave Catlin-Birch – guitar (6,7) Sophia Ramos – backing vocals (3) Sinéad O'Connor – backing vocals (11)

Additional personnel Joe Blaney – engineering Karl Wallinger and Stephanie Nash – artwork Steven Fargnoli – management Karl Wallinger and Michael Nash – design Steve Wallace – photography Tim Young – digital editing, mastering

Charts

Chart performance for Goodbye Jumbo

Chart (1990)	Peak position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[20]	70
Canadian Albums (RPM)[21]	26
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[22]	38
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[23]	20
UK Albums (OCC)[24]	36
US Billboard 200[25]	73

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[26]	Silver	60,000^
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

1. "World Party Chart History (Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 14 July 2015.
2. Erlewine, Iotis. "Goodbye Jumbo – World Party". AllMusic. Retrieved 14 July 2015.
3. Kot, Greg (10 May 1990). "World Party: Goodbye Jumbo (Ensign)". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 24 October 2015.
4. Wallace, Wyndham (September–October 2021). "World Party: Goodbye Jumbo". Classic Pop. No. 71. p. 95.
5. Sandow, Greg (18 May 1990). "Goodbye Jumbo". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on 22 August 2017. Retrieved 14 July 2015.
6. Willman, Chris (27 May 1990). "World Party 'Goodbye Jumbo' Ensign/Chrysalis". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 14 July 2015.
7. Williams, Simon (12 May 1990). "World Party: Goodbye Jumbo". NME. p. 36.
8. Black, Johnny (June 1990). "Primeval". Q. No. 45. p. 107.
9. Crossing, Gary (19 May 1990). "World Party: Goodbye Mr Jumbo". Record Mirror. p. 19.
10. McLeese, Don (31 May 1990). "World Party: Goodbye Jumbo". Rolling Stone. No. 579. Archived from the original on 1 October 2007. Retrieved 14 July 2015.
11. Stout, Andy (12 May 1990). "World Party: Goodbye Jumbo". Sounds. p. 41.
12. Young, Jon (July 1990). "World Party: Goodbye Jumbo". Spin. Vol. 6, no. 4. pp. 79–80. Retrieved 22 January 2016.
13. Christgau, Robert (2000). "World Party: Goodbye Jumbo". Christgau's Consumer Guide: Albums of the '90s. St. Martin's Griffin. p. 339. ISBN 0-312-24560-2. Retrieved 1 July 2011.
14. "The Fifty Best Albums of 1990". Q. No. 52. January 1991. pp. 82–88.
15. "The 1990 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. 5 March 1991. Retrieved 14 July 2015.
16. "World Party". The Recording Academy. Retrieved 29 June 2023.
17. "The 100 Greatest British Albums Ever!". Q. No. 165. June 2000.
18. Colin Larkin (2000). All Time Top 1000 Albums (3rd ed.). Virgin Books. p. 169. ISBN 0-7535-0493-6.
19. Goodbye Jumbo (liner notes). World Party. Ensign Records. 1990. CDP 32 1654 2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
20. Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (PDF ed.). Mt Martha, Victoria, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. p. 306.
21. "Top Albums/CDs - Volume 52, No. 7 Jun 30, 1990". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Retrieved 23 August 2021.
22. "Dutchcharts.nl – World Party – Goodbye Jumbo" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 20 January 2016.
23. "Swedishcharts.com – World Party – Goodbye Jumbo". Hung Medien. Retrieved 20 January 2016.
24. "World Party | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 20 January 2016.
25. "World Party Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 14 July 2015.
26. "British album certifications – World Party – Goodbye Jumbo". British Phonographic Industry.

External links

• Goodbye Jumbo at Discogs (list of releases)