"Beat Crazy" is the third album by Joe Jackson, released in October 1980 and credited to the Joe Jackson Band. The album was a commercial disappointment, peaking outside the Top 40 in both the UK and the US, and its singles failed to chart. One contributing factor to the reduced sales in the US may have been that the band did not tour to support the album there. However, the Joe Jackson Band continued to be successful and toured extensively. This would be the last studio album released by the original line-up of the band until 2003's Volume 4.
The album was intended as a stylistic departure from Jackson's first two albums, but he later recalled that the band lacked a clear direction during recording. Jackson expressed that he felt the record "didn't really work." He described it as the stereotypical difficult third album, where they tried to change their formula without quite knowing how. He noted that it was darker than the previous two albums and featured a more pronounced reggae influence. While he mentioned that there were some good tracks, particularly the title track and "Biology," he did not consider it a triumphant farewell for the band.
Musically, the album incorporated reggae and ska influences, evident in songs like "In Every Dream Home," "Mad at You," and "Pretty Boys."
