Quiet Life by Japan

Quiet Life, Japan's third studio album, first slipped out on Hansa on 7 December 1979 in Canada, Japan and the Netherlands, with Britain made to wait until 18 January 1980. It's the hinge in the band's story: the glam-rock swagger of the earlier records gives way to synth-pop, cool and sleek, with Richard Barbieri's keyboards shimmering, Mick Karn's bass sliding around underneath and Steve Jansen keeping the beat tight, while David Sylvian croons over the top like a man far too elegant to break a sweat.

It didn't catch fire right away, but it became the first Japan album to chart, and it eventually went Gold in Britain for sales of more than 100,000. The title track is the one the countdowns remember.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.