Song · Joe Jackson
“It's Different for Girls” by Joe Jackson
From the album I’m the Man (1979)
“It's Different for Girls” by Joe Jackson appears on 9 radio countdowns from 6 stations between 2001 and 2026. It was first released in 1979 on the album I’m the Man. Its best result is #264 on the Fred XM Top 2002 Songs of All-Time (July 2002). In the combined RockLists rankings it is #2,919 alternative song of all time.
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"It's Different for Girls" comes off I'm the Man, Joe Jackson's 1979 album, and it's a pop song with a trapdoor in it. It sounds like the oldest story in the book, the fellow after one thing and the girl after something deeper, until Jackson flips it: she wants the fling, he wants the romance. He said later he'd overheard the line somewhere, heard a cliché, and decided to turn it inside out.
The band keeps it lean and wiry, Graham Maby's bass doing the talking, Gary Sanford's guitar and Dave Houghton's drums framing Jackson's sly, wounded vocal. David Kershenbaum produced for A&M. It turned into the biggest British hit Jackson ever had, and other artists have been covering it since.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
RockLists rankings
Alternative & Modern Rock
Indie & Adult Alternative
All Rock Formats
All-time and decade countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 291 | Virgin Radio | Virgin Radio Top 500 Songs of All-Time (December 2001) | 500 |
| 2002 | 264 | Fred (XM 44) | Fred XM Top 2002 Songs of All-Time (July 2002) | 2002 |
| 2003 | 667 | Fred (XM 44) | Fred XM Top 2044 Songs of All-Time (July 2003) | 2044 |
| 2004 | 456 | Virgin Radio | Virgin Radio Top 500 Songs of All-Time (December 2004) | 500 |
| 2005 | 331 | Virgin Radio | Virgin Radio Top 500 Songs of All-Time (December 2005) | 500 |
| 2020 | 1304 | WXPN | WXPN 2020 Greatest Songs of All Time | 2020 |
| 2022 | 414 | 90.9 The Bridge | 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of the '70s | 908 |
| 2022 | 873 | The Colorado Sound | The Colorado Sound Top 1055 Colorado Sound Songs of All Time | 1055 |
| 2026 | 906 | WYEP | WYEP Greatest Songs of All Time | 1180 |
Also listed as: It's Different For Girls.
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