Cargo (album)

1983 album by Men at Work

For other uses, see Cargo (disambiguation).

Cargo

Studio album by

Men at Work

Released| 29 April 1983 (1983-04-29)
Recorded| 1982
Studio| AAV Studios, Melbourne, Paradise Studios, Sydney and Westlake Audio, Los Angeles
Genre|

* Pop rock
* new wave

Length| 42:21
Label| Columbia
Producer| Peter McIan
Men at Work chronology
| Business as Usual
(1981)  | Cargo
(1983)  | Two Hearts
(1985)

|
|

Singles from  Cargo

1. "Dr. Heckyll & Mr. Jive"
Released: October 1982
2. "Overkill"
Released: March 1983
3. "It's a Mistake"
Released: June 1983
4. "High Wire"
Released: November 1983

Cargo is the second studio album by the Australian pop rock band Men at Work, which was released in April 1983. It peaked at No. 1 on the Australian Kent Music Report Albums Chart, No. 2 in New Zealand, No. 3 on the United States Billboard 200, and No. 8 on the United Kingdom Albums Chart. Four singles were released from the album, with "Overkill" being an international top 10 hit in Canada, Ireland, Norway, and US Billboard Hot 100. This was the last Men at Work album to feature the original lineup.

## Background

[edit]

Men at Work in 1983

Australian pop rock group Men at Work released their second album, Cargo, in April 1983, which peaked at No. 1 – for two weeks – on the Australian Kent Music Report Albums Chart.[1] In New Zealand it reached No. 2.[2] The album was recorded and finished by mid-1982 with Peter McIan producing again, but its release was pushed back due to the continued success of their debut album, Business as Usual.[3][4][5] On the international market, where Business as Usual was still riding high, Cargo appeared at No. 3 on the Billboard 200,[6] and No. 8 in the UK.[7] The lead single, "Dr. Heckyll & Mr. Jive", was issued in Australia, ahead of the album, in October 1982; it reached No. 6[1] there in late 1982 and peaked at No. 28 in the US the following year.[6] The second single "Overkill" was released in March 1983 and made it to No. 5 in Australia,[1] and No. 3 in the US.[6] A third single "It's a Mistake" followed in June and only reached No. 34 in Australia,[1] but peaked at No. 6 in the US.[6] The much less successful fourth and final single "High Wire" was released in late 1983 and only reached No. 89 in Australia,[1] but reached No. 23 on the US Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks.[6] The band toured the world extensively in 1983.[3]

## Reception

[edit]

Professional ratingsReview scores

Source| Rating
AllMusic| [8]
Christgau's Record Guide| B[9]
Rolling Stone| [10]
Smash Hits| 8/10[11]

In Smash Hits, Fred Dellar praised Cargo as "an immaculately constructed album of outback pop for in-front people".[11] Rolling Stone's Christopher Connelly wrote that Cargo "may lack a track with the body-slamming intensity of 'Who Can It Be Now?' and 'Down Under', but song for song, it is a stronger overall effort than Business as Usual". He chiefly praised the album's dark, paranoid lyrics.[10] John Mendelssohn of Record also felt that none of the tracks measured up to Men at Work's early hits, but went further, saying the album in its entirety is inoffensive but forgettable, with "Upstairs in My House" being the only highlight. He found the band's instrumental solos particularly dull, and assessed that Men at Work's one asset is that "Colin Hay may be the most effortlessly soulful pop singer since Sting".[12]

In a retrospective review, AllMusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine praised "Overkill" and "It's a Mistake" as "demonstrating more depth than anything on the debut". However, he asserted that the album parallels their debut in that it focuses on two strong singles while it is "weighed down by filler".[8]

## Track listing

[edit]

All tracks are written by Colin Hay except as noted.

No.| Title| Writer(s)| Length

|
|
|

1.| "Dr. Heckyll & Mr. Jive"|  | 4:38
2.| "Overkill"|  | 3:47
3.| "Settle Down My Boy" (extended to 4:10 on the 2003 remaster)| Ron Strykert| 3:31
4.| "Upstairs in My House"| Hay, Strykert| 4:03
5.| "No Sign of Yesterday" (extended to 6:34 on the 2003 remaster)|  | 6:15
6.| "It's a Mistake" (extended to 4:47 on the 2003 remaster)|  | 4:34
7.| "High Wire"|  | 3:02
8.| "Blue for You"|  | 3:55
9.| "I Like To"| Strykert| 4:03
10.| "No Restrictions"|  | 4:31

2003 remaster bonus tracksNo.| Title| Writer(s)| Length

|
|
|

11.| "Shintaro" (B-side from "It's a Mistake" single)| Strykert| 2:52
12.| "'Till the Money Runs Out" (B-side from "Overkill" single)| Hay, Strykert, Greg Ham, Jerry Speiser, John Rees| 3:06
13.| "Upstairs in My House" (live; B-side from "Dr. Heckyl & Mr. Jive" 12" (listed as "Upstairs at My House" on the 2003 remaster)| Hay, Strykert| 3:13
14.| "Fallin' Down" (live; B-side from "High Wire" Australian single)|  | 7:55
15.| "The Longest Night" (live) (previously unreleased)| Ham| 4:04

The live tracks on the 2003 remastered edition are from a concert recorded 28 July 1983 at Merriweather Post Pavilion, Columbia, Maryland (tracks 13 and 14) and from a 1983 concert in Berkeley, California (track 15).

## Personnel

[edit]

Men at Work

* Colin Hay – lead vocals (except on tracks 3 and 9), guitar, background vocals
* Greg Ham – flute, keyboards, saxophone, harmonica, background vocals, lead vocals on track 9
* Ron Strykert – guitar, background vocals, lead vocals on track 3
* John Rees – bass, background vocals
* Jerry Speiser – drums, background vocals

Production

* Peter McIan – production, engineer
* Paul Ray – engineer
* David Price – assistant engineer
* Greg Noakes – photography
* Ron Strykert – artwork
* Nathan D. Brenner – international manager

## Charts

[edit]

### Weekly charts

[edit]

| Chart (1983–84)  | Peak
position

|

Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[1] | 1
Canadian Albums (RPM)[13] | 3
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[14] | 11
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[15] | 7
Italian Albums (FIMI)[16] | 11
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[17] | 2
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[18] | 4
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[19] | 8
UK Albums (OCC)[20] | 8
US Billboard 200[21] | 3

### Year-end charts

[edit]

| Chart (1983)  | Position

|

Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM)[22] | 12
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[23] | 46
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[24] | 16
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[25] | 15
US Billboard 200[26] | 39

## Certifications

[edit]

Region  | Certification | Certified units/sales

|
|

Australia (ARIA)[27] | Platinum  | 50,000^
Canada (Music Canada)[28] | 3× Platinum  | 300,000^
Japan  | —  | 300,000[29]
New Zealand (RMNZ)[30] | Platinum  | 15,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[31] | Gold  | 100,000^
United States (RIAA)[32] | 3× Platinum  | 3,000,000^
Summaries
Worldwide  | —  | 5,000,000[33]

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b c d e f Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
2. ^ Hung, Steffen. "Men at Work – Cargo" (ASP). New Zealand Charts Portal (Recording Industry Association of New Zealand). Hung Medien. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
3. ^ a b McFarlane, 'Men at Work' entry. Archived from the original on 13 May 2003. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
4. ^ Nimmervoll, Ed. "Men at Work". Howlspace – The Living History of Our Music (Ed Nimmervoll). White Room Electronic Publishing Pty Ltd. Archived from the original on 26 July 2012. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
5. ^ Holmgren, Magnus; Warnqvist, Stefan. "Men at Work". Australian Rock Database. Passagen (Magnus Holmgren). Archived from the original on 24 April 2012. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
6. ^ a b c d e "Men at Work – Charts & Awards – Billboard Albums". AllMusic. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
7. ^ "Men at Work > Artists > Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Official Charts Company. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
8. ^ a b Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Cargo – Men at Work". AllMusic. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
9. ^ Christgau, Robert (1990). "Men at Work: Cargo". Christgau's Record Guide: The '80s. Pantheon Books. p. 272\. ISBN 0-679-73015-X. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
10. ^ a b Connelly, Christopher (28 April 1983). "Men at Work: Cargo". Rolling Stone. New York. Archived from the original on 4 April 2008. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
11. ^ a b Dellar, Fred (12–25 May 1983). "Men at Work: Cargo" (PDF). Smash Hits. Vol. 5, no. 10\. Peterborough. p. 35\. ISSN 0260-3004. Archived (PDF) from the original on 6 September 2022. Retrieved 13 February 2022 - via World Radio History.
12. ^ Mendelssohn, John (June 1983). "Men at Work: Cargo". Record. Vol. 2, no. 8\. New York. p. 26.
13. ^ "Top Albums/CDs - Volume 38, No. 12". RPM. 21 May 1983. Archived from the original (PHP) on 24 February 2014. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
14. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Men At Work – Cargo" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 25 February 2022.
15. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Men At Work – Cargo" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 25 February 2022.
16. ^ "Gli album più venduti del 1983" (in Italian). Hit Parade Italia. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
17. ^ "Charts.nz – Men At Work – Cargo". Hung Medien. Retrieved 25 February 2022.
18. ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – Men At Work – Cargo". Hung Medien. Retrieved 25 February 2022.
19. ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Men At Work – Cargo". Hung Medien. Retrieved 25 February 2022.
20. ^ "Men At Work | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 25 February 2022.
21. ^ "Men At Work Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 25 February 2022.
22. ^ "Top RPM Albums: Issue 4435". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 28 November 2024.
23. ^ "Jaaroverzichten – Album 1983". dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved 25 February 2022.
24. ^ "Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts". GfK Entertainment (in German). offiziellecharts.de. Retrieved 25 February 2022.
25. ^ "Top Selling Albums of 1983 — The Official New Zealand Music Chart". Recorded Music New Zealand. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
26. ^ "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1983". Billboard. Archived from the original on 13 April 2021. Retrieved 25 February 2022.
27. ^ "Jackson Leads Int'I Certifications For CBS" (PDF). Cash Box. 2 July 1983. p. 34. Retrieved 23 September 2021 - via World Radio History.
28. ^ "Canadian album certifications – Men at Work – Cargo". Music Canada. Retrieved 4 August 2019.
29. ^ Fujita, Shig (21 January 1984). "International Repertoire Explosion Keys Upturn in Japanese Market" (PDF). Billboard. p. 9. Retrieved 4 August 2019.
30. ^ "New Zealand album certifications – Men at Work – Cargo". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved 20 November 2024.
31. ^ "British album certifications – Men at Work – Cargo". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 4 August 2019.
32. ^ "American album certifications – Men at Work – Cargo". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 4 August 2019.
33. ^ "Man at work". The Nation. 4 July 1997. p. 44. Retrieved 13 May 2025.

* v
* t
* e

Men at Work

* Colin Hay
* Ron Strykert
* Jerry Speiser
* Greg Ham
* John Rees

Studio albums|

* Business as Usual
* Cargo
* Two Hearts

Live albums|

* Brazil

Compilation albums|

* '81–'85 / The Works
* Contraband: The Best of Men at Work
* The Essential Men at Work

Singles|

* "Who Can It Be Now?"
* "Down Under"
* "Be Good Johnny"
* "Dr. Heckyll & Mr. Jive"
* "Overkill"
* "It's a Mistake"
* "High Wire"
* "Everything I Need"

Related|

* Discography
* Members

Authority control databases |

* MusicBrainz release group

|

*[No.]: Number
*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template