"Songs from the Big Chair" received critical acclaim. In his review, critic Barry McIlheney of "Melody Maker" stated that "none of you should really be too surprised that Tears for Fears have made such an "excellent" album", calling it "an album that fully justifies the rather sneering, told-you-so looks adopted by Curt Smith and Roland Orzabal on the sleeve", before concluding, "An awful lot of people will, of course, go on and on about overcoats, The Lotus Eaters and an alleged lack of depth. And an awful lot of people will have to eat an awful lot of words." Ian Cranna of "Smash Hits" described it as "looser, more exploratory than before" in nature, and noted its "unflinching lyrical honesty". "Rolling Stone" critic Don Shewey wrote that Tears for Fears "sounds a lot like a lot of other British bands" and observed traces of "U2's social conscience, the Bunnymen's echoing guitars and XTC's contorted pop wit" on the album, but commented that Chris Hughes' production "nudges "Songs from the Big Chair" slightly ahead of the pack." Robert Christgau was less enthusiastic in his review for "The Village Voice", observing some substantial lyrics, particularly on "The Working Hour", and musical elements such as an "uncommon command of guitar and piano, Baker Street sax, synthesizers more jagged than is deemed mete by the arbiters of dance-pop accessibility". However, he felt these are all beneath grandiloquent lamentations suggesting "a depth and drama English lads have been falling short on since the dawn of progressive rock."