Having broken out of Northern Ireland with the success of their debut album, the 1979 grandeur-esque “Inflammable Material”, Stiff Little Fingers had continued to build their craft and move into their sophomore album, “Nobody’s Heroes”. The story of that album and what went into the writing and recording of it can be found on episode 26 of this podcast. I think it is well worth a listen.
Following the release of the album, the band entered a busy period of their existence, including a hectic and extensive touring schedule that saw them tour the US for the first time. To prepare the audiences for that tour the band released a live album titled “Hanx!” that showcased the fire and energy that the band’s live shows had to offer. That album has also been reviewed here, and you can listen to that story on episode 122 of this podcast as well.
The band continued to build on the momentum from “Nobody’s Heroes”, an album which had strengthened their reputation beyond Northern Ireland and the UK punk scene. The extensive touring that the band undertook gave them greater exposure to different markets, performing both their politically charged early material and newer songs that hinted at a changing musical direction. It was during this period that Stiff Little Fingers began experimenting with more melodic arrangements and broader lyrical themes in their music. While still rooted in punk and their core sound, the band’s songwriting grew more reflective and musically varied—an evolution that would become more pronounced on the material being produced for their follow up album.
The band spent the latter half of 1980 and into 1981 writing and refining new material. This creative phase produced songs that leaned into a more polished, pop‑inflected punk sound, marking a shift from the rawer edge of “Inflammable Material” and “Nobody’s Heroes”. The newer material featured a more upbeat tone and expanded instrumentation, something that proved a bridge between their earlier politically intense punk identity to a more diverse and perhaps commercially pleasing style. The band spent two weeks in the studio in February 1981, and the result was their third studio album, one that contained a number of surprises, titled “Go for It”.
The album opens with a continuing phase of the band’s career, and the punk genre as a whole, with “Roots, Radicals, Rockers and Reggae”. A cover song that is a reimagining of an original version from Bunny Wailer, a former member of Bob Marley and the Wailers, the fusing of the reggae original to the band’s punk roots is done entertainingly well. Henry Cluney on guitar offers up his best work in redesigning the original concept of the track into one that allows the band’s natural sound to become the dominant sound of the track. It is an interesting choice to open this album, but is obviously a song that spoke to the band strongly and demanded that they offer it as the opening to their new album. This is followed by the first single released from the album, “Just Fade Away”. The Band’s regular lyricist Gordon Ogilvie offers up his best anti-ballad here for the band to work with, talking about the girl who wants to be with him but those feelings are not reciprocated. While the music on the track moves back to a closer approximation of the band’s core punk sound, it is a slightly washed out version, not as sharp and biting and hard core as their original sound. It is – for want of a better word – a commercialised sound of the band, one that seems like it is moving in that direction. The song works fine and is very easy to sing along with, but it is a move in that new direction. Then comes the instrumental “Go for It”, which allows all four members to offer in their best to create an entertaining track. Both guitars sew together nicely, and the drum work from Jim Reilly is once again top notch, while Ali McMordie’s bass line also thumps out impressively.
“The Only One” is the first true reggae based song of the album, the typical guitar riff of the genre kick starts the track and is joined by the drum beat and ambling bass line that seals the deal, along with Jake’s definitive vocal style. The lyrics defy the tone of the song, with the opening verse of “It makes you so angry, You rage and rage again, But you can't spit it outside, it's bottled in your brain, You feel it in the darkness, the rage inside you grow, And you know you're a stranger, in the room below.” really feeling as though it needs the angry and aggressive music and vocals of the bands punk roots to go along with it. Instead, it acts like a reggae ballad than a punk song at all. If you accept the growing influence of reggae on popular post punk in the UK then this song works fine. “Hits and Misses” follows, and the reggae influences are gone but the same commercial sound of the track remains. This is a sole composition between Jake and Gordon, musing on the wife or partner being physically and mentally abused by their husband depending on his mood, invoking the name ‘Jack the lad’, a term often used in describing the guy who is a great mate but abusive at home. This style of song lyrically shows the band moving away from the politically themed and fuelled songs of their punk roots and the beginning of the band trying to talk more on social issues, and the musical style softening as a result.
“Kicking Up a Racket” sends us to more normal pursuits, simply discussing the teenager sitting at home listening to his favourite music – Stiff Little Fingers presumably – and only being in the wrong by playing it too loud. The lyrics showcase this, with “I don't smoke and I don't drink, But like to see the max lights blink, They say that they can't sleep a wink, But I don't want to hear me think, Life's no fun and life is dull, Unless you turn the knobs up full”. Still, this should be a faster and punkier track than it is to really derive the full effect of the lyrics. Surely. The following song “Safe as Houses” is another of the songs where the desire to make a change in their output is obvious. At over five minutes, this is one of the album’s more ambitious tracks. It’s moody, atmospheric, and layered — showing the band’s willingness to stretch beyond punk’s traditional boundaries. The reggae strum of the guitar incorporates that influence again into the music. And then, just for good measure, the band travels back to late 1950’s style rock with “Gate 49”, which has no semblance of punk or reggae for that matter, it is a song that could easily have come from Buddy Holly or bands of that era. Stiff Little Fingers have travelled this road before, and to me it was just as unsuccessful then as it is here.
“Silver Lining” was the second and final single released from the album, and comes with an added bonus that you would never have expected from a UK punk band, the piano, the saxophone and the trumpet. And yes, that is still a bit much to take for those of us who came up with those first two great albums. Overall the mood and tempo of the track mirrors a bit more closely their better songs from previous albums, but the brass coming into it is something I’m sure some people say is a great moment, that it proves that the band is willing to experiment and further their music. I – am not one of those people. The album finally ends... I mean, the album then comes to its conclusion with “Piccadilly Circus”, something a bit closer to what most people remember as the true calling of the Stiff Little Fingers, the spitting lyrics, the closer approximation of the punk guitars and bass, and the harder hit drums. If nothing else, this song at least closes off the album in a much more amenable fashion than some of what has come before it.
The first song that I clearly remember ever hearing was the title track to this album, “Go for It”, though it wasn’t as a part of this album. It came from a mixed cassette one of my friends in high had that his older brother had made for him, more or less as an introduction to his favourite punk rock songs. This was at a school camp that we were on in the final weeks of Year 10 in 1985, a camp where other momentous things also occurred. The tape, that became known as “the Pommie Punk Tape”, even though it had other bands on it that were not from the UK, became legendary in our last two years of high school, and led us to discover many bands. One of them of course being Stiff Little Fingers.
I didn’t actually get this album until a few years later. I bought a best of “All the Best”, and then the other two albums prior to getting around to this one. And I won’t lie – it was a shock when I first heard it. I was expecting something extraordinary. I loved the instrumental title track, and I guessed I just expected it to be like the first two albums. And, it really isn’t. It is a whole different kettle of fish. I didn’t hate it at the time, but because it was so different I kind of glossed over it when I listened, and didn’t really take it in. I know if I ever got into a conversation about the band and its albums, I was very non-committal about this one. It was not hard to understand why the few friends that I had who enjoyed reggae liked this album. Though I was not completely against the genre at that time of my life, what I wanted from this punk band was – punk! And there is very little of that here.
A couple of years ago I bought this again on vinyl, and I went through the whole process of listening to the album again. Much as I have this week. And it is one of those experiences that doesn’t leave you. Because although in the background at work it has been fine, when I’ve really listened to dissect it for this episode, it is amazing how very uninterested I am in the majority of it. It barely even sounds like Jake singing, it sounds like a different guy. There’s no anger or shaking of the fist or a desire to rise up and fight the power. It is all very mainstream type music with lyrics that attack social and family issues rather than political or world problems. And that just seems very unlike what I love about this band. But – and I must stress this – when I have had my vinyl copy on in the Metal Cavern while doing some other podcast editing and composing, I have really enjoyed listening to the album again. Because it SOUNDS wonderful. The songs mightn’t be their best in my opinion, but sitting back and listening to the album again has still been enjoyable.
OK. Let’s not drag this out. If you love UK punk music, the kind that has energy and dissent about it, you are in the wrong place. There are a couple, maybe three tracks here, that are worth stopping by for. The rest is very much of a different type of music. In retrospect, it is very similar of the way that The Clash progressed in their career, and where they were at this same time. So if you enjoy The Clash of this era then I suspect you will also enjoy this album. It isn’t bad but compared to the Stiff Little Fingers earlier work it just isn’t for me.
