Review Summary: The veteran punks' ninth studio effort and first of the millenium sees the band balence a mix between their raw punk roots of old and newer poppier sound. Includes the anthemic title track and emotional Joe Strummer tribute Strummerville.
Formed in Ireland in 1977 as a result of the British punk explosion, Stiff Little Fingers established themselves releasing a trio of quality and influential punk rock albums from 1979 to 1981. In 1982 they released their fourth studio album titled
Now Then... and took a poppier and more mainstream root which, naturally, did not sit well with original fans. And the record didn’t really take off commercially as a result not really gaining a new generation of fans. The band eventually split up the following year. But in 1987 they made an unexpected comeback and toured again before releasing a brand new album in 1991 entitled
Flags and Emblems. STF would release two more albums in the nineties, not stirring up much commotion or attention, before drifting into the millennium.
Guitar and Drum, the bands ninth studio effort, was released in August 2003 on EMI (though released almost a year later in the US on Kung Fu Records) with Jake Burns, vocalist and driving force behind the band, the sole original member.
Guitar and Drum is an album many have been waiting for from the band and to some marks the real comeback of the band, however some think it was marked with 1999’s
Hope Street. Regardless, it is not far off to say it is the bands best record since their reformation in ‘87.
Guitar and Drum sees the band going back to their punk rock roots, something older fans will be greatly fond of, and has the capability of bringing in a new generation of fans as well. Jake Burn’s voice here is as good as it was twenty years ago, albeit more tamed and his song writing shows no signs of slowing down. Bassist Bruce Foxton, known to many as the bassist for The Jam, returns here for his fifth album with the group. Ian McCallum, who toured with the band in the nineties, makes his first appearance on record, and continues the way of making those catchy guitar riffs with pop sensibilities that was a signature of the band in the past. Steve Grantley makes his first appearance on drums with the band, although he played with Jake Burns on his solo venture after the group’s original breakup in 1983.
The album still retains the bands catchy pop sound and guitar riffs of their older days that inspired many of today’s pop punk acts but, as previously said, simultaneously captures a raw form, even if the sound quality is cleaner and more polished. Although the pop tends to outweigh the punk. Lyrics are surely a strong point on the album as Jake Burns, chief song writer, hasn’t lost the capability to write quality songs with subject matter worth writing about and listening too. The album opener and title track portrays some of the best lyrics on the album as Jake explains his thoughts on current popular music as well his beliefs in music. The first verse says
“Well it might make all the young girls’ hearts beat faster/ But it don’t amuse this cynical old bastard”/ “I believe in the power of guitar and drum, I believe in the hope held in a song, I believe that the music makes you strong, I believe in the power of guitar and drum”, which the former and the many other verses directly target manufactured pop acts. Also,
Rockin’ Dynamite is interesting lyrically as it was written about famous boxer Sonny Liston.
As they had done over twenty years ago, they here write about politics as many punk bands do, but keep it limited and tolerable, and do not get too carried away, as demonstrated on the acoustic album finale
Protect & Serve, which is well written and sensible. Stiff Little Fingers cited The Clash as a major influence on them and with the sudden passing of Joe Strummer in December of 2002, Jake Burns replied with writing the song
Strummerville, a beautiful tribute to the late legend. Consisting of some of my favorite lyrics, Jake sings in the chorus
“Goodbye inspiration, voice of a generation, goodbye inspiration, I wont be playing Strummerville again” and in a verse
“You wore your heart on your sleeve, with honesty and pride; you gave me hope, made me believe that what I did was right”. A tribute done properly and remains one of my favorite songs.
Not only do the two opening tracks contain some of the best lyrics, they are also arguably the two best songs here. The anthemic title track is a hard rocking yet poppy song that regains the signature sound of the band and is a great opener to the album. The Joe Strummer tribute, while still being emotional and heartfelt is another rockin’ song reminiscent of older days. The song appropriately ends with the familiar chanting of “Clash, Clash, Clash City Rockers!” until the song fades out. But to contrast with the heavier songs, there are some fine mid tempo songs, most notably the melodious pop of
Dead Man Walking. With their releases in the late seventies and early eighties, they dabbled with ska and reggae and were even given the title “The Irish Clash”. With this album, the focus seems much more to be on the rock, but the Ian McCallum sung
Be True To Yourself depicts these influences, although it is one of the lesser songs here. McCallum’s second of two tracks here is the solid, but not really striking
Can’t Get Away With That. Although Burns, to me, has a better voice overall, Ian offers a new dynamic with his two songs here and his accent is more evident.
Who Died And Made You Elvis is an ultra catchy and upbeat song, that would fit right along side a set of classic STF songs, even if a little repetitive.
Stiff Little Fingers’ ninth studio album is proof that the band, which means essentially Jake Burns, did not let age have a great effect on them. Sure, the punk is toned down a bit as oppose to say
Inflammable Material, but they don’t let up showing they can still rock. Guitar And Drum, while not having the greatest diversity in songs, is an good album chock full of catchy pop hooks, energetic songs, slower songs, and meaningful lyrics that would be good for fans of the band’s earlier material. If you are new to the band, maybe start with their debut
Inflammable Material or
Nobody’s Hero, but afterwards this would be a worthy addition.
