On 7th July 2012 Chumbawamba announced their impending breakup before the end of the year. Their very last concert was given at the Leeds City Varieties. At this show former members of the band, such as Harry Hamer and Danbert Nobacon made their appearance. At this theatre, Chumbawamba already performed 'Big Society!' with radical theatre company Red Ladder.
The last EP of the band was released April 8th, 2013, when Margaret Thatcher passed away. The Margaret Thatcher EP 'In Memoriam' is a 5-track sound collage featuring a few small songs, which could only be pre-ordered. It was mailed to all who pre-ordered on that very day.
Early years (1982-1991)
The band was formed in 1982 from two other bands based in Yorkshire, The Passion Killers and Chimp Eats Banana. They released a series of albums (such as Pictures of Starving Children Sell Records and the a capella album English Rebel Songs) and singles on their own Agit-Pop label before moving to One Little Indian in the early 90s.
One Little Indian (1991-1997)
On One Little Indian, Chumbawamba released three albums, Slap!, Shhh, and Anarchy, on which influences of techno music are noticeable. The songs for these albums were written in a period when dance culture was thriving and the band were also influenced by it. The music had turned into a more popular sound, which they emphasized was to spread the message more effectively. Touring for Anarchy, the concert at Leeds was recorded for the live album "Showbusiness!".
The last album released on One Little Indian is Swingin' with Raymond (1995). The albums first six songs are about (the right to) love and ends with seven songs loaded with hate (in the broadest sense of the word: it includes a song about anorexia nervosa).
The EMI years (1997-2000)
Anarchy or not, the band signed to EMI by 1997. At EMI, Chumbawamba had brief mainstream success, with the singles Tubthumping and Amnesia, taken from Tubthumper. Like Slap! and Shhh, the album was noticeably influenced by techno music. The new Chumbawamba fans needed for an overview, EMI might have thought. So Uneasy Listening, a compilation of work from 1986-1998 was released by 1998.
This move alienated much of the anarchist punk scene that yielded Chumbawamba in the 80's. To their former cohorts, this new Chumbawamba -one that licensed songs for commercials and signed to a major label- was different than the one that took part in the Fuck EMI compilation record a decade before. In 1998, Scottish punk band Oi Polloi put together a 7 band compilation EP with other bands like Riot/Clone and Bus Station Loonies in response. The name of the record was "Bare Faced Hypocrisy Sells Records(The Anti Chumbawamba EP)" as a nod to Chumbawamba's first record. Chumbawamba responded by noting that even the smaller labels they had worked with were capitalist by definition and were often only driven by profit. They added that, with the help of good lawyers, they were doing what the Sex Pistols had done two decades earlier – what punk had initially set out to do before it was beset by righteous puritans looking for "a new set of rules", as the band put it. But also, in the words of Chumbawamba vocalist Danbert Nobacon, they "needed things to change", needed to "shake things up". According to the band, "even radical politics can get stagnant and repetitive." Much of the profits from the album were donated to radical groups, pirate radio stations, community organisations and anarchist projects.
By 2000, the album WYSIWYG was released, being entirely different from previous work (and thus defying the idea that the band just wanted to make commercial hits): a 22-track soundscape, comprising rock, folk, country and pop music. It includes a cover of the Bee Gees song New York Mining Disaster.
Return to independance (2002-2010)
In 2002, Chumbawamba formed their own label again, now naming it Mutt Records. On this record label, they released Readymades, followed by the world music influenced Un (2004). These two albums brought Chumbawamba to what it is now: a folk group.
Since 2005, the band decided it would be better to turn into an acoustic band. The line-up has changed to: Boff Whalley, Lou Watts, Jude Abbot and Neil Ferguson (former producer of the band). It was this line-up that released the fully acoustic album A Singsong and a Scrap on the small UK Folk and Folk-Rock label NoMasters by 2006. The album uses more traditional instruments and features English Folk artists such as Coope, Boyes & Simpson and Andy Cutting. In 2007 followed by the live album Get On With It.
In 2008, another No Masters album, The Boy Bands Have Won, was released. It contained 25 tracks of new acoustic material, some derived from traditional folk, such as Charlie. It also had guest performances by, amongst others, the Oyster Band on Hull or Hell and Roy Bailey on Word Bomber. It's this album where Phil Moody joined Chumbawamba as accordionist and vocalist.
The third album that Chumbawamba recorded on NoMasters, ABCDEFG, was released. The album is cut from very much the same cloth as the The Boy Bands Have Won, but is richer in sound. ABCDEFG stands for every note in the Western music scheme, and the album itself is about the power that music can bring to communities (Voices, That's All) and deliver to people in struggle (Wagner At The Opera). It's the first Chumbawamba album fully dedicated to music matters, though Shhh (1991) preceded this release, criticising pop culture.
On ABCDEFG, next to the five Chumbas, (amongst others) Ray Cooper plays cello and harmonica, Belinda O'Hooley plays the piano and Jo Freya plays alt and tenor saxophone.
Former members of Chumbawamba
Apart from the moment that Chumbawamba changed from electric band to acoustic band, Chumbawamba's line-up has changed several times after its first gig at January 8th, 1982.
Danbert Nobacon: Singer and keyboard player of the band, famous for wearing the brick suit, and for throwing a jug of water over UK Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott who showed up at the Brit Awards. He's still making music, see Danbert Nobacon and the Pine Valley Cosmonauts.
Dunstan Bruce: Vocalist, bass and saxophone player, percussionist and turntablist of the band.
Alice Nutter: Singer and percussionist of the band, famous for the drunk nun act she performed during live shows. Now writing scripts for radio, tv and theatre pieces.
Harry Hamer: Singer, drummer, programmer and percussionist of the band.
Mavis Dillon: Dillon did vocals, trumpet, french horn and bass for ten years, until he was replaced by Jude Abbot by 1995.
Paul Greco: Bass guitar, entered the band by 1992. He was replaced by Neil Ferguson in 1999.
Other former members include Coby Laan, Simon Commonknowledge, Midge (former Chimp Eats Banana) and Diane. There were actually loads of band members, especially in the early years. An extensive band history can be found at the Chumbawamba FAQ.
Jacob
Chumbawamba Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Like rusty old nails, at the bottom of the sea
Telling no tales, for the good of the Admiralty
You jump when you're told to, through the open door
And the King of Norway, hes the man you all died for
[Chorus:]
On this, Jacob's Ladder
Three days in the water
Watching all the secrets drown
Jacob's Ladder
"And they sent him to the wars to be slain, to be slain
And they sent him to the wars to be slain"
A thousand lifetimes, left standing at the docks
In the bar down in Whitehall, they're sure the boat won't rock
In a file marked secrets in a drawer kept closed
Nobody wonders, because nobody knows
[Chorus]
"And they sent him to the wars to be slain, to be slain
And they sent him to the wars to be slain"
[Chorus]
The song "Jacob's Ladder" by Chumbawamba paints a vivid picture of the life of a common soldier, a small cog in the machine of war. The song portrays the soldiers as being like rusty old nails, disposable and insignificant to those in power. The opening lines, "Telling no tales, for the good of the Admiralty," show that the soldiers are expected to keep quiet and obey orders without question for the greater good of the powerful elite. The reference to the King of Norway implies that the soldiers are fighting for a distant ruler who does not truly care about their well-being or survival.
The chorus of the song tells us that the only way up is down on Jacob's Ladder, meaning that the soldiers must undergo hardship and suffering in order to advance in rank or reputation. They spend three days in the water, symbolizing the baptism by fire that soldiers undergo in training and warfare. The line "Watching all the secrets drown" suggests that in the midst of danger and chaos, soldiers may learn things about themselves or their comrades that they must keep hidden to preserve the mission or the reputation of those in charge.
Line by Line Meaning
Jacob's ladder
The ladder symbolizes the hierarchy in society where people in power make decisions and the ones who follow orders are at the bottom of the ladder.
Like rusty old nails, at the bottom of the sea
The lower levels of the hierarchy are like forgotten rusty nails at the bottom of the sea that hold things together and support the higher levels, but go unnoticed.
Telling no tales, for the good of the Admiralty
The lower levels of hierarchy, like the sailors, are expected to work for the good of their superiors without questioning their orders and keep their mouths shut about the secrets they keep.
You jump when you're told to, through the open door
The lower levels are expected to blindly obey orders and jump into danger when they are told to do so.
And the King of Norway, hes the man you all died for
The ultimate authority is far removed from the frontline battles and the soldiers may be fighting for a cause they don't fully understand and don't personally believe in.
On this, Jacob's Ladder
The song emphasizes the hierarchy in society that forces people to follow orders and jump into danger without questioning authority.
The only way up is down
The only way to move up the hierarchy is to risk your life and blindly follow orders.
Three days in the water
The soldiers are expected to survive in water for three days without any support or resources.
Watching all the secrets drown
The soldiers are aware of the secrets but they are also aware of the fact that these secrets may drown them in the end too.
"And they sent him to the wars to be slain, to be slain"
The soldiers are sent to the wars to be killed, without any regard for their lives or their beliefs.
A thousand lifetimes, left standing at the docks
Many soldiers never get a chance to live their lives and are left behind when the others set sail for the wars.
In the bar down in Whitehall, they're sure the boat won't rock
The people in power are not concerned about the lives of the soldiers, and they are confident that everything will go according to their plan.
In a file marked secrets in a drawer kept closed
The secrets are kept hidden and even if the soldiers come to know about them, they can do little to change anything.
Nobody wonders, because nobody knows
The soldiers are kept in the dark about the true nature of the wars and the reasons behind them.
Lyrics © EMI Music Publishing, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: JUDITH ABBOTT, DUNCAN BRUCE, NEIL FERGUSON, DAVY GRAHAM, DARREN HAMER, NIGEL HUNTER, ALICE NUTTER, LOUISE WATTS, ALLAN WHALLEY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@TheFleeingPhoenix
I have never discovered another band in my entire life that has produced such a stunning quantity of both fun and meaningful music. I try and I try but I just cannot get sick of listening to these people.
@paulinacamu1
Same here!
@Handle2190
TheFleeingPhoenix can’t agree more
@Handle2190
TheFleeingPhoenix I also feel this kinda music ain’t for everyone
@lookatthismonkey75
Wow the comments are sooo old..
@alexv3357
Probably the most underrated band of the last 40 years
@Jotto999
I heard Chumbawamba because my dad listened to it, and I've still got a thing for some of their songs after a decade. Seems loads of other people in are a similar boat.
@Skaldet29
Sure do :-)
@egw1914
Harry Cox's vocals from the song "The Pretty Ploughboy" the album A Century of Song ("And they sent him down into the war to be slain, be slain... / And they sent him down into the war to be slain.") Guitar from Davey Graham's song "Anji" they actually credited the song to his owner so.............
@aronpuma5962
Yup! That's sampling.