Gang of Four are a British post-punk group from Leeds, England. Original pe… Read Full Bio ↴Gang of Four are a British post-punk group from Leeds, England. Original personnel were singer Jon King, guitarist Andy Gill, bass guitarist Dave Allen and drummer Hugo Burnham. They were fully active from 1977 to 1984, and then re-emerged twice in the 1990s with King and Gill. In 2005, the original lineup reunited.

The group had a single in the British Top 60 with "At Home He's A Tourist" in 1979, which was blacklisted by Top Of The Pops for its use of the relatively innocuous term "rubbers". Storming, Doc Marten-booted and fueled by a heady cocktail of Gramsci, Marx and lager, out of the Leeds art-school scene that produced The Mekons and Delta 5, they played a stripped-to-the-wire, funk-fueled permutation of punk rock. This is best exemplified by the dry production and forceful polemic of debut effort Entertainment! - Gang of Four's later albums (Songs Of The Free and Hard) found them softening some of their more jarring qualities, and drifting towards disco.

Critic Stewart Mason has called "Love Like Anthrax" (their first single, later re-recorded as "Anthrax") not only the group's "most notorious song" but also "one of the most unique and interesting songs of its time"; it's also a good example of Gang of Four's social perspective. After a minute-long, droning, feedback-laced guitar intro, the rhythm section sets up a funky, churning beat, and the guitar drops out entirely. In one stereo channel, King sings a "post-punk anti-love song", comparing himself to a beetle trapped on its back ("and there's no way for me to get up") and equating love with "a case of anthrax, and that's some thing I don't want to catch." Meanwhile in the other stereo channel (and slightly less prominent in the mix), Gill reads a deadpan monologue about public perception of love, and the prevalence of love songs in popular music: "Love crops up quite a lot as something to sing about, 'cause most groups make most of their songs about falling in love, or how happy they are to be in love, and you occasionally wonder why these groups do sing about it all the time." The simultaneous vocals are more than a little disorienting, especially when Gill pauses in his examination of love songs to echo a few of King's sung lines.

Allen left after Solid Gold and was replaced briefly by Buster Jones (who never recorded with the group), then by Sara Lee; Allen later co-founded Shriekback, Low Pop Suicide and The Elastic Purejoy.

Their angular, slashing attack and liberal use of dissonance had a significant influence on their post-punk contemporaries in the States, including Mission Of Burma. Gang Of Four went on to influence a number of successful funk-tinged alternative rock acts throughout the 80s and 90s - even, arguably, many rap-rock and nu metal groups who were "not in touch with their ancestry enough to realize it" (Andy Kellman, on allmusic.com) - although few of their followers were as arty or political. Michael "Flea" Balzary of Red Hot Chili Peppers has stated Gang of Four were very influential on his band's early music.

Gang of Four can also be credited as one of the early influences on techno or electronic music; they released dance remixes of several later singles.

Recently the band has enjoyed a resurgence in popularity, initially due to emergence of new post-punk influenced bands such as The Rapture and Radio 4 and then the rise of Franz Ferdinand and Bloc Party, which led to the renewed patronage of the NME. The original Burnham/Allen/Gill/King lineup reformed in November 2004. In October of 2005, Gang of Four released a new LP featuring new recordings of past songs, entitled Return The Gift.

Dave Allen also co-hosts a twice-weekly "New Music Hour" radio show with Portland, Oregon's 94.7 alternative radio station.

Andy Gill died on 1st February, 2020 from, according to reports, a respiratory illness caught on the group's tour in Asia the preceding year. He was the only original member still playing in the Gang Of Four.

Arabic
Gang of Four Lyrics

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The information I was given as follows:
Take care not to fall in love
For confirmation I was given as follows:
Take care not to fall like dominoes
It's okay while we touch
It's okay while we touch
It's okay in a clutch
While we sleep what dreams may come

It's okay in a clutch
While we sleep what dreams may come
Now I'm not sure that I'm secure
And I'm not sure that I'm secure
Keep your eyes shut or you'll watch television
You won't have to advertise
The camera won't lie where your mind goes it follows
Take care not to fall in like dominoes
It's okay

And I'm not sure that I'm secure
And I'm not sure that I'm secure

Overall Meaning

The song "Arabic" by Gang of Four explores the theme of intimacy and vulnerability. The lyrics describe the fears and uncertainties that can arise when two people become close to each other. The singer warns the listener to "take care not to fall in love," suggesting that love can be a dangerous and unpredictable force, like falling dominoes. Despite this warning, the singer acknowledges the appeal of physical touch and the comfort of being held in a "clutch."

The lyrics also touch on themes of privacy and surveillance. The line "keep your eyes shut or you'll watch television" suggests that we are constantly being monitored and influenced by outside forces. The singer encourages the listener to resist this pressure and maintain control over their own thoughts and emotions. The line "the camera won't lie where your mind goes it follows" suggests that our innermost desires and fears can be revealed by our actions and body language, even if we try to hide them.

Overall, the song "Arabic" is a complex exploration of the human condition, presenting a portrait of individuals struggling to navigate the complexities of modern life and human relationships.

Line by Line Meaning

Take care not to fall in love
Be cautious, avoid falling in love.

Take care not to fall like dominoes
Be mindful not to fall down one by one like dominoes when you fall in love.

It's okay while we touch
There's no problem in just touching each other.

It's okay in a clutch
It's tolerable in troubled times.

While we sleep what dreams may come
We don't know what we'll dream about when we sleep.

Now I'm not sure that I'm secure
I'm uncertain about my safety or stability now.

Keep your eyes shut or you'll watch television
Don't let yourself become a passive observer of life.

You won't have to advertise
You don't need to promote yourself or make a show of things.

The camera won't lie where your mind goes it follows
Your thoughts can be seen through your actions.

Take care not to fall in like dominoes
Be cautious, avoid falling for someone and becoming emotionally unstable.

It's okay
Things are tolerable.