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.

Hey Yeah
Gang of Four Lyrics

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Who is wanting to be perfect?
Too many angels in heaven
You're looking at a road block
At least my fingerprints are mine

Hey yeah, we got it all
Refugees come flooding in
Sell them all our cigarettes

And send them home like friends

If I can't find truth, justice, happiness
I'm wanting the new, show me something else
(Show me something else)

Say yeah when you're meaning no
Catch Beirut on the TV tonight
Fake some love at a quarter to ten
Don't admit it - what you say

Maybe the earth's still got an edge
Who cares if it's second hand
Salmonella in the batteries
This car is from Japan

If I can't find truth, justice, happiness
I'm wanting the new, show me something else
(Show me something else)

Say yeah when you're meaning no
Catch Beirut on the TV tonight
Fake some love at a quarter to ten
Don't admit it - what you say

Say yeah when you're meaning no
Catch Beirut on the TV tonight
Fake some love at a quarter to ten
Don't admit it - what you said

Say yeah when you're meaning no
Catch Beirut on the TV tonight
Fake some love at a quarter to ten
Don't admit it - what you say

(Yeah yeah...)

(Yeah yeah...)
(Yeah yeah...)

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Gang of Four's "Hey Yeah" are a commentary on the pursuit of perfection and the disillusionment that comes with it. The opening lines question who is striving for perfection, implying that it is an unattainable goal. The line "too many angels in heaven" refers to the idea that perfection is a divine quality and humans cannot achieve it. The reference to a "roadblock" implies that there are obstacles preventing the attainment of perfection. However, the line "at least my fingerprints are mine" suggests that individuality and imperfection are something to be celebrated.

The chorus presents a cynical view of society, with refugees being exploited for profit by selling them cigarettes and then being sent away like friends. The subsequent lines convey a sense of disillusionment and a search for something new, something that will bring truth, justice, and happiness. The repeated phrase "say yeah when you mean no" alludes to people saying what is expected of them rather than expressing their true feelings. The line "salmonella in the batteries, this car is from Japan" highlights how even the most seemingly perfect things have flaws.

Overall, "Hey Yeah" presents a critique of society's obsession with perfection and the consequences of trying to achieve it. It encourages the celebration of individuality and imperfection, rather than striving to meet an unattainable standard.

Line by Line Meaning

Who is wanting to be perfect?
Who believes that perfectionism is attainable?

Too many angels in heaven
There are a lot of self-righteous people in this world.

You're looking at a road block
You're facing an obstacle that seems insurmountable.

At least my fingerprints are mine
I may not be perfect, but I am unique and authentic.

Hey yeah, we got it all
We have everything we need to succeed.

Refugees come flooding in
People are fleeing their homes due to horrible conditions.

Sell them all our cigarettes
We take advantage of their desperation and sell them harmful products.

And send them home like friends
We pretend to be friendly despite our exploitation.

If I can't find truth, justice, happiness
If life feels empty and meaningless,

I'm wanting the new, show me something else
I crave novelty and stimulation.

(Show me something else)