Early years
Prior to becoming Stiff Little Fingers, Jake Burns, vocals and guitar, Henry Cluney, guitar, Gordon Blair, bass, and Brian Faloon, drums, were playing in a rock music cover band, Highway Star, in Belfast. Upon the departure of Gordon Blair (who went on to play with another Belfast group, Rudi), Ali McMordie took over on bass. Cluney had by this time discovered punk, and introduced the rest of the band to it. They decided that Highway Star wasn't a punk enough name, and after a brief flirtation with the name "The Fast", decided to call themselves Stiff Little Fingers, after the Vibrators song of the same name.
It was while they were doing a gig at the Glenmachan Hotel that they met up with Gordon Ogilvie, who was a Marxist journalist with the Daily Express newspaper, invited along for the evening by Colin McClelland, another journalist, with whom Jake had been corresponding.
Ogilvie suggested they play material based upon their experience of the Troubles. McClelland arranged to get the band some recording time at a local radio station, and in the studio normally used to record jingles, they recorded "Suspect Device". The single was packaged in the form of a cassette, with a cover depicting a cassette bomb, apparently causing great hilarity in the group, when one record company phoned them and asked for another copy, as they'd thrown the first one in a bucket of water for fear that it was a real bomb.
A copy of the single was sent to John Peel. He played it repeatedly leading to a distribution deal through Rough Trade. The single was released on the band's own Rigid Digits label and sold over 30,000 copies. Peel would later do the same with the first single by another famous Northern Irish band, The Undertones. There were a number of well-publicised arguments between the two bands; the Undertones accused Stiff Little Fingers of sensationalising the Northern Ireland conflict, while they retorted that The Undertones ignored it.
The lyrics of many Stiff Little Fingers' songs concerning the troubles are extremely critical of the paramilitary organisations and governments involved, showing them to be exploititative of ordinary people (particularly the young) and all as bad as each other. Their second single, "Alternative Ulster", was originally intended to be given away free with the fanzine of the same name.
Inflammable Material
In the second half of 1978, they toured with the Tom Robinson Band, and in 1979, they released their first album, Inflammable Material. The band agreed a contract with Island Records, but it fell through, leaving the band to release the album on their own label. Despite the album's independent release, it reached number 14 in the UK Albums Chart and reached Silver status, selling over 50,000 copies. Inflammable Material was the first album distributed Rough Trade records, and the first independent album to chart in the UK. This inspired their move to London, which led to the departure of Brian Faloon and Colin McClelland (who along with Gordon Ogilvie had been joint manager of the band up until that point).
Jim Reilly became their drummer in time for the "Gotta Gettaway" single, and played in the Rock Against Racism tour.
Nobody's Heroes and Go for It
In mid-1979, Stiff Little Fingers signed their Rigid Digits label to Chrysalis Records, and in 1980 released their second album, Nobody's Heroes. 1981's Go for It followed. Soon after the Go for It tour, Jim Reilly left the band. His place was taken by Brian 'Dolphin' Taylor, who Jake remembered from Taylor's days with the Tom Robinson Band.
Breakup
Now Then...
In 1982 came a 4 song EP called £1.10 or Less and then their fourth studio album, Now Then... (although their fifth album, as they had released a live LP, Hanx, between Nobody's Heroes and Go for It). By this time they had diversified musically, and Now Then had an almost pop feel about it in places. This led some of their more hardcore fans to feel alienated, and in the face of low sales and concert attendances, they broke up in 1983, when Burns said: "Our last LP Now Then was to my mind the best album we have made. But it is also unfortunately the best I think we will ever make. So I have decided to call it a day." The band later revealed the original split had been somewhat acrimonious, with bandmembers apparently having fistfights rather than talking through their differences.
Reformation
They reformed in 1987; according to Burns, because they were "skint and wanted to make a bit of cash to get back to Ireland for Christmas". They released some live albums and did short tours towards the end of the 1980s, and by 1990 were thinking of reforming permanently.
Flags and Emblems
Ali McMordie decided he could not commit the time to tour full-time or record, and so left, being replaced by Bruce Foxton (previously bass guitarist in The Jam) in time to record 1991's Flags and Emblems. In Britain, the single from this album, "Beirut Moon", was withdrawn from sale on the first day of release, allegedly because it criticised the government for not acting to free hostage John McCarthy, who had been held in the Lebanon.
In 1993 Burns made what he described as one of the hardest decisions of his life and asked Henry Cluney to leave the band, and the trio of Jake Burns, Bruce Foxton and Dolphin Taylor continued for the next four years, joined on live shows by either Dave Sharp or Ian McCallum.
Get a Life
In 1994 they released Get a Life in the UK, releasing it in the U.S. in 1996. By the end of 1996 Taylor left due to family commitments. Burns called in Steve Grantley who had played drums for Jake Burns and the Big Wheel in the late 1980s.
Tinderbox - Guitar and Drum
The trio of Burns, Foxton and Grantley recorded 1997's Tinderbox album, with help from Ian McCallum who joined as a full time member for 1999's and best of all...Hope Street . This same line-up recorded 2003's Guitar and Drum.
Lineup change
On 18 January 2006, the following announcement appeared on the SLF Website. Bruce Foxton has announced that he is to leave Stiff Little Fingers with immediate effect. After 15 years of writing, recording and touring with SLF Bruce says it is time to move on and concentrate on other projects. "The situation is amicable" says Foxton. "I have enjoyed my time with Jake, Ian and Steve and will miss them. Naturally I wish them all continued success and hope to catch up with the boys during their spring tour."
Obviously, we as well wish Bruce every success in everything he goes on to do in the future. He has been a fantastic asset to the band and we'll miss him as well.
Jake, Steve, Ian.
On 23 January 2006, it was announced that original bass guitarist Ali McMordie was to rejoin the band for the duration of their upcoming March tour. The tour was a success, with many fans writing into SLF's message board saying how much they enjoyed it, and how fired up the band seemed to be. After much discussion regarding the status of McMordie within the band after the tour, on 21 April 2006, Burns posted the following on the message board.
"For the time being Mr. McMordie is happy to continue as long as his busy schedule allows. It may be that occasionally we have to bring on a "substitute", if he is up to his eyes and we need to do something, but hopefully we can avoid that.
Cheers,
Jake."
New album
On 9 March 2007, Jake Burns announced that Stiff Little Fingers would be recording a new album which would hopefully be completed by the end of 2007. They have previewed a track from the new album, "Liars Club", at live concerts. The track is named after a bar Jake drove past on his way home whilst listening to a press report about Tony Blair, George W. Bush and the Iraq War. As of February 2009, the new album is still unreleased. This is mainly due to the fact that Burns had more or less completed writing, when he decided on a change of direction, and scrapped most of the songs.
Two Guitars Clash
Stiff Little Fingers Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I realised then as the earth moved that first time
That I had had more here inside
Just waiting for the vital spark
And then it crashed in on my senses with a bang
And overtook me with a pleasure oh so strong
That had been hidden for so long
Like switch a light on in the dark
I heard the sound of 2 guitars clash [etc]
And ever since I've sought the sheer release I've found
In the explosion of electrifying sound
That hits and lifts me off the ground
The jolt & jangle of live wires
I want to hear the 2 guitar clash [etc]
Oh can you hear it, I want to feel it, I want to be it 'cause its real
I rushed home at night to listen with school friends
And queued to bump & jump to the sound of real live bands
But now the power's in our own hands
And we will grab it while we can
We're gonna make the 2 guitars clash [etc]
The lyrics to Stiff Little Fingers's song "Two Guitars Clash" describe the exhilaration and liberation of discovering a passion for music. The singer starts out content with their life, but then experiences a moment of revelation when they hear the sound of two guitars clashing together. This ignites a new sense of purpose in their life and becomes a driving force that inspires them to seek out the same kind of energy and excitement in the world around them.
The song celebrates the power of music to provide an escape from everyday life and to give people a sense of belonging and community. The singer rushes home at night to listen to music with friends and seeks out live shows and concerts as a way to connect with others who share their passion. They are determined to hold onto this feeling and to make sure that others can experience it too, asserting that "the power's in our own hands / And we will grab it while we can."
Overall, "Two Guitars Clash" is a testament to the transformative power of music and the ways in which it can change our lives and give us a sense of purpose and belonging. It is a celebration of the joy and energy that can come from listening to or playing music, and a call to action for others to seek out these same experiences in their own lives.
Line by Line Meaning
Though up till then I'd thought that what I had was fine
Although I thought everything was okay until then
I realised then as the earth moved that first time
I had an awakening moment when everything clicked into place
That I had had more here inside
I had untapped potential within myself
Just waiting for the vital spark
I was waiting for the right inspiration to come along
And then it crashed in on my senses with a bang
Suddenly, I had a powerful moment of realization
And overtook me with a pleasure oh so strong
It was an enjoyable experience that I couldn't resist
That had been hidden for so long
Something within me had been buried and overlooked for a long time
Like switch a light on in the dark
It was like turning on a light in a dark room
I heard the sound of 2 guitars clash [etc]
I discovered the power of two guitars clashing together in harmony
And ever since I've sought the sheer release I've found
Since then, I've been searching for the same feeling of release and freedom
In the explosion of electrifying sound
In the intensity of a lively, energizing musical performance
That hits and lifts me off the ground
That has the power to move me to a higher place
The jolt & jangle of live wires
The exciting and unpredictable energy of live music
I want to hear the 2 guitar clash [etc]
I crave the sound of two guitars clashing together in perfect harmony
Oh can you hear it, I want to feel it, I want to be it 'cause its real
I want to fully immerse myself in the experience of two guitars clashing together, because it's authentic and genuine
I rushed home at night to listen with school friends
I was so excited about the music that I couldn't wait to share it with my peers
And queued to bump & jump to the sound of real live bands
I eagerly waited in line so I could dance and revel in the performance of a live band
But now the power's in our own hands
Now, we can create our own music and take control of the power of music
And we will grab it while we can
We will seize the opportunity to create music while we have the chance
We're gonna make the 2 guitars clash [etc]
We will create our own harmonious sound by blending our two guitars together
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, BMG Rights Management
Written by: HENRY CLUNEY, GORDON OGILVIE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind