Tom Robinson

Punk emerged from Thatcher’s Britain like rabies from a dog-bite with all the bile and fury of the pent-up fury at being regarded as superfluous. It was the voice of the dispossessed who had no future and nothing to lose.

With many bands it was all visceral and mad anarchic angst, not really saying things as much as shouting. With other bands that hormone driven frustration was vocalised in acidic terms that hit out like a scatter-gun at any target going.

The Tom Robinson Band were different. They spoke, or rather shouted, on behalf of the gay community who were just one of the many minority groups to feel the toxic breath of Thatcher’s intolerant venom. The gays, like the miners, unions and anyone with the slightest liberal bent, were being targeted. The law with the infamous clause 28, which made it illegal to promote homosexuality, had activated the police to be able to come down on them.

Punk embodied all of these disenfranchised groups. The working classes had no jobs as the economic crisis was politically deployed to break the unions, bring in new technology and obtain cheap labour. There was mass unemployment and no sympathy or assistance given. The Blacks were targeted with SUS. Someone had to speak out against the abuse and speak up for the downtrodden.

The Tom Robinson Band wasn’t afraid to do just that. After scoring with the great but rather innocuous ‘2-4-6-8 Motorway’ the band went on to produce a couple of great albums seething with political fury. I can just imagine the apoplexy at the Beeb whjen they released the wonderfully anthemic ‘Sing if you’re glad to be gay’.

I saw them live in Hull and they had the whole place going. All those rough, tough hetero Punks singing their hearts out.

There was only one target and it was Thatcher’s uncaring Britain.

Tom Robinson hit the bulls-eye!

Which side are you on?