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"Going Underground" is a single by English rock band the Jam, written by lead guitarist Paul Weller and released in March 1980. It debuted at number one in the UK Singles Chart,[3] spending three weeks at the top.[4] "Going Underground" was the first of four number one singles the band were to achieve throughout their career.[5][6]
| "Going Underground" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by the Jam | ||||
| A-side | "Dreams of Children" | |||
| Released | 10 March 1980[1] | |||
| Recorded | 16 January 1980 | |||
| Studio | Townhouse Studios, London | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 2:50 | |||
| Label | Polydor | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Paul Weller | |||
| Producer(s) | Vic Coppersmith-Heaven | |||
| The Jam singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Music video | ||||
| "Going Underground" on YouTube | ||||
Production
edit"Going Underground" and "Dreams of Children" were both recorded on 16 January 1980 at Townhouse Studios in London with Vic Coppersmith-Heaven producing.[7] The lyrics have been described as having a "Shakespearian sentiment" as they "beckon the masses to recognise their collective power against the rise of the hierarchy".[8] Weller specifically offers a sharp condemnation of Margaret Thatcher's recently elected Conservative government, the voter apathy that led her to power, and the military–industrial complex with the song.[9] According to critic Eoghan Lyng, Weller's guitar and Bruce Foxton's bass work on the track were "pleasantly reminiscent" of the Beatles song "And Your Bird Can Sing" from the album Revolver (1966), which the follow-up single "Start!" would also take ideas from.[8]
Release
edit"Going Underground" was not released on any of the band's six studio albums, although it has appeared on many compilations since the 1980s, as well as reissues of Setting Sons. The song was released as a double A-side with "Dreams of Children", which originally had been intended to be the sole A-side;[10] following a mix-up at the pressing plant, the single became a double A-side, and DJs tended to choose the more melodic "Going Underground" to play on the radio.[11]
"Going Underground" became the Jam's first UK number-one single and one of the top-selling releases of their career. At the time the single reached number one, the band were touring in the US, where they had long struggled commercially. Foxton recalled: "The record company called us up and told us we'd gone in at Number One. We said, 'Well, what are we doing here then?' We jumped on the plane and went home to where people did want to hear us. We flew back on Concorde and recorded Top of the Pops."[12]
"Going Underground" was the 15th best-selling single in the UK in 1980.[13] The song was ranked at number 2 among the "Tracks of the Year" for 1980 by NME.[14]
"Dreams of Children"
edit"Going Underground" was coupled with "Dreams of Children" as a double A-side. It opens and is intermittently accentuated with a backmasked sample of the band's 1979 song "Thick as Thieves". In the US the backwards intro was edited out making the single 10 seconds shorter than the UK Version. This US edit is available on the best-of compilation Snap!.
Certifications
edit| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom (BPI)[15] | Platinum | 600,000‡ |
|
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. | ||
Cover versions
editThe song was covered by Buffalo Tom for the 1999 Jam tribute album Fire and Skill: The Songs of the Jam. This version also was released as part of a double A-side single with Liam Gallagher's and Steve Cradock's version of "Carnation" and reached number 6 in the UK Singles Chart.[16]
References
edit- ^ "The Jam - Single - Going Underground". Thejam.org.uk.
- ^ Egan, Sean (6 November 2014). The Clash: The Only Band That Mattered. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 165. ISBN 0810888769, 9780810888760.
- ^ Jo Rice (1982). The Guinness Book of 500 Number One Hits (1st ed.). Guinness Superlatives Ltd. pp. 202–3. ISBN 0-85112-250-7.
- ^ "1980 Top 40 Official Singles Chart UK Archive 22 March 1980". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 7 March 2014.
- ^ "Jam | Full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". Officialcharts.com.
- ^ "Going Underground/Dreams of Children | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". Officialcharts.com.
- ^ Hewitt 1997, CD 3 tray insert.
- ^ a b Lyng, Eoghan (28 February 2022). "The Story Behind The Song: The Jam damn the British government with 'Going Underground'". Far Out. Archived from the original on 28 February 2022. Retrieved 28 June 2024.
- ^ Cairns, Dan (14 September 2008). "Song of the year: 1980 Going Underground by The Jam". The Sunday Times. ISSN 0956-1382. Retrieved 15 November 2019.
- ^ The Very Best of The Jam sleeve notes (p. 11), 1997
- ^ David Lines (31 March 2012). The Modfather: My Life with Paul Weller. Random House. p. 103. ISBN 9781448149100.
- ^ Chamberlain, Rich (14 March 2023). "Bruce Foxton of The Jam's 11 career-defining songs: "Start isn't exactly the same as Taxman... otherwise I'm sure Paul McCartney would have thought about suing us!"". MusicRadar.
- ^ "The Official Top 50 best-selling songs of 1980". Official Charts. 26 February 2021.
- ^ "Albums and Tracks of the Year". NME. 2016. Retrieved 30 October 2016.
- ^ "British single certifications – Jam – Going Underground". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 13 January 2023.
- ^ Nick Edwards (October 2003). "Buffalo Tom". In Peter Buckley (ed.). The Rough Guide to Rock (3rd ed.). Rough Guides. pp. 147–148. ISBN 9781843531050. Retrieved 24 February 2015.
Sources
editHewitt, Paolo (1997). Direction, Reaction, Creation (CD). United Kingdom: Polydor. 537143-2.