Gang of Four are an English

post-punk Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of punk music that emerged in the late 1970s as musicians departed from punk's traditional elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a variety of avant-garde sensibilities and non-r ...

band, formed in 1976 in

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by popul ...

. The original members were singer

Jon King Jonathan Michael King (born 8 June 1955) is an English musician, songwriter, and Grammy nominated Art Director in the post-punk band Gang of Four. Biography King attended Sevenoaks School, where he was a member of the 'Art Room' that prod ...

, guitarist Andy Gill, bass guitarist Dave Allen and drummer Hugo Burnham. There have been many different line-ups including, among other notable musicians, Sara Lee,

Gail Ann Dorsey Gail Ann Dorsey (born November 20, 1962) is an American musician. With a long career as a session musician mainly on bass guitar, she is perhaps best known for her lengthy residency in David Bowie's band, from 1995 to Bowie's death in 2016. Asid ...

, and

Mark Heaney Mark Andrew Heaney (born 14 August 1970) is an English drummer and composer, hailing from London. He was a member of The Seahorses (1998–1999), The Shining (2001–2002) and Gang of Four (2006–2013). Heaney's interest in drumming began ...

. After a brief lull in the 1980s, different constellations of the band recorded two studio albums in the 1990s. Between 2004 and 2006 the original line-up was reunited; Gill toured using the name between 2012 and his death in 2020. In 2021, the band announced that King, Burnham, and Lee would be reuniting for a tour in 2022 with

David Pajo David Pajo (born June 25, 1968) is an American alternative rock musician. He has played a wide variety of music, loosely fitting into several other genres such as hardcore punk, math rock, post-rock, electronica, folk rock and indie pop. Tho ...

on guitar. The band played a stripped-down mix of punk rock,

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the mi ...

and dub, with a lyrical emphasis on the social and political ills of society. Gang of Four are widely considered one of the leading bands of the late 1970s/early 1980s post-punk movement. Their debut album, ''

Entertainment! ''Entertainment!'' is the debut album by English post-punk band Gang of Four. It was released in September 1979 through EMI Records internationally and Warner Bros. Records in North America. Stylistically, it draws heavily on punk rock but a ...

'', was ranked by ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...

'' as the fifth greatest punk album of all time and at number 483 in their list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. In 2004, the album was listed by

Pitchfork Media ''Pitchfork'' (formerly ''Pitchfork Media'') is an American online music publication (currently owned by Condé Nast) that was launched in 1995 by writer Ryan Schreiber as an independent music blog. Schreiber started Pitchfork while working ...

as the 8th best album of the 1970s and, in 2020, by ''Pop Matters'' as "Best Post Punk album ever". Their early 80s albums (''

Songs of the Free ''Songs of the Free'' is the third studio album by Gang of Four, released in 1982. It is their first with Sara Lee as bassist, replacing Dave Allen. In 1996, Infinite Zero Archive/ American Recordings label issued it on CD, with two bonus tr ...

'' and '' Hard'') found them softening some of their more jarring qualities, and drifting towards

dance-punk Dance-punk (also known as disco-punk, punk-funk or techno-punk) is a post-punk subgenre that emerged in the late 1970s, and is closely associated with the disco, post-disco and new wave movements.Rip It Up and Start Again: Post Punk 1978-198 ...

and

disco Disco is a genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the 1970s from the United States' urban nightlife scene. Its sound is typified by four-on-the-floor beats, syncopated basslines, string sections, brass and horns, electric p ...

. David Fricke of ''Rolling Stone'' described Gang of Four as "probably the best politically motivated band in rock & roll.".

History

Early years and ''Entertainment!'' (1976–1979)

The band initially consisted of vocalist

, guitarist Andy Gill, drummer Hugo Burnham and bass guitarist Dave Wolfson. After two or three gigs, Wolfson was replaced with Dave Allen. Gang of Four's music brought together an eclectic array of influences, ranging from the

Frankfurt School The Frankfurt School (german: Frankfurter Schule) is a school of social theory and critical philosophy associated with the Institute for Social Research, at Goethe University Frankfurt in 1929. Founded in the Weimar Republic (1918–1933), dur ...

of social criticism to the increasingly clear trans-Atlantic punk consensus. Gang of Four was named by Andy Corrigan, a member of the Mekons, while driving around with Gill and King when he came upon a newspaper billboard on the intra-

Party A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will often featu ...

coup against China's "

Gang of Four The Gang of Four () was a Maoist political faction composed of four Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officials. They came to prominence during the Cultural Revolution (1966–1976) and were later charged with a series of treasonous crimes. The gang ...

". The band's debut single, " Damaged Goods" backed with "(Love Like) Anthrax" and "Armalite Rifle", was recorded in June 1978 and released on 10 December 1978, on

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

's Fast Product label. It was a Number 1 indie chart hit and

John Peel John Robert Parker Ravenscroft (30 August 1939 – 25 October 2004), known professionally as John Peel, was an English disc jockey (DJ) and radio presenter. He was the longest-serving of the original BBC Radio 1 DJs, broadcasting regularly fr ...

radio show favourite. "Damaged Goods" was voted one of the 100 Greatest debut singles of all time in 2020's Rolling Stone Poll Two Peel radio sessions followed, which, with their incendiary live performances, propelled the band to international attention and sold-out shows across Europe and North America. They were then signed by

EMI Records EMI Records (formerly EMI Records Ltd.) is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It originally founded as a British flagship label by the music company of the same name in 1972, and launched in January 1973 as the succ ...

. The group's debut single with this label, "At Home He's a Tourist", charted in 1979. Invited to appear on top rated BBC music program ''

Top of the Pops ''Top of the Pops'' (''TOTP'') is a British Record chart, music chart television programme, made by the BBC and originally broadcast weekly between 1January 1964 and 30 July 2006. The programme was the world's longest-running weekly music show ...

'', the band walked off the show when the BBC told them to sing "rubbish" in the place of the original lyric "rubbers", as the original line was considered too risqué. The single was then banned by BBC Radio and TV, which lost the band some support at EMI. King's lyrics were always controversial and a later single, "I Love a Man in a Uniform", was banned by the BBC during the

Falklands War The Falklands War ( es, link=no, Guerra de las Malvinas) was a ten-week undeclared war between Argentina and the United Kingdom in 1982 over two British dependent territories in the South Atlantic: the Falkland Islands and its territorial ...

in 1982. Critic Stewart Mason has called "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 Feedback occurs when outputs of a system are routed back as inputs as part of a chain of cause-and-effect that forms a circuit or loop. The system can then be said to ''feed back'' into itself. The notion of cause-and-effect has to be handled ...

-laced guitar intro, the

rhythm section A rhythm section is a group of musicians within a music ensemble or band that provides the underlying rhythm, harmony and pulse of the accompaniment, providing a rhythmic and harmonic reference and "beat" for the rest of the band. The rhyth ...

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 Anthrax is an infection caused by the bacterium '' Bacillus anthracis''. It can occur in four forms: skin, lungs, intestinal, and injection. Symptom onset occurs between one day and more than two months after the infection is contracted. The s ...

, 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 (on the original EP version) a detailed account of the technical resources used on the song, which on the re-recorded album version is replaced by a

deadpan Deadpan, dry humour, or dry-wit humour is the deliberate display of emotional neutrality or no emotion, commonly as a form of comedic delivery to contrast with the ridiculousness or absurdity of the subject matter. The delivery is meant to be blun ...

monologue In theatre, a monologue (from el, μονόλογος, from μόνος ''mónos'', "alone, solitary" and λόγος ''lógos'', "speech") is a speech presented by a single character, most often to express their thoughts aloud, though sometimes a ...

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." Although the two sets of lyrics tell independent stories they occasionally synchronise for emphasis. According to critic

Paul Morley Paul Robert Morley is an English music journalist. He wrote for the ''New Musical Express'' from 1977 to 1983 and has since written for a wide range of publications as well as writing his own books. He was a co-founder of the record label ZTT Re ...

, "The Gang spliced the ferocious precision of Dr. Feelgood's working-class blues with the testing avant-garde intrigue of

Henry Cow Henry Cow were an English experimental rock group, founded at the University of Cambridge in 1968 by multi-instrumentalists Fred Frith and Tim Hodgkinson. Henry Cow's personnel fluctuated over their decade together, but drummer Chris Cutler, b ...

. Wilfully avoiding structural obviousness, melodic prettiness and harmonic corniness, the Gang's music was studded with awkward holes and sharp corners." At the time, the band was recognised to be doing something very different from other white guitar acts. Ken Tucker, in ''

'', 1980, wrote: "...rarely have the radical edges of black and white music come closer to overlapping... the Gang of Four utilize their bass guitar every bit as prominently and starkly as the curt bass figures that prod the spoken verses in (

Kurtis Blow Kurtis Walker (born August 9, 1959), professionally known by his stage name Kurtis Blow, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record/film producer, b-boy, DJ, public speaker and minister. He is the first commercially successful rapper ...

's "culture defining" huge summer hit) " The Breaks."

Later years (1980–1983)

In 1981, the band released their second LP, '' Solid Gold''. Like ''

'', the album was uncompromising, spare, and analytical. King's lyrics in such songs as "Cheeseburger", "He'd Send in the Army" and "In the Ditch" exposed the paradoxes of warfare, work and leisure. Van Gosse, in a ''

Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, the ''Voice'' began as a platform for the cr ...

'' review said: "Gang of Four embody a new category in pop, which illuminates all the others, because the motor of their aesthetic is not a 'personal creative vision.'" Dave Allen (who later co-founded

Shriekback Shriekback are an English rock band formed in 1981 in Kentish Town by Barry Andrews, formerly of XTC and the League of Gentlemen (keyboards/synthesizers/vocals), and Dave Allen, formerly of Gang of Four (bass), with Carl Marsh, formerly of ...

King Swamp King Swamp was a British rock band, consisting of Walter Wray (vocals), Dave Allen (bass), Steve Halliwell (keyboards), Dominic Miller (guitar), and Martyn Barker (drums). The band was formed in 1988 in London, after Allen and Barker had part ...

Low Pop Suicide Low Pop Suicide was an indie (music), indie rock music, rock band of the early 1990s on World Domination Recordings. History Dave Allen (producer/bassist), Dave Allen (Gang of Four (band), Gang of Four and Shriekback), Rick Boston and Jeff Ward ...

and

the Elastic Purejoy The Elastic Purejoy was an alternative rock group active in the mid 1990s and led by English bassist-singer Dave Allen. Their work was released on Allen's World Domination Recordings World Domination Recordings was an indie rock record label f ...

) had left in 1981, and had been briefly replaced by Busta "Cherry" Jones, a sometime player with

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...

Brian Eno Brian Peter George St John le Baptiste de la Salle Eno (; born Brian Peter George Eno, 15 May 1948) is a British musician, composer, record producer and visual artist best known for his contributions to ambient music and work in rock, pop a ...

and

Talking Heads Talking Heads were an American rock band formed in 1975 in New York City and active until 1991.Talki ...

. After working with Gang of Four to complete their North American tour obligations, Jones left and was replaced by Sara Lee, who was

Robert Fripp Robert Fripp (born 16 May 1946) is a British musician, songwriter, record producer, and author, best known as the guitarist, founder and longest-lasting member of the progressive rock band King Crimson. He has worked extensively as a sessio ...

's bassist in

the League of Gentlemen ''The League of Gentlemen'' is a surreal British comedy horror sitcom that premiered on BBC Two in 1999. The programme is set in Royston Vasey, a fictional town in northern England, originally based on Alston, Cumbria, and follows the live ...

. Lee was as good a singer as bassist, and she helped give the band's third studio album, ''

'', a more commercially accessible element. Although "I Love a Man in a Uniform" from the album was the band's most radio-friendly song, it was banned in the UK shortly after its release because Britain went to war in the Falkland Islands. In the spring of 1983, Burnham left the band after the release of ''Songs of the Free'' and formed Illustrated Man. Gill and King continued Gang of Four, releasing '' Hard'' in 1983. After that, the band broke up, and Lee moved to the United States where she has worked with a number of artists, including

the B-52's The B-52's, also styled as The B-52s, are an American new wave band formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1976. The original lineup consisted of Fred Schneider (vocals, percussion), Kate Pierson (vocals, keyboards, synth bass), Cindy Wilson (vocals, ...

. 1986 saw the release of ''The Peel Sessions'', a collection of rawly rendered material recorded during the period 1979 to 1981 for British radio BBC.

Melody Maker ''Melody Maker'' was a British weekly music magazine, one of the world's earliest music weeklies; according to its publisher, IPC Media, the earliest. It was founded in 1926, largely as a magazine for dance band musicians, by Leicester-born ...

dubbed the album "a perfect and classic nostalgia trip into the world of gaunt cynicism."

Gill and King reunion (1987–1997)

Gill and King reunited to record ''

Mall Mall commonly refers to a: * Shopping mall * Strip mall * Pedestrian street * Esplanade Mall or MALL may also refer to: Places Shopping complexes * The Mall (Sofia) (Tsarigradsko Mall), Sofia, Bulgaria * The Mall, Patna, Patna, Bihar, India ...

'' in 1991, and finally '' Shrinkwrapped'' in 1995. ''Mall'' featured

, later famous for her longtime association with

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...

, on bass.

Changing line-ups (2004–2012)

The original lineup of Jon King, Andy Gill, Dave Allen and Hugo Burnham reformed in November 2004. A UK tour in January 2005, shows in Europe and Japan and tours of the United States in May/June and again in September. In October 2005, Gang of Four released a new disc featuring new recordings of songs from the albums ''Entertainment!'', ''Solid Gold'' and ''Songs of the Free'' entitled ''Return the Gift'' (which featured Mark Heaney on drums) accompanied by an album's worth of remixes. In January 2011, the band, now featuring Mark Heaney on drums, and Thomas McNeice on bass, released a new album, ''

Content Content or contents may refer to: Media * Content (media), information or experience provided to audience or end-users by publishers or media producers ** Content industry, an umbrella term that encompasses companies owning and providing mas ...

'', which was called "their best record since the Seventies". Jon Pareles, in a ''New York Times'' 4-star review, declared that

he band He or HE may refer to: Language * He (pronoun), an English pronoun * He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ * He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets * He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' in ...

"have reclaimed, with a vengeance, their old attack". Following successful tours of the US, Australia and Europe in 2011, King and Gill disagreed about the band's direction and ceased working together.

Final line-up with Gill (2012–2020)

Gill, against the wishes of King, continued to tour and record under the Gang of Four name. With new lead vocalist John Sterry, as well as a returning McNiece, the band released ''What Happens Next'' in 2015, ''Complicit'' in 2018, and ''Happy Now'' in 2019, which featured a range of guest artists. XSNoise said "The album appy Nowis as intense as any ever released on their discography." Andy Gill died on 1 February 2020, and obituaries across the world hailed his legacy and impact. He was "one of the most influential musicians of the post-punk era, leading his band Gang of Four to huge acclaim with his intense, angular, staccato guitar work that blended rock with funk," said the ''Independent''. Gang of Four's "brusque, angular style would directly or indirectly influence post-punk and indie-rock bands like

Red Hot Chili Peppers Red Hot Chili Peppers are an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1983, comprising vocalist Anthony Kiedis, bassist Flea, drummer Chad Smith, and guitarist John Frusciante. Their music incorporates elements of alternative rock, funk ...

(who chose Mr. Gill to produce their debut album),

The Jesus Lizard The Jesus Lizard is an American rock band formed in 1987 in Austin, Texas and based in Chicago, Illinois. They were "a leading noise rock band in the American independent underground… hoturned out a series of independent records filled wit ...

Nirvana ( , , ; sa, निर्वाण} ''nirvāṇa'' ; Pali: ''nibbāna''; Prakrit: ''ṇivvāṇa''; literally, "blown out", as in an oil lamp Richard Gombrich, ''Theravada Buddhism: A Social History from Ancient Benāres to Modern Colomb ...

Rage Against the Machine Rage Against the Machine (often abbreviated as RATM or shortened to simply Rage) is an American rock band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1991, the group consists of vocalist Zack de la Rocha, bassist and backing vocalist Tim Commer ...

Franz Ferdinand Archduke Franz Ferdinand Carl Ludwig Joseph Maria of Austria, (18 December 1863 – 28 June 1914) was the heir presumptive to the throne of Austria-Hungary. His assassination in Sarajevo was the most immediate cause of World War I. Fr ...

and Protomartyr," said the ''New York Times'', adding: " Michael Hutchence of

INXS INXS (a phonetic play on "in excess") were an Australian rock band, formed as The Farriss Brothers in 1977 in Sydney, New South Wales. The band's founding members were bassist Garry Gary Beers, main composer and keyboardist Andrew Farriss ...

once said that Gang of Four’s music 'took no prisoners,' adding, 'It was art meets the devil via

James Brown James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, dancer, musician, record producer and bandleader. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th century music, he is often referred to by the hono ...

.'" The NME wrote: "Great musicians encapsulate their age; the very best echo endlessly onwards, and Andy Gill...has been reverberating along the baseline of alternative culture for 40 years." Two EPs, ''This Heaven Gives Me Migraine'', and ''Anti Hero'' were released after his death featuring some final studio recordings. A tribute album, ''The Problem of Leisure: A Celebration of Andy Gill and Gang of Four'', was released in June 2021.

Reunion (2021–present)

King and Burnham reunited in 2022 with Sara Lee, who joined the band in 1981 and recorded on their third and fourth albums "Songs of the Free" and "Hard", and joined on guitar by

of Slint. The band toured the US in March 2022 in support of the ''77-81'' box set, which won a Grammy Nomination.

Legacy

Gang of Four influenced a number of successful alternative rock acts throughout the 1980s and 1990s. R.E.M. frontman

Michael Stipe John Michael Stipe (; born January 4, 1960) is an American singer-songwriter and artist, best known as the lead singer and lyricist of alternative rock band R.E.M. He is known for his vocal quality, poetic lyrics and unique stage presence. Pos ...

cites Gang of Four as one of his band's chief influences;

Flea Flea, the common name for the order Siphonaptera, includes 2,500 species of small flightless insects that live as external parasites of mammals and birds. Fleas live by ingesting the blood of their hosts. Adult fleas grow to about long, ...

of the

has stated that Gang of Four were the single most important influence on his band's early music.

Kurt Cobain Kurt Donald Cobain (February 20, 1967 – April 5, 1994) was an American musician who served as the lead vocalist, guitarist and primary songwriter of the rock band Nirvana. Through his angst-fueled songwriting and anti-establishment persona ...

stated that

started as "a Gang of Four and Scratch Acid ripoff". Gang of Four's debut album ''Entertainment!'' was ranked 13th in

's list of his 50 favourite albums in his

journal A journal, from the Old French ''journal'' (meaning "daily"), may refer to: *Bullet journal, a method of personal organization *Diary, a record of what happened over the course of a day or other period *Daybook, also known as a general journal, a ...

. Andy Kellman, writing in

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Music ...

, argued that Gang of Four's "germs of influence" can be found in many

rap metal Rap metal is a subgenre of rap rock and alternative metal music which combines hip hop with heavy metal. It usually consists of heavy metal guitar riffs, funk metal elements, rapped vocals and sometimes turntables. History Origins and e ...

groups "not in touch with their ancestry enough to realize it". From the 2000s, the band enjoyed a resurgence in popularity, initially due to emergence of new

post-punk revival Post-punk revival (also known as garage rock revival,J. Stuessy and S. D. Lipscomb, ''Rock and roll: its History and Stylistic Development'' (London: Pearson Prentice Hall, 5th edn., 2006), , p. 451. new wave revival,. and new rock revolution) is ...

bands such as

Clinic A clinic (or outpatient clinic or ambulatory care clinic) is a health facility that is primarily focused on the care of outpatients. Clinics can be privately operated or publicly managed and funded. They typically cover the primary care needs ...

, Liars,

the Rapture The rapture is an eschatological position held by some Christians, particularly those of American evangelicalism, consisting of an end-time event when all Christian believers who are alive, along with resurrected believers, will rise "in the c ...

, Neils Children and Radio 4, and then the rise of

, We Are Scientists and

Bloc Party Bloc Party are an English rock band, composed of Kele Okereke (lead vocals, rhythm guitar, keyboards, sampler), Russell Lissack (lead guitar, keyboards), Justin Harris (bass guitar, keyboards, saxophones, backing vocals) and Louise Bartle ...

Band members

;Current members *

– lead vocals, melodica (1976–1984, 1990–1991, 1993, 1995, 2004–2012, 2021–present) * Hugo Burnham – drums (1976–1982, 2004–2006, 2021–present) * Sara Lee – bass, backing vocals (1980–1984, 2021–present) *

– guitar, backing vocals (2021–present) ;Past members * Andy Gill – guitars, backing and lead vocals (1976–1984, 1990–1991, 1993, 1995, 2004–2020; died 2020) * Dave Wolfson – bass (1976) * Dave Allen – bass, backing vocals (1977–1981, 2004–2008) * Steve Goulding – drums (1983–1984) *

Eddi Reader Sadenia "Eddi" Reader MBE (born 29 August 1959) is a Scottish singer-songwriter, known for her work as frontwoman of Fairground Attraction and for an enduring solo career. She is the recipient of three BRIT Awards. In 2003, she showcased the w ...

– Vocals (1982-1983) * Busta "Cherry" Jones – bass (1980; died 1995) *

- bass (1990–1991) *

– drums (2006–2013) * Jonny Finnegan – drums (2014–2016) * Thomas McNeice – bass, backing vocals (2008–2020) * John "Gaoler" Sterry – lead vocals, percussion, melodica (2012–2020) * Tobias Humble – drums (2016–2020)

Timeline

ImageSize = width:900 height:auto barincrement:20 PlotArea = left:100 bottom:90 top:0 right:10 Alignbars = justify DateFormat = dd/mm/yyyy Period = from:01/09/1976 till:01/07/2022 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal format:yyyy Colors = id:vocals value:red legend:Vocals id:bvox value:pink legend:Backing_vocals id:melodica value:purple legend:Melodica id:guitar value:green legend:Guitar id:bass value:blue legend:Bass id:drums value:orange legend:Drums id:studio value:black legend:Studio_album id:live value:gray(0.7) legend:Live_album id:bars value:gray(0.95) BackgroundColors = bars:bars Legend = orientation:vertical position:bottom columns:4 ScaleMajor = increment:4 start:1977 ScaleMinor = increment:1 start:1977 LineData = layer:back color:studio at:01/09/1979 at:01/03/1981 at:01/07/1982 at:05/09/1983 at:25/07/1991 at:01/09/1995 at:01/06/2005 at:24/01/2011 at:15/02/2015 at:29/03/2019 color:live at:01/09/1984 at:24/07/2005 at:01/10/2016 BarData = bar:Jon text:"Jon King" bar:John text:"John Sterry" bar:Andy text:"Andy Gill" bar:David text: "David Pajo" bar:Dave text:"Dave Wolfson" bar:Dave2 text:"Dave Allen" bar:Busta text:"Busta Jones" bar:Sara text:"Sara Lee" bar:Gail text:"Gail Ann Dorsey" bar:Thomas text:"Thomas McNeice" bar:Hugo text:"Hugo Burnham" bar:Steve text:"Steve Goulding" bar:Mark text:"Mark Heaney" bar:Jonny text: "Jonny Finnegan" bar:Tobias text: "Tobias Humble" PlotData= width:11 textcolor:black align:left anchor:from shift:(10,-4) bar:Andy from:01/09/1976 till:01/01/1985 color:guitar bar:Andy from:01/09/1976 till:01/01/1985 color:vocals width:3 bar:Jon from:01/09/1976 till:01/01/1985 color:vocals bar:Jon from:01/09/1976 till:01/01/1985 color:melodica width:3 bar:Andy from:04/07/1990 till:26/11/1991 color:guitar bar:Andy from:04/07/1990 till:26/11/1991 color:vocals width:3 bar:Jon from:04/07/1990 till:26/11/1991 color:vocals bar:Jon from:04/07/1990 till:26/11/1991 color:melodica width:3 bar:Andy from:07/02/1993 till:07/03/1993 color:guitar bar:Andy from:07/02/1993 till:07/03/1993 color:vocals width:3 bar:Jon from:07/02/1993 till:07/03/1993 color:vocals bar:Jon from:07/02/1993 till:07/03/1993 color:melodica width:3 bar:Andy from:23/04/1995 till:27/10/1995 color:guitar bar:Andy from:23/04/1995 till:27/10/1995 color:vocals width:3 bar:Jon from:23/04/1995 till:27/10/1995 color:vocals bar:Jon from:23/04/1995 till:27/10/1995 color:melodica width:3 bar:Andy from:01/01/2004 till:01/02/2020 color:guitar bar:Andy from:01/01/2004 till:01/02/2020 color:vocals width:3 bar:Jon from:01/01/2004 till:01/01/2012 color:vocals bar:Jon from:01/01/2004 till:01/01/2012 color:melodica width:3 bar:Dave from:01/09/1976 till:01/02/1977 color:bass bar:Dave2 from:01/02/1977 till:01/06/1981 color:bass bar:Dave2 from:01/02/1977 till:01/06/1981 color:bvox width:3 bar:Dave2 from:01/01/2004 till:01/01/2008 color:bass bar:Dave2 from:01/01/2004 till:01/01/2008 color:bvox width:3 bar:Busta from:01/06/1981 till:01/10/1981 color:bass bar:Sara from:01/10/1981 till:01/01/1985 color:bass bar:Sara from:01/10/1981 till:01/01/1985 color:bvox width:3 bar:Gail from:04/07/1990 till:26/11/1991 color:bass bar:Gail from:04/07/1990 till:26/11/1991 color:bvox width:3 bar:Hugo from:01/09/1976 till:01/01/1983 color:drums bar:Steve from:05/09/1983 till:01/01/1985 color:drums bar:Hugo from:01/01/2004 till:01/01/2006 color:drums bar:Mark from:01/01/2006 till:31/12/2013 color:drums bar:Thomas from:01/01/2008 till:01/02/2020 color:bass bar:Thomas from:01/01/2008 till:01/02/2020 color:bvox width:3 bar:John from:01/01/2012 till:01/02/2020 color:vocals bar:John from:01/01/2019 till:01/02/2020 color:melodica width:3 bar:Jonny from:01/01/2014 till:01/06/2016 color:drums bar:Tobias from:01/06/2016 till:01/02/2020 color:drums bar:Jon from:18/10/2021 till:end color:vocals bar:Jon from:18/10/2021 till:end color:melodica width:3 bar:Hugo from:18/10/2021 till:end color:drums bar:Sara from:18/10/2021 till:end color:bass bar:Sara from:18/10/2021 till:end color:bvox width:3 bar:David from:18/10/2021 till:end color:guitar bar:David from:18/10/2021 till:end color:bvox width:3

Discography

Studio albums

* ''

'' (EMI, 1979) – UK Number 45, Australia Number 39 * '' Solid Gold'' (Warner Bros., 1981) – UK Number 52, US Pop Number 190 * ''

'' (Warner Bros., 1982) – UK Number 61, US Pop Number 175 * '' Hard'' (Warner Bros., 1983) – US Pop Number 168 * ''

'' (Polydor, 1991) * '' Shrinkwrapped'' (Castle, 1995) * ''Return the Gift'' (V2, 2005) – re-recordings of earlier tracks * ''

'' (Yep Roc, 2011) * '' What Happens Next'' (Metropolis/Membran, 2015) * ''

Happy Now Happy Now or Happy Now? may refer to: Film and theatre * ''Happy Now?'' (play), a play by Lucinda Coxon * ''Happy Now?'' (film), a British film starring Ioan Gruffudd Music * "Happy Now" (Bon Jovi song), 2009 * "Happy Now" (Take That song), 2011 * ...

'' (Gill Music Ltd, 2019)

Live albums

* ''At the Palace'' (Mercury, 1984) * ''Live...In The Moment'' (Metropolis, 2016)

Compilation albums

* '' The Peel Sessions'' (1990), Strange Fruit/Dutch East India * '' A Brief History of the Twentieth Century'' (1990), Warner Bros * ''100 Flowers Bloom'' (1998), Rhino * ''Gang of Four 77-81'' (2021), Matador

Extended plays

* ''

Yellow Yellow is the color between green and orange on the spectrum of light. It is evoked by light with a dominant wavelength of roughly 575585 nm. It is a primary color in subtractive color systems, used in painting or color printing. In th ...

'' (EMI, 1980) – US Pop Number 201 * '' Another Day/Another Dollar'' (Warner Bros., 1982) – US Pop Number 195 * ''The Peel Sessions (16.1.79)'' (1986),

Strange Fruit "Strange Fruit" is a song written and composed by Abel Meeropol (under his pseudonym Lewis Allan) and recorded by Billie Holiday in 1939. The lyrics were drawn from a poem by Meeropol published in 1937. The song protests the lynching of Black ...

* ''Die Staubkorn Sammlung'' (Membran, 2015) (credited as

Herbert Grönemeyer Herbert Arthur Wiglev Clamor Grönemeyer (born 12 April 1956) is a German singer, musician, producer, composer and actor, popular in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Grönemeyer starred as war correspondent Lieutenant Werner in Wolfgang Pet ...

+ Gang of Four) * ''Complicit'' (2018) (download only) * ''This Heaven Gives Me Migraine'' (2020) * ''Anti Hero'' (2020)

Singles

References

External links

*
Andy Gill website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gang Of Four Dance-punk musical groups EMI Records artists Post-punk groups from Leeds Funk rock musical groups Musical groups established in 1977 Musical groups disestablished in 1983 Musical groups reestablished in 1987 Musical groups disestablished in 1997 Musical groups reestablished in 2004 Musical groups disestablished in 2020 Musical groups reestablished in 2021 Musical quartets Political music groups Polydor Records artists V2 Records artists Warner Records artists Grönland Records artists Yep Roc Records artists 1976 establishments in England