"Hitsville U.K." is a song by the English

punk rock Punk rock (also known as simply punk) is a rock music genre that emerged in the mid-1970s. Rooted in 1950s rock and roll and 1960s garage rock, punk bands rejected the corporate nature of mainstream 1970s rock music. They typically produced sh ...

band

the Clash The Clash were an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1976. Billed as "The Only Band That Matters", they are considered one of the most influential acts in the original wave of British punk rock, with their music fusing elements ...

from their 1980 album ''

Sandinista! ''Sandinista!'' is the fourth studio album by the English rock band the Clash. It was released on 12 December 1980 as a triple album containing 36 tracks, with 6 songs on each side. It crosses various genres including funk, reggae, jazz, gospe ...

''. A duet between lead guitarist Mick Jones and his then-girlfriend

Ellen Foley Ellen Foley (born June 5, 1951) is an American singer and actress who has appeared on Broadway and television, where she co-starred in the hit NBC sitcom '' Night Court'' during its second season. In music, she has released five solo albums, bu ...

, it is the second single released from the album.

Composition

The song's title is a nod to

Motown Records Motown is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. Founded by Berry Gordy, Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on January 12, 1959, it was incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau ...

, which used the moniker "

Hitsville U.S.A. "Hitsville U.S.A." is the nickname given to Motown's first headquarters and recording studio. The house (formerly a photographers' studio) is located at 2648 West Grand Boulevard in Detroit near the New Center area of the city. Motown founder B ...

" in its advertising and to refer to the label's first headquarters in Detroit. The lyrics refer to the emerging indie scene in British music in the late 1970s and early 1980s, which is held in contrast to the "mutants, creeps and musclemen" of the major labels with their "expense accounts" and "lunch discounts", making " AOR" and using "chart-hyping" to sell their records. References are made to a number of UK independent labels (

Lightning Lightning is a natural phenomenon consisting of electrostatic discharges occurring through the atmosphere between two electrically charged regions. One or both regions are within the atmosphere, with the second region sometimes occurring on ...

, Small Wonder, Rough Trade, Fast Product and

Factory A factory, manufacturing plant or production plant is an industrial facility, often a complex consisting of several buildings filled with machinery, where workers manufacture items or operate machines which process each item into another. Th ...

Release

The original UK single release included "Radio One" by Mikey Dread as the B-side. A second issue, released later in 1981 in the U.S., replaced "Radio One" with "

Police on My Back "Police on My Back" was written by Eddy Grant and recorded by his band the Equals for their second studio album ''Explosion'' in December 1967. In 1980, the Clash recorded a cover version of the song for their album ''Sandinista!,'' and turned ...

" as the B-side. Like all other Clash singles, the song is available on the 1991 compilation '' The Singles'' and the 2013 remastered compilation '' The Clash Hits Back''.

Track listing

;7" vinyl # "Hitsville UK" (The Clash) – 4:23 # "Radio One" (Mikey Dread) – 6:20 ;7" vinyl (North America) # "Hitsville UK" (The Clash) – 4:23 # "Police On My Back" (Eddy Grant) – 3:16

Personnel

– lead vocals * Mick Jones – lead vocals, piano, organ *

Joe Strummer John Graham Mellor (21 August 1952 – 22 December 2002), known professionally as Joe Strummer, was a British musician. He was the co-founder, lyricist, rhythm guitarist, and lead vocalist of punk rock band the Clash, formed in 1976. The Clash' ...

– guitar *

Norman Watt-Roy Norman Joseph Watt-Roy (born 15 February 1951) is an English musician, arranger and composer. Watt-Roy's music career spans more than 40 years. He came to prominence in the late 1970s, during the punk and new wave era of rock music as the bass ...

– bass guitar *

Topper Headon Nicholas Bowen "Topper" Headon (born 30 May 1955) is an English drummer and multi-instrumentalist, best known as the drummer of punk rock band the Clash. Headon was inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with the rest of the Clash in 2003. ...

– drums *

Jody Linscott Jody Linscott is an American session musician and percussionist who resides in England and maintains an extended discography. She has two daughters Kachina Dechert and Coco Linscott and has written two children's books which were published by Do ...

– percussion, marimba

Charts

References

1980 songs The Clash songs Male–female vocal duets 1981 singles CBS Records singles {{punk-song-stub