The Gang of Four song that attacked a 19th-century philosophy for the history of humankind
Post-punk was always a lot more literate and well-read than its snotty and brutish predecessor. The emergence of bands like Wire and Swell Maps in the late 1970s were signifiers of a shift towards discussing socio-political issues from a more academic standpoint rather than aiming to shock with its puerile denouncements of the establishment. It would attempt to tackle injustice head-on by educating listeners on atrocities that were happening both at home and overseas.
Among this crop of acts were Leeds-based Gang of Four, who incorporated elements of disco, funk and dub into their version of punk and whose political ideologies formed a huge backbone for their lyrical content, often adopting a Marxist stance on issues such as sexism, war and bringing an end to fascist rhetoric. Taking their moniker from the nickname given to a group of Chinese Communist Party officials who attempted to stage a coup towards the end of the Maoist Cultural Revolution, global politics were always at the forefront of Gang of Four’s minds.
Their 1979 debut album Entertainment! was a huge landmark release in the history of post-punk and remains hugely influential among burgeoning groups who operate in the same areas today, both in terms of how it combined disparate genres and spoke frankly about issues that other acts were either not brave or invested in enough to tackle in their music. Songs like ‘I Found That Essence Rare’ criticised the public for finding more to be outraged by in women’s attire than in nuclear mobilisation, while ‘Ether’ was an urgent piece that highlighted the torturous brutality of Britain’s involvement in Northern Ireland in the ‘70s.
While both of these songs were designed to hit hard at the time of release, one track that remains just as pertinent in modern society is ‘Not Great Men’. This track studies the Great Man Theory from the 19th century and dissects its accuracy, concluding that it is nothing more than a fallacy.
The idea behind the Great Man Theory, which philosopher and historian Thomas Carlyle originally posited, is that great men have always been at the front and centre of all of humankind’s greatest achievements and that it takes a strong and powerful man to make a mark on history. The argument that Gang of Four put in opposition to this is that only those in power will follow this notion and that it only serves to marginalise the poor and venerate the supposed ‘great men’ of decades past through biased historical accounts.
Much of the time, the greatness of these great men was something that they had declared upon themselves, but society’s views of their actions will only ever be pushed into the shadows in favour of telling the story from the perspective of the elites. A particular line in the song that frontman Jon King delivers in direct opposition to this is “the past lives on in your front room, the poor still weak, the rich still rule, history lives in the books at home,” which only goes to highlight how much of history is erased by one-sided accounts of events.
It remains relevant today given how frequently men in positions of power still inflate their egos by proclaiming themselves to be more intellectual or physically strong than their subordinates, but if you were to ask those who live under the rule or authority of megalomaniac individuals, you’d get a completely different and more accurate version of history.
“It’s not made by great men,” the chorus refrain repeats – and hopefully, one day, we’ll collectively realise it’s best to acknowledge that it never has been.
Never Miss A Beat
The Far Out Post-Punk Newsletter
All the latest Post-Punk content from the independent voice of culture.
Straight to your inbox.