THEIR SOLE CHART HIT

It was the passing mention of this lot in a Billy Bragg posting that got me digging this one out again.

I’ve previously written about the impact of Keep On’ Keepin’On and it remains my favourite bit of vinyl by The Redskins.  It was their next single, however, that brought them some minor chart success:-

mp3 : The Redskins – (Burn It Up) Bring It Down (This Insane Thing) (12″ version)

It was their first release after an infamous appearance on The Tube where they had unexpectedly brought on a striking miner to say some words at the start of their two song appearance.  His words weren’t broadcast with Channel 4 claiming a faulty microphone.  It has never been fully clarified whether this was a stroke of luck for the broadcaster or in fact the production team had clocked the stunt was taking place and so killed the mic.

The incident served its purpose and did cause a ruckus; it further raised the issue of the miners being given a fair platform to articulate their views – they were very much silenced on the TV news in comparison to what was being said by coal bosses and government ministers.  But it also brought The Redskins to the attention of a larger audience and there was very much a hint of solidarity in folk purchasing their next again single, albeit it is a very decent number that makes you feel like dancing.

Here’s the b-side:-

mp3 : The Redskins – You Want It? They’ve Got It!

A #33 hit in June 1985.  Where have those 32 years gone?

JC