Song · Stiff Little Fingers
“Johnny Was'” by Stiff Little Fingers
From the album Inflammable Material (1979)
“Johnny Was'” by Stiff Little Fingers appears on 4 radio countdowns from 1 station between 1979 and 1982. It was first released in 1979 on the album Inflammable Material. Its best result is #15 on the John Peel's All-Time Festive Fifty (1979). In the combined RockLists rankings it is #2,917 alternative song of all time.
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"Johnny Was" turns up on Inflammable Material, the 1979 debut album by Northern Irish punks Stiff Little Fingers, with frontman Jake Burns on vocals and the writing credit going to Rita Marley.
The record landed at the height of the Troubles, and most of it stares straight at life in Northern Ireland: deprivation, sectarian violence, police brutality. The band had come together in 1977 as punk was rising, when Burns's old rock covers outfit Highway Star, which also had Henry Cluney and Brian Faloon, heard the new noise, changed its name and reshuffled its lineup. Released on Rough Trade, Inflammable Material became the first album on an independent label to crack the UK Top 20, and it helped open the floodgates for indie labels and, later, indie rock across Britain.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz.
RockLists rankings
Alternative & Modern Rock
All Rock Formats
All-time and decade countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1979 | 15 | John Peel (BBC Radio 1) | John Peel's All-Time Festive Fifty (1979) | 50 |
| 1980 | 16 | John Peel (BBC Radio 1) | John Peel's All-Time Festive Fifty (1980) | 50 |
| 1981 | 24 | John Peel (BBC Radio 1) | John Peel's All-Time Festive Fifty (1981) | 50 |
| 1982 | 29 | John Peel (BBC Radio 1) | John Peel's All-Time Festive Fifty (1982) | 50 |
Also listed as: Johnny Was.
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