Song · The Clash
“Know Your Rights” by The Clash
From the album Combat Rock (1982)
“Know Your Rights” by The Clash appears on 15 radio countdowns from 6 stations between 1982 and 2024. It was first released in 1982 on the album Combat Rock. Its best result is #27 on the John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1982. In the combined RockLists rankings it is the #10 alternative song of 1982, #2,297 alternative song of all time and #480 of the '80s.
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"Know Your Rights" was the Clash's opening move for Combat Rock, their fifth album, released as its first single on 23 April 1982, three weeks ahead of the record. Joe Strummer and Mick Jones wrote it, Glyn Johns mixed it, and it kicks off with Strummer barking a mock public-service announcement before the guitar comes crashing in.
What follows is satire with its fists up. Strummer takes on the voice of a sneering bureaucrat reading out the three rights the poor and powerless actually have, each one hollowed out by a nasty catch, and when anybody asks for more, the answer is no. It's punk as political theater, lean and stomping, and it still lands like a slap across the face of anyone in charge.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
RockLists rankings
Alternative & Modern Rock
Indie & Adult Alternative
All Rock Formats
Year-end countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | 56 | KROQ Los Angeles, CA | KROQ Top 106.7 Songs of 1982 | 107 |
| 1982 | 27 | John Peel (BBC Radio 1) | John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1982 | 50 |
All-time and decade countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 1747 | Fred (XM 44) | Fred XM Top 2002 Songs of All-Time (July 2002) | 2002 |
| 2003 | 617 | Fred (XM 44) | Fred XM Top 2044 Songs of All-Time (July 2003) | 2044 |
| 2007 | 1265 | CD101 | CD101 Top 2008 Songs of All-Time (December 2007) | 2008 |
| 2008 | 1197 | CD101 | CD101 Top 2009 Songs of All-Time (December 2008) | 2009 |
| 2009 | 1219 | CD101 | CD101 Top 2010 Songs of All-Time (December 2009) | 2010 |
| 2010 | 1105 | CD101 | CD101 Top 2011 Songs of All-Time (December 2010) | 2011 |
| 2011 | 1143 | CD101 | CD101 Top 2012 Songs of All-Time (December 2011) | 2011 |
| 2013 | 1140 | CD101 | CD101 Top 2013 Songs of All-Time (December 2013) | 2012 |
| 2014 | 1144 | CD101 | CD101 Top 2014 Songs of All-Time (2014) | 2013 |
| 2019 | 180 | KEXP | KEXP Listeners' Favorite Songs of All Time | 627 |
| 2020 | 1001 | WXPN | WXPN 2020 Greatest Songs of All Time | 2020 |
| 2022 | 185 | KEXP | KEXP Top Songs of the Last 50 Years (1972-2022) | 491 |
| 2024 | 217 | KEXP | The Best Opening Tracks of All Time | 738 |
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