Stiff Little Fingers- Go For It
Who knew that a name based from a
Vibrators-written song would later be one of the biggest influences in the history of punk. Starting their career off with their fantastic debut,
Inflammable Material, Stiff Little Fingers took off right away with one hell of a record that would later lead to two more in the following year, and one hell of an appearance the band made on the genre. Fans formed fast, and reproduced in high numbers as the band made their way across various tours and circuits. The band, originally formed in Northern Ireland in 77’, was made up of front-man Jake Burns (Vocals, Guitar), Henry Cluney (Guitar), Ali McMordie (Bass), and Brian Falloon (Drums). As what started out as a cover band, quickly became a high-speed punk machine that caused chaos with continuous released of albums. First came the debut in 79’, followed by
Nobody’s Heroes and
Hanx in 80’. Afterwards, in 81’, came my personal favorite Fingers album,
Go For It, which while continued their punk journey, expanded off the light reggae influence they had before. It’s a great follow up to Hanx, and although sounds a lot different in ways, it’s still Stiff Little Fingers at some more of their very best.
The biggest highlight on this album, unlike their last few albums, is the rhythmic section of the band, and leads the album straight to the score is deserves on this one. Ill start out saying that McMordie sports the stiff fingers on this album, with choice tracks for the bass that are clearly noticeable (Go For It, The Only One, Safe As Houses). McMordie shares one aspect with the rest of the band as well, and that is that all instruments consist of ‘decent’ material for a big portion of the album, but at times rise above to higher standards, and really put on a show. McMordie shines bright with drummer Brian Falloon, who keeps the beat with brilliant material on once again choice tracks, ( Just Fade Away, Hits And Misses, Gate 49) while then progressing with more laid-back and more simple and less noticeable jobs on the rest of the album. But overall, these two are the ones that make the album what it is, although Cluney and Burns are there to always lend a helping hand, and at times a bit more than that. Cluney does a once again ‘decent’ job on about 75% of the album, while then shreds away at tracks like “The Only One”, “Roots, Radical, Rockers, And Raggae”, and “Piccadilly Circus”. His guitar-work on these tracks here is excellent, and gives a taste of the overall mood of the track, while packing an extra punch.
Burns provides a great deal of vocals, but compared to their debut, this one falls in at a very weak state as far as vocals go. “Safe As Houses”, and “Hits And Misses” shows some of his very best material and the album, and gives the track an extra presence that sticks and takes in much further. Burns also sports great guitar-work as well, making Cluney company on his stand-out tracks, as well as the more reggae-influenced tracks on here. Among the reggae tracks on the album, are “The Only One”, and “Safe As Houses”, to name a couple. But as this is a big portion of the album, the Fingers never forget their roots. Big punk numbers include “Silver Lining” and “Piccadilly Circus”. Every one of these tracks is practically built the same way. Rhythm section shaping it out, the other two with plenty of material to accompany, and all with virtually the same mid-tempo mood. A small deal with the album, to change the status here, is the length of songs. Brilliant material like that in “The Only One” and “Piccadilly Circus” comes out at about five minutes and if reduced to about half it’s actual length, could have turned out to be a better track, and thus a high recommendation.
To be a bit more straightforward, this album is very highly recommended, but is not very enjoyable for a person that has never heard the band before. In other words, one that has heard
Inflammable Material a few times through and other work as well, will enjoy this album about ten times more than one that has maybe heard the singles at the very most. You must love the Fingers if you want to really appreciate
Go For It. But hey, that’s just me, go ahead and try it out. Great music, great artwork, and one of the very best bands to ever strike the genre.
Stand Out Tracks:
Just Fade Away
Go For It
Hits And Misses
Safe As Houses
Excellent.
4/5
