Town Called Malice
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Featuring one of the most easily-recognisable bass-lines in British music history, "Town Called Malice" is a song recorded by The Jam from the album The Gift. It was a double A-side single release featuring "Precious" as the flip side. Released as the first single from the album on February 13, 1982, it reached number one on the British music charts, staying at the top for three weeks, but failed to chart in the United States. It was the band's third #1 single in the UK. Paul Weller has said that it was written about his hometown Woking as a result of his teenage experiences there. A music video of the song was filmed and was in moderate rotation on MTV in 1982 and 1983. The song was featured prominently in the 2006 film The Matador and also appeared in the film Billy Elliott. It is also on the soundtrack to FIFA 2004.
Interestingly, the bass line that the song is famous for actually appearing two years earlier in the Elvis Costello album Get Happy!! on the song "Love for Tender". If you listen to both songs carefully, "Town Called Malice" also features the same use of handclaps and keyboard notes as "Love for Tender". The song "Love for Tender" was recorded in 1980.
| Preceded by: "The Model" by Kraftwerk |
UK number one single February 7, 1982 |
Succeeded by: "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" by Tight Fit |
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