Glad to Be Gay
Encyclopedia
"Glad to Be Gay" is a song by British
punk rock
/New Wave
group Tom Robinson Band
. It is one of their defining songs, in addition to being considered Britain's national gay anthem
since its release.
for a London
gay pride parade
in 1976, inspired by the directness and confrontational style of the Sex Pistols
. An out gay singer, he subsequently formed the Tom Robinson Band with three straight musicians.
"Glad to Be Gay" is built around four verses criticizing British society's attitudes towards gay people. In the first verse, it criticizes the British police for raiding gay pubs
for no reason at all, once homosexuality had been decriminalized since the 1967 Sexual Offences Act
.
In the second verse, it points out to the hypocrisy of Gay News
being prosecuted for obscenity instead of porn magazines like magazines Playboy
and notoriously homophobic sensationalist tabloid The Sun
. It also criticizes the way homosexual people are portrayed in other parts of the press, especially in conservative newspapers News of the World
and Sunday Express. On the third verse, it points out the extreme consequences of homophobia
, such as violence against LGBT people.
In the final verse, the song makes a plea for support of the gay cause. This part, originally intended as a bitter attack on complacency of gay people at the Pride march in 1976, became a rallying call for solidarity from people irrespective of their orientation.
Rising Free. The EP reached #18 on the UK Singles Chart
within a week of its release, after the band's initial success with the single "2-4-6-8 Motorway", which peaked at #5. At that time, EPs were also eligible to chart on the OCC singles chart.
Although "Glad to Be Gay" became the most popular track from the EP, BBC Radio 1
refused to broadcast the song on its Top 40 Chart Show, choosing the less controversial opening track "Don't Take No for an Answer" instead. On the rival station Capital Radio
, however, the song reached #1 on the listener-voted Hitline chart for six consecutive weeks.
It was subsequently featured on the American pressing of the band's debut album Power in the Darkness
in May 1978, and the 2004 UK reissue of the album.
("The message is simple and obvious, please - just lay off the patients and let's fight the disease"), and extended attacks on the tabloid press.
From 1996, it also addressed what Robinson calls his 'late onset bisexuality
'.
The November 6, 1977, episode of Granada Television
's So It Goes
featured a live performance of the song by the Tom Robinson Band.
In 1979, Tom Robinson performed at the Secret Policeman's Ball
, a benefit concert staged by the British section of Amnesty International
to raise funds for its research and campaign work in the human rights
field. For this performance he reinstated a verse about Peter Wells
not used since the original demo. Wells was a young man who had been imprisoned for sex with an 18-year-old man. Had his partner been a woman it would have been legal, but the gay age of consent was 21 as opposed to 16 for heterosexuals. Robinson sang this pointedly, as Amnesty were refusing to acknowledge gay prisoners as human rights cases.
Queercore
band Sister George
covered the song - retitled "100xNo" - on their 1993 album Drag King. In 2008, the song was covered by the Finnish group Eläkeläiset
.
On the last episode of the first series of the BBC One
drama Ashes to Ashes
, a 31-year-old fictionalized version of Tom Robinson (portrayed by Mathew Baynton) is incarcerated with several members of the Gay Liberation Front
. He sings "Glad to Be Gay" in his police station cell.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
punk rock
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
/New Wave
New Wave music
New Wave is a subgenre of :rock music that emerged in the mid to late 1970s alongside punk rock. The term at first generally was synonymous with punk rock before being considered a genre in its own right that incorporated aspects of electronic and experimental music, mod subculture, disco and 1960s...
group Tom Robinson Band
Tom Robinson Band
Tom Robinson Band were a British rock band, established in 1976 by singer, songwriter and bassist Tom Robinson...
. It is one of their defining songs, in addition to being considered Britain's national gay anthem
Gay anthem
A gay anthem is a song that has become widely popular among, or has become identified with, the LGBT community; usually with gay men. The lyrics of gay anthems are often marked with hope against the odds, pride, unity, or defiance...
since its release.
Song information
The song was originally written by Tom RobinsonTom Robinson
Tom Robinson is an English singer-songwriter, bassist and radio presenter, better known for the hits "Glad to Be Gay", "2-4-6-8 Motorway", and "Don't Take No for an Answer", with his Tom Robinson Band...
for a London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
gay pride parade
Gay pride parade
Pride parades for the LGBT community are events celebrating lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender culture. The events also at times serve as demonstrations for legal rights such as same-sex marriage...
in 1976, inspired by the directness and confrontational style of the Sex Pistols
Sex Pistols
The Sex Pistols were an English punk rock band that formed in London in 1975. They were responsible for initiating the punk movement in the United Kingdom and inspiring many later punk and alternative rock musicians...
. An out gay singer, he subsequently formed the Tom Robinson Band with three straight musicians.
"Glad to Be Gay" is built around four verses criticizing British society's attitudes towards gay people. In the first verse, it criticizes the British police for raiding gay pubs
Gay bar
A gay bar is a drinking establishment that caters to an exclusively or predominantly gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender clientele; the term gay is used as a broadly inclusive concept for LGBT and queer communities...
for no reason at all, once homosexuality had been decriminalized since the 1967 Sexual Offences Act
Sexual Offences Act 1967
The Sexual Offences Act 1967 is an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom . It decriminalised homosexual acts in private between two men, both of whom had to have attained the age of 21. The Act applied only to England and Wales and did not cover the Merchant Navy or the Armed Forces...
.
In the second verse, it points out to the hypocrisy of Gay News
Gay News
Gay News was a pioneering fortnightly newspaper in the United Kingdom founded in June 1972 in a collaboration between former members of the Gay Liberation Front and members of the Campaign for Homosexual Equality...
being prosecuted for obscenity instead of porn magazines like magazines Playboy
Playboy
Playboy is an American men's magazine that features photographs of nude women as well as journalism and fiction. It was founded in Chicago in 1953 by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from Hefner's mother. The magazine has grown into Playboy Enterprises, Inc., with...
and notoriously homophobic sensationalist tabloid The Sun
The Sun (newspaper)
The Sun is a daily national tabloid newspaper published in the United Kingdom and owned by News Corporation. Sister editions are published in Glasgow and Dublin...
. It also criticizes the way homosexual people are portrayed in other parts of the press, especially in conservative newspapers News of the World
News of the World
The News of the World was a national red top newspaper published in the United Kingdom from 1843 to 2011. It was at one time the biggest selling English language newspaper in the world, and at closure still had one of the highest English language circulations...
and Sunday Express. On the third verse, it points out the extreme consequences of homophobia
Homophobia
Homophobia is a term used to refer to a range of negative attitudes and feelings towards lesbian, gay and in some cases bisexual, transgender people and behavior, although these are usually covered under other terms such as biphobia and transphobia. Definitions refer to irrational fear, with the...
, such as violence against LGBT people.
In the final verse, the song makes a plea for support of the gay cause. This part, originally intended as a bitter attack on complacency of gay people at the Pride march in 1976, became a rallying call for solidarity from people irrespective of their orientation.
Release and reception
"Glad to Be Gay" was originally released in February 1978 on the band's live EPExtended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
Rising Free. The EP reached #18 on the UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
within a week of its release, after the band's initial success with the single "2-4-6-8 Motorway", which peaked at #5. At that time, EPs were also eligible to chart on the OCC singles chart.
Although "Glad to Be Gay" became the most popular track from the EP, BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation which also broadcasts internationally, specialising in current popular music and chart hits throughout the day. Radio 1 provides alternative genres after 7:00pm including electronic dance, hip hop, rock...
refused to broadcast the song on its Top 40 Chart Show, choosing the less controversial opening track "Don't Take No for an Answer" instead. On the rival station Capital Radio
Capital Radio
Capital London is a London based radio station which launched on 16 October 1973 and is owned by Global Radio. On 3 January 2011 it formed part of the nine station Capital radio network.- Pre-launch :...
, however, the song reached #1 on the listener-voted Hitline chart for six consecutive weeks.
It was subsequently featured on the American pressing of the band's debut album Power in the Darkness
Power in the Darkness
Power in the Darkness is the debut studio album by English punk band Tom Robinson Band, first released in early 1978. The album consisted of four singles, four B-sides and two new tracks. All ten titles were tracks previously unreleased in the UK, and no songs from any earlier 7" releases were...
in May 1978, and the 2004 UK reissue of the album.
| Chart (1978) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| UK Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
18 |
| Capital Radio Capital Radio Capital London is a London based radio station which launched on 16 October 1973 and is owned by Global Radio. On 3 January 2011 it formed part of the nine station Capital radio network.- Pre-launch :... Listeners' Hitline |
1 |
Notable performances and cover versions
Over the course of his solo career, Tom Robinson has performed the song with its lyrics updated to reflect current events. There have been ten versions officially released. Later lyrics addressed AIDSAIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
("The message is simple and obvious, please - just lay off the patients and let's fight the disease"), and extended attacks on the tabloid press.
From 1996, it also addressed what Robinson calls his 'late onset bisexuality
Bisexuality
Bisexuality is sexual behavior or an orientation involving physical or romantic attraction to both males and females, especially with regard to men and women. It is one of the three main classifications of sexual orientation, along with a heterosexual and a homosexual orientation, all a part of the...
'.
The November 6, 1977, episode of Granada Television
Granada Television
Granada Television is the ITV contractor for North West England. Based in Manchester since its inception, it is the only surviving original ITA franchisee from 1954 and is ITV's most successful....
's So It Goes
So It Goes (TV series)
So It Goes was a British TV music show presented by Tony Wilson on Granada Television between 1976 and 1977. It is most famous for showcasing the then burgeoning Punk rock movement...
featured a live performance of the song by the Tom Robinson Band.
In 1979, Tom Robinson performed at the Secret Policeman's Ball
The Secret Policeman's Ball (1979)
The Secret Policeman's Ball took place over four consecutive nights in London in June 1979. It was a successor to the 1976 show A Poke In The Eye and the 1977 show The Mermaid Frolics.The show was directed by Monty Python alumnus John Cleese and producers Martin Lewis and Peter Walker...
, a benefit concert staged by the British section of Amnesty International
Amnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
to raise funds for its research and campaign work in the human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
field. For this performance he reinstated a verse about Peter Wells
Peter Wells
Peter William "Pete" Wells was the founder and slide guitarist in Australian hard rock band Rose Tattoo. Wells was previously bassist with the pioneering Sydney-based heavy metal outfit Buffalo in the 1970s....
not used since the original demo. Wells was a young man who had been imprisoned for sex with an 18-year-old man. Had his partner been a woman it would have been legal, but the gay age of consent was 21 as opposed to 16 for heterosexuals. Robinson sang this pointedly, as Amnesty were refusing to acknowledge gay prisoners as human rights cases.
Queercore
Queercore
Queercore is a cultural and social movement that began in the mid-1980s as an offshoot of punk. It is distinguished by being discontent with society in general and its rejection of the disapproval of the gay, bisexual, and lesbian communities and their "oppressive agenda"...
band Sister George
Sister George
Sister George was an influential queercore band from London that was formed in 1994. The groups' name was inspired by the 1968 UK movie The Killing of Sister George, which was an adaptation of a BBC radio play of the same name...
covered the song - retitled "100xNo" - on their 1993 album Drag King. In 2008, the song was covered by the Finnish group Eläkeläiset
Eläkeläiset
Eläkeläiset are a Finnish humppa band founded in 1993. They specialise in humppa and jenkka music and have been successful in Germany, Finland and elsewhere....
.
On the last episode of the first series of the BBC One
BBC One
BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...
drama Ashes to Ashes
Ashes to Ashes (TV series)
Ashes to Ashes is a British science fiction and police procedural drama television series, serving as the sequel to Life on Mars.The series began airing on BBC One in February 2008. A second series began broadcasting in April 2009...
, a 31-year-old fictionalized version of Tom Robinson (portrayed by Mathew Baynton) is incarcerated with several members of the Gay Liberation Front
Gay Liberation Front
Gay Liberation Front was the name of a number of Gay Liberation groups, the first of which was formed in New York City in 1969, immediately after the Stonewall riots, in which police clashed with gay demonstrators.-The Gay Liberation Front:...
. He sings "Glad to Be Gay" in his police station cell.
External links
- Glad to Be Gay comprehensive fansite with all versions and background material