Category: Records as in Vinyl

This little 7″ has been sitting around way too long without getting prime coverage here – now it is time to unfold this beauty! The Starjets might be known better for their song “War Stories” but for me this little gem is actualy their prime gift. They hailed from Nothern Ireland and quickly moved “down to London town, where things are all happening” in 1977 after realising that staying back up on the green Island might give them further support stints for the Bay City Rollers but sure no record success. In London they played up and down all famous clubs and where signed by Epic.

“This is something that we were given tremendous stick for by people like The Outcasts. This whole thing of oh! You should have stayed here and maybe there is something in that. Perhaps going to London and getting a record deal quickly and going into the studio quickly did spoil us. Maybe we did take it easy and sat back and thought all we had to do was show up and that we’d cracked it. Perhaps it might have been an idea to stay in Belfast, stood our ground, played our own songs and tried to kick against the pricks. At the time however, we came from West Belfast and we were getting it in the ass where we lived. We couldn’t drift back to sweet suburbia and leave the mayhem behind us. To walk up and down the Falls road with any kind of clothes with attitude could be life threatening behaviour in those days. I’d also been to drama school in London and I missed it a bit and Paul had also lived in London. We thought we were going to have to go there eventually because nothing ever comes to Belfast. There was no music industry in Belfast and it was impossible to get signed being based in Belfast.” (Terry Sharpe, singer).

After no commercial success with Epic/CBS they folded and went on to other ventures.

The verdict:

1977 – actualy 1979, so almost powerpopunk…
published by a cool lable – EPIC as in CBS – a major, but back then? ok!
found in a cool shop – Membran!
catching sound – wow! stunning and a catching hookline
the lyrics – who was not offset by school back when he was 16 and great things like punk rock happened around him? Also nice play of words with “i had/hate teachers”

Now figure out yourself mate:

I go to school when i get old
i tow the line do what i'm told
they say that i'm a good boy

I learn my sums and life begins
i learn to fight to save my skin
the kids think i'm a big boy

School sticks i don't want no more
should have left a long time before

In my schooldays
i had teachers
in my schooldays
i was on my own
In my schooldays
i had teachers
in my schooldays
i was on my own

I throw my school tie in the drain
i'm getting soaked in all the rain
but i feel free and o.k.

At sixteen years the world is mine
i'm gonna work i'm gonna find
just gotta stick the boot in

Hangin' round ain't the thing for you
you've got too many other things to do (things to do)

In my schooldays
i had teachers
in my schooldays
i was on my own
In my schooldays
i had teachers
in my schooldays
i was on my own

School sticks i don't want no more
should have left a long time before

In my schooldays
i had teachers
in my schooldays
i was on my own
In my schooldays
i had teachers
in my schooldays
i was on my own
on my own
on my own
in my school

(C) 1979 CBS Records

To me simply the best write up of school times (it also applies to mine). Great stuff indeed!

Listen up:

Did not find any live coverage of that song but some nice pictures:

Both picture from Spit! (the full story of Northern Irish Punk). Go get it (it’s sold out though time being).