In August of 1980, U2 released its first Steve Lillywhite produced single , "A Day Without Me", from the forthcoming debut album b/w an instrumental called "Things To Make And Do".
Though the song predates the suicide of Joy Division's late frontman Ian Curtis, Bono tells Sounds
"'A Day Without Me' is about Ian Curtis. It's the image of death, of the landslide. You're really not that important, after death even your friends and relations will soon forget you. It's like the unimportance of the individual in terms of this world. The world doesn't care about the individual."
At the end of August 1980, The Ruts were back in the UK charts with "West One (Shine On Me)", their final recording with Malcolm Owen, who had died a month earlier of a drug overdose. The single peaked at UK#43. A secret message was scratched in the wax "And now..." flipped with "...Ruts Da Capo". The band would henceforth be known as The Ruts DC.
On July 14, 1980, just weeks after Ian Curtis's suicide, Malcolm Owen of The Ruts died at the age of 25 from a heroin overdose. The charismatic frontman with the hoarse voice had hit rock bottom earlier in the year. He had been kicked out of the band, sold all of his possessions, separated from his wife and moved in with his parents. He had just persuaded The Ruts he was ready to rejoin the band when he was found dead of an overdose in the bath at his parents' home.
For 18 months The Ruts were among the most exciting bands in the U.K. Here are 5 Ruts songs you need to know.
1. Babylon's Burning
One of the great singles from the Summer of '79, "Babylon's Burning"peaked at UK #7 while providing a soundtrack as Margaret Thatcher's anti-union, anti-immigrant, monetarist policies took effect. Appearing on the Times Square soundtrack in the US, this is far and away their best known song.
2. In a Rut
John Peel championed this song which sold 20,000 copies. Enough to be a UK #1 these days, but too few to break into the UK Top 75 in '79. Considering the fate of the singer, its chorus "If you're in a rut You gotta get out of it, out of it, out of it" resonates as much as its anti-heroin B-side "H Eyes".
3. S.U.S.
From the Ruts debut The Crack, which Henry Rollins calls "the best album ever made". The band's roadie Mannah assisted in writing "S.U.S" which deals with the vagrancy act, widely used by London's Metropolitan Police Service in the late 1970s to hassle anyone they wanted.
4. Staring At The Rude Boys
This UK #22 hit, the last before Malcolm's death, celebrates crowded night clubs, invoking a special kind of nostalgia in this day of social distancing:
The skins in the corner are staring at the bar
The rude boys are dancing to some heavy heavy ska
It's getting so hot people are dripping with sweat
The punks in the corner are speeding like a jet
5. Something That I Said
One more from The Crack. this UK#29 hit is a message to all the rude boys,"So get off your pedestal
Before you ain't got no friends no more".
On March 27, 1980 The Ruts released their UK#22 hit "Staring At The Rude Boys", a song about the crowded night club scene that invokes a special kind of nostalgia in this day of social distancing:
The skins in the corner are staring at the bar
The rude boys are dancing to some heavy heavy ska
It's getting so hot people are dripping with sweat
The punks in the corner are speeding like a jet
The single came in a sleeve that doubled as a crossword puzzle. The first to complete the puzzle and return it to Virgin Records won a night on the town with the band (they pay). Second prize is The Ruts stay at your home (you pay).
The song is another great reminder that The Ruts were one of England's best bands.
Unbeknownst to anyone at this point, The Ruts had played their last concert with front man Malcolm Owen at Plymouth Polytechnic on 26 February. His heroin addiction would soon force Owen to sell all of his possessions, separate from his wife and move in with his parents. In July he would be found dead of an overdose in the bath at his parents' home.
The single's B-side, originally titled "Love in Vein", was another Owen song about heroin. The reggae tune features the line "Don't want you in my arms no more" . A book about The Ruts shares the title.
