Stiff Little Fingers – Live At Rockpalast (Live, Düsseldorf, 1989) (Album Review)

Stiff Little Fingers – Live At Rockpalast (Live, Düsseldorf, 1989) A 39-minute live show. Fantastic!

Some say punk died in 1981, but eight years on, this concert proved otherwise. And Stiff Little Fingers are a Northern Irish punk rock band from Belfast, Northern Ireland. They formed in 1977 at the height of the Troubles.

The Troubles was an ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland that lasted around 30 years, from the late 1960s to 1998. Also known internationally as the Northern Ireland conflict, it is sometimes described as an ‘irregular war’ or a ‘low intensity war’. The conflict began in the late 1960s and is generally considered to have ended with the Good Friday Agreement of 1998. Although most of the unrest took place in Northern Ireland, the violence sometimes spread to parts of the Republic of Ireland, England and continental Europe. The conflict was primarily political and nationalist, fueled by historical events. It also had an ethnic or sectarian dimension, but despite the use of the terms Protestant and Catholic to refer to both sides, it was not a religious conflict. Anyway! It’s just for culture.

Coming back to this concert, I find it hard to be objective. I adore this band, I love all their albums. They carried on, continuing where the Clash (who were just as anti Thatcher!) had to stop. And they’re still around today, in 2024! The Clash wrote “London Calling” to show their anger at the then Prime Minister Thatcher, and Stiff Little Fingers wrote “Fly the Flag!” Few leaders have been so hated and criticised in song.

Here’s a short list of other songs with the same theme:

That’s it! That’s it! An impeccable live album, full of energy, commitment and everything that makes Old School Punk an unbeatable style in its genre and still a pioneer in the world of music. Rock’s offspring has always done well so far.

My Rating