Broadly, the Stand Down Margaret generation remain refreshingly unapologetic about their hatred of the Conservative Party. โ€œIโ€™ve probably become a bit apolitical in the last 10 or 15 years,โ€ says Paul Weller. โ€œBut I still think that Thatcher should be shot as a traitor to the people. Weโ€™re still feeling the effects of what her and her party did to the country, and probably always will: the whole breakdown of communities, the dismantling of trade unions, the attack on health, education and industry.โ€

โ€œShe dismantled everything that valued as British people,โ€ says Ali Campbell. โ€œThe National Health Service, the labour movement, free education. I struggle to think of a single positive thing about her reign of terror.โ€

Advertisement

โ€œI can only hope that Obamaโ€™s victory represents the end of the ludicrous trickle-down economic theory weโ€™ve been beholden to for the past 30 years,โ€ says Dave Wakeling. โ€œI played a gig in California the night after Obamaโ€™s victory and โ€˜Stand Down Margaretโ€™ got the biggest cheer of the night. This from people who werenโ€™t even born when it was released! That hatred runs deepโ€ฆโ€

_________________

Ten Great Anti-Thatcher Songs

Advertisement

1 The Beat
Whine And Grine/Stand Down Margaret (1980)
Polite insurrection set to uptempo reggae and African hi-life guitar

2 UB40
Madam Medusa (1980)
Moody, ten-minute dub tribute to Mrs T which put UB40โ€™s later pop-reggae confections to shame.

3 Heaven 17
(We Donโ€™t Need This) Fascist Groove Thang 1981
Cringeworthy lyrics, but check out the finger-popping electro-funk bass lines.

4 The Specials
Ghost Town (1981)
Eerie, doom-laden mix of dub, jazz and Bollywood vocals which still sounds remarkable 28 years on.