<p>The sger-songwrer and A&R man behd the 1978 song remember how punk energy fired up a gay-rights anthem</p>
Contents:
- HOW WE MA: TOM ROBSON AND NICK MOBBS ON GLAD TO BE GAY
- 'GLAD TO BE GAY': THE STGGLE FOR GAY LIBERATN BEYOND LEGAL RIGHTS
- GLAD TO BE GAY?
- GLAD TO BE GAYTOM ROBSON BANDTRACK 13 ON POWER THE DARKNS “(SG IF YOU’RE) GLAD TO BE GAY,” ORIGALLY RELEASED 1978 AS PART OF THE BUT EP OF THE GROUP TOM ROBSON BAND IS NOT ONLY ONE OF THE MOST FG SONGS OF THE BAND… READ MORE 1 VIEWER23.3K VIEWS13 CONTRIBUTORSGLAD TO BE GAY LYRICS[SPOKEN WORD INTRO]THIS SONG IS DITED TO THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATN, ’S A MEDIL SONG AND NCERNS A DISEASE WHOSE CLASSIFITN ACRDG TO THE INTERNATNAL CLASSIFITN OF DISEAS IS 302.0[VERSE 1]THE BRISH POLICE ARE THE BT THE WORLDI DON'T BELIEVE ONE OF THE STORI I'VE HEARD'BOUT THEM RAIDG OUR PUBS FOR NO REASON AT ALLLG THE CTOMERS UP BY THE WALLPICKG OUT PEOPLE AND KNOCKG THEM DOWNRISTG ARRT AS THEY'RE KICKED ON THE GROUNDSEARCHG THEIR HO AND LLG THEM QUEERI DON'T BELIEVE THAT SORT OF THG HAPPENS HERE[CHOS]SG IF YOU'RE GLAD TO BE GAYSG IF YOU'RE HAPPY THAT WAY(HEY!) SG IF YOU'RE GLAD TO BE GAYSG IF YOU'RE HAPPY THAT WAY[VERSE 2]PICTUR OF NAKED YOUNG WOMEN ARE FUNIN TBS AND PLAYBOY, PAGE THREE OF THE SUNTHERE'S NO NUS GAY NEWS, OUR ONE MAGAZEBUT THEY STILL FD EXC TO LL OBSCENEREAD HOW DISGTG WE ARE THE PRSTHE TELEGRAPH, PEOPLE AND SUNDAY EXPRSMOLTERS OF CHILDREN, RPTORS OF YOUTHIT'S THERE THE PAPER, MT BE THE TTHYOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE[CHOS](TRY AND) SG IF YOU'RE GLAD TO BE GAYSG IF YOU'RE HAPPY THAT WAY(HEY!) SG IF YOU'RE GLAD TO BE GAYSG IF YOU'RE HAPPY THAT WAY[VERSE 3]DON'T TRY TO KID THAT IF YOU'RE DISCREETYOU'RE PERFECTLY SAFE AS YOU WALK DOWN THE STREETYOU DON'T HAVE TO MCE OR MAKE BCHY REMARKSTO GET BEATEN UNNSC AND LEFT THE DARKI HAD A IEND WHO WAS GENTLE AND SHORTHE WAS LONELY ONE EVENG AND WENT FOR A WALKQUEERBASHERS UGHT HIM, KICKED HIS TEETHHE WAS ONLY HOSPALISED FOR A WEEK(AND HE STILL BEARS THE SRS)[CHOS]SG IF YOU'RE GLAD TO BE GAYSG IF YOU'RE HAPPY THAT WAY(HEY!) SG IF YOU'RE GLAD TO BE GAYSG IF YOU'RE HAPPY THAT WAY[VERSE 4]AND S BACK AND WATCH AS THEY CLOSE DOWN OUR CLUBSARRT FOR MEETG AND RAID ALL OUR PUBSMAKE SURE YOUR BOYIEND'S AT LEAST 21SO ONLY YOUR IENDS AND YOUR BROTHERS GET DONELIE TO YOUR WORKMAT, LIE TO YOUR FOLKSPUT DOWN THE QUEENS, TELL ANTI-QUEER JOKGAY LIB'S RIDICULO, JO THEIR LGHTER'THE BUGGERS ARE LEGAL NOW, WHAT MORE ARE THEY AFTER?'(TELL THEM!)[CHOS]SG IF YOU'RE GLAD TO BE GAYSG IF YOU'RE HAPPY THAT WAY(HEY!) SG IF YOU'RE GLAD TO BE GAYSG IF YOU'RE HAPPY THAT WAYSG IF YOU'RE GLAD TO BE GAYSG IF YOU'RE HAPPY THAT WAY(HEY!) SG IF YOU'RE GLAD TO BE GAYSG IF YOU'RE HAPPY THIS WAY3EMBEDCANCELHOW TO FORMAT LYRICS:TYPE OUT ALL LYRICS, EVEN REPEATG SONG PARTS LIKE THE CHOSLYRICS SHOULD BE BROKEN DOWN TO DIVIDUAL LUSE SECTN HEARS ABOVE DIFFERENT SONG PARTS LIKE [VERSE], [CHOS], ETC.USE ALICS (<I>LYRIC</I>) AND BOLD (<B>LYRIC</B>) TO DISTGUISH BETWEEN DIFFERENT VOLISTS THE SAME SONG PARTIF YOU DON’T UNRSTAND A LYRIC, E [?]TO LEARN MORE, CHECK OUT OUR TRANSCRIPTN GUI OR VIS OUR TRANSCRIBERS FOMABOUT
- GLAD TO BE GAY
HOW WE MA: TOM ROBSON AND NICK MOBBS ON GLAD TO BE GAY
(Sg If You're) Glad To Be Gay by Tom Robson Band song meang, lyric terpretatn, vio and chart posn * glad to be gay meaning *
Songfacts®:"(Sg If You're) Glad To Be Gay" by the Tom Robson Band (TRB) was rerd as part of a live EP November 1977 and appears on Robson's crilly acclaimed but album Power In The Darkns. "A lot of heterosexuals don't unrstand that you grow up beg tght to hate and fear homosexuals before you're of an age to know you are one, " Robson told Q magaze. This was a watershed moment for many gay youth the UK who found the strength to e out, Holly Johnson of Frankie Go to Hollywood and Boy Gee of Culture Club among them.
"The song ntas the tertg uplet:There's no nus Gay News, our one magazeBut they still found exc to ll obsceneIn June 1976, Gay News published a poem by the amic Jam Kirkup, The Love That Dar To Speak Its Name (a pun on Osr Wil).
It also exposed me to all sorts of the 60s, there wasn't a sgle public figure who was openly gay, so we had no role mols, no mentns of homosexualy. When the edor of Gay News famoly tried to take a photograph of one raid, he was charged and fed for the fluenc me together the long, hot summer of 1976.
'GLAD TO BE GAY': THE STGGLE FOR GAY LIBERATN BEYOND LEGAL RIGHTS
* glad to be gay meaning *
People would jo wh what begs as an anti-police number and, by the time they're at the chos, they're all ught up , beltg out: "Sg if you're glad to be gay. "I'm now married wh kids, but Glad to Be Gay was about anyone who didn't nform, om lbians to transgenrs, a way of regnisg that most of have plex sexuali.
I never imaged that, 35 years later, would be lled the gay natnal anthem, or that we'd have openly gay pop stars and a Tory prime mister mpaigng for gay marriage.
This is reflectg the extremely recent history of the stggle for gay liberatn; equal legal rights were reluctantly granted to gay people, yet whout acpanyg methods of rercement or tn, such legislative chang the UK did not immediately lead to equaly for gay people. Contrary to the school curriculum’s prcriptive narrativ that wh legal gay rights me equaly, the stggle for gay rights, an end to rampant homophobia, or the btal police treatment of gay people, did not end wh legal chang.
GLAD TO BE GAY?
Like women’s issu, gay rights was not on the Left’s early agenda when they took ntrol of the first wave of Labour uncils. Ined the more tablishment figur on the soft Left, such as David Blunkett and Margaret Hodge have always treated the issue... * glad to be gay meaning *
Growg up wh gay parents, I know this to be te om my personal memori, and whilst I nnot attempt to entirely unrstand the experience of growg up gay ten, twenty, or thirty years ago, I n touch upon my recent experienc as the dghter of a gay uple to give some sight to the suatn. ‘Glad To Be Gay’My spiratn for this article was origally Tom Robson Band’s song, first released 1978, lled ‘Glad To Be Gay’ which, after listeng to first several months ago, ntued to echo my md for some time.
GLAD TO BE GAYTOM ROBSON BANDTRACK 13 ON POWER THE DARKNS “(SG IF YOU’RE) GLAD TO BE GAY,” ORIGALLY RELEASED 1978 AS PART OF THE BUT EP OF THE GROUP TOM ROBSON BAND IS NOT ONLY ONE OF THE MOST FG SONGS OF THE BAND… READ MORE 1 VIEWER23.3K VIEWS13 CONTRIBUTORSGLAD TO BE GAY LYRICS[SPOKEN WORD INTRO]THIS SONG IS DITED TO THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATN, ’S A MEDIL SONG AND NCERNS A DISEASE WHOSE CLASSIFITN ACRDG TO THE INTERNATNAL CLASSIFITN OF DISEAS IS 302.0[VERSE 1]THE BRISH POLICE ARE THE BT THE WORLDI DON'T BELIEVE ONE OF THE STORI I'VE HEARD'BOUT THEM RAIDG OUR PUBS FOR NO REASON AT ALLLG THE CTOMERS UP BY THE WALLPICKG OUT PEOPLE AND KNOCKG THEM DOWNRISTG ARRT AS THEY'RE KICKED ON THE GROUNDSEARCHG THEIR HO AND LLG THEM QUEERI DON'T BELIEVE THAT SORT OF THG HAPPENS HERE[CHOS]SG IF YOU'RE GLAD TO BE GAYSG IF YOU'RE HAPPY THAT WAY(HEY!) SG IF YOU'RE GLAD TO BE GAYSG IF YOU'RE HAPPY THAT WAY[VERSE 2]PICTUR OF NAKED YOUNG WOMEN ARE FUNIN TBS AND PLAYBOY, PAGE THREE OF THE SUNTHERE'S NO NUS GAY NEWS, OUR ONE MAGAZEBUT THEY STILL FD EXC TO LL OBSCENEREAD HOW DISGTG WE ARE THE PRSTHE TELEGRAPH, PEOPLE AND SUNDAY EXPRSMOLTERS OF CHILDREN, RPTORS OF YOUTHIT'S THERE THE PAPER, MT BE THE TTHYOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE[CHOS](TRY AND) SG IF YOU'RE GLAD TO BE GAYSG IF YOU'RE HAPPY THAT WAY(HEY!) SG IF YOU'RE GLAD TO BE GAYSG IF YOU'RE HAPPY THAT WAY[VERSE 3]DON'T TRY TO KID THAT IF YOU'RE DISCREETYOU'RE PERFECTLY SAFE AS YOU WALK DOWN THE STREETYOU DON'T HAVE TO MCE OR MAKE BCHY REMARKSTO GET BEATEN UNNSC AND LEFT THE DARKI HAD A IEND WHO WAS GENTLE AND SHORTHE WAS LONELY ONE EVENG AND WENT FOR A WALKQUEERBASHERS UGHT HIM, KICKED HIS TEETHHE WAS ONLY HOSPALISED FOR A WEEK(AND HE STILL BEARS THE SRS)[CHOS]SG IF YOU'RE GLAD TO BE GAYSG IF YOU'RE HAPPY THAT WAY(HEY!) SG IF YOU'RE GLAD TO BE GAYSG IF YOU'RE HAPPY THAT WAY[VERSE 4]AND S BACK AND WATCH AS THEY CLOSE DOWN OUR CLUBSARRT FOR MEETG AND RAID ALL OUR PUBSMAKE SURE YOUR BOYIEND'S AT LEAST 21SO ONLY YOUR IENDS AND YOUR BROTHERS GET DONELIE TO YOUR WORKMAT, LIE TO YOUR FOLKSPUT DOWN THE QUEENS, TELL ANTI-QUEER JOKGAY LIB'S RIDICULO, JO THEIR LGHTER'THE BUGGERS ARE LEGAL NOW, WHAT MORE ARE THEY AFTER?'(TELL THEM!)[CHOS]SG IF YOU'RE GLAD TO BE GAYSG IF YOU'RE HAPPY THAT WAY(HEY!) SG IF YOU'RE GLAD TO BE GAYSG IF YOU'RE HAPPY THAT WAYSG IF YOU'RE GLAD TO BE GAYSG IF YOU'RE HAPPY THAT WAY(HEY!) SG IF YOU'RE GLAD TO BE GAYSG IF YOU'RE HAPPY THIS WAY3EMBEDCANCELHOW TO FORMAT LYRICS:TYPE OUT ALL LYRICS, EVEN REPEATG SONG PARTS LIKE THE CHOSLYRICS SHOULD BE BROKEN DOWN TO DIVIDUAL LUSE SECTN HEARS ABOVE DIFFERENT SONG PARTS LIKE [VERSE], [CHOS], ETC.USE ALICS (<I>LYRIC</I>) AND BOLD (<B>LYRIC</B>) TO DISTGUISH BETWEEN DIFFERENT VOLISTS THE SAME SONG PARTIF YOU DON’T UNRSTAND A LYRIC, E [?]TO LEARN MORE, CHECK OUT OUR TRANSCRIPTN GUI OR VIS OUR TRANSCRIBERS FOMABOUT
The crease the number of visible gay and trans people is sometim treated as a cursy or a e for ncern by crics, but ’s not a surprise. It’s normal. * glad to be gay meaning *
The song pairs a misleadgly upbeat melody, wh btally ironic lyrics scribg the realy of homophobia Bra the 1970s - after the troductn of legal rights. Inially misguid by the happy notatn and tone of the mic, the lyrics h me hard; still, when I listen to this song I feel emotnal, and grieve for everyone who grew up durg a time – not so long ago – when beg gay was not socially accepted by most. The song opens wh a thls illtratn of the state of Bra regards to homophobia and the treatment of gay people, spe the legalizatn of homosexualy the Sexual Offenc Act of 1967, (albe wh an unequal age of nsent pared to heterosexualy).
The openg l offer a sarstic nial of the homophobic police btaly that was rife Bra; police equently raidg gay bars, physilly assltg, and verbally harassg gay people. This led me to thk about the experienc of my own parents such s, and realize what a urageo thg was to be openly gay a time when homophobia was not only socially accepted, by actively perpetrated by the police, stutns, and employe. Yet the chos, wh the eponymo lyrics, ‘Sg if you’re glad to be gay, sg if you’re happy that way’ remds of the empowerg value beg open and standg proud, the face of jtice–every person who openly intified as homosexual or who volly supported this ntributed to the materializatn of progrs.
GLAD TO BE GAY
GLAAD (Gay and Lbian Alliance Agast Defamatn), anizatn created 1985 that is voted to unterg discrimatn agast lbian, gay, bisexual, transgenr, and queer (LGBTQ) dividuals the media and promotg unrstandg, acceptance, and equaly. * glad to be gay meaning *
The next verse addrs the role played by the media, pecially the prs, rercg social narrativ, here the notn that beg gay was somehow wrong, or perverse. Robson’s lyrics expose the hypocrisi popular media pani nmng homosexualy for beg explic, whilst simultaneoly slappg hyper-sexualized imag objectifyg women all across their pag. The fal verse turns to the realy of beg gay the UK the 1970s, addrsg the persecutn of gay people, the unequal age of nsent, and the qutn of rponsibily not only for those who were gay but also for iends and alli.
Eric Bach is an openly gay broadster for the Frericksburg Natnals. He has major league aspiratns, but his path has been much lonelier than he would prefer. * glad to be gay meaning *
This is bee foc on the monplace cricism of gay people beg aquate parents, a sentiment which has been voiced by criqu, policians, and even everyday people teractns throughout my life. The homophobic crique agast lbian women beg mothers, a crique of the basic right to motherhood, only dit how enormoly brave each lbian who beme a mother mt have been – the odds were fely not their favor. In the subsequent s followed a mpaign to legalize homosexualy, om the Wolfenn Report’s remendatns September of 1957, to the Sexual Offenc Act 1967.