B-side "Disguises" Genre Mod revival
post-punk Label Polydor | Format 7-inch single Length 3:24 | |
Released 29 May 1981 (1981-05-29) | ||
"Funeral Pyre" is The Jam's thirteenth single released on 29 May 1981. Backed by the B-side "Disguises", a cover of a Who track, it reached No. 4 in the UK Singles Chart.
Funeral Pyre is the only single co-written by the band, and only the second song which has writing credits for all three members, the other being "Music for the Last Couple" which features on the Sound Affects album.
The song begins as a studio jam between drummer Rick Buckler and bassist Bruce Foxton, with Paul Weller's contribution coming later.
The song does not appear on any of the band's studio albums. In the US, it appeared on the five-track EP The Jam (Polydor PX-1-503), which peaked at No. 176 on the Billboard 200 album chart.
Music video
The video was shot at Horsell Common, near Woking. A sandpit (which had earlier featured in H.G. Wells War of the Worlds) was used for the location of the bonfire used to accompany the official music video.