“No Self Control” (1980)

Gabriel peels away the skin to expose the maddening, malfunctioning clockwork underneath.

Kronomyth 3.01: Help, I don’t know how to stop.

Morris Pert is, I presume, the man responsible for the marimba on these tracks. Loved him on Masques, by the way; you should really check that album out. There is so much to like about Peter Gabriel’s third album, and I’d actually get pretty far down that list before I got to No Self Control. Intense, paranoid, it’s the perfect song for the coming dystopia of 1984 with its ridiculous trickle-down Reaganomics and strategic defense initiative. Kate Bush sings backing vocals and seems to have inspired Peter Gabriel’s performance in the attending video. The flip side is Lead a Normal Life (as if…), again prominently featuring those marimbas. In 1980, all of this seemed to promise a bright future that would shine a light into the dark shadows of mankind’s selfish and self-destructive tendencies. It was, of course, an illusion, and 1984 arrived with barely a whimper while Big Brother enjoyed a blowj*b backstage from the powers that would be. Orwell and Huxley got a few small details wrong, but the absolute acquiescence to authority they nailed.

Original 7-inch single version

A1. No Self Control (Peter Gabriel)
B1. Lead a Normal Life (Peter Gabriel)

The Plastic

Released on 7-inch single on May 2, 1980 in the UK (Charisma, CB 360) and Italy and Spain (Charisma, 6000 441) with regional picture sleeve. Reached #33 on the UK charts.