by Chris Harris
Nearly fifty years after The Clash recorded Cheat, its cynical message about inequality, dishonesty and getting ahead remains remarkably relevant. As young Europeans protest over housing, education and opportunities, this forgotten punk classic raises an uncomfortable question: has society really progressed, or are we still fighting the same battles?
Nearly fifty years ago, The Clash recorded a furious little song called Cheat, which appeared on their magnificent debut album in April 1977. A wonderfully cynical observation about society: why bother playing fair when the people who cheat seem to be the ones getting ahead?
This week, half a century later, with young people taking to the streets across Europe, ironically not in then UK bearing in mind White Riot is on the same album, protesting about the cost of living, housing, education, career opportunities and political accountability, it’s remarkable how familiar the sentiments behind the song still feel and how little things have changed.
A Punk Rock Guide to Getting Ahead
Cheat is one of the less celebrated songs on The Clash’s first album. It lacks the recognition of the passing the test of time iconic numbers, but its message is every bit as provocative and the message paradoxically, really has.
Joe Strummer presents a world in which honesty and hard work don’t necessarily get you anywhere. Society tells young people to behave themselves, respect authority, work hard and patiently wait for their rewards. The song can be interpreted as an attack on a society where those at the top enjoy opportunities denied to those further down. Why should ordinary people follow the rules when they suspect the system itself isn’t playing fair?
But what happens when those rewards never arrive? Governments are there to maintain the status quo not develop a better society, that includes Labour, albeit with a little more effort? It was a particularly pertinent question in 1977. Britain was struggling with economic uncertainty, unemployment, industrial unrest and growing disillusionment among young people, under a Labour governmant.
1977 Meets 2026
What’s extraordinary is how many of those frustrations remain half a century on.
In France, students have protested over educational conditions and shortages of teachers. In Portugal and Spain, housing affordability has become a major source of discontent. Italy and Belgium have experienced demonstrations over wages, prices and living standards. Albania has seen protests involving students concerned about education costs and allegations of corruption. Sadly the youth in the UK protest on their phones, subjugated to conformity by social media.
But elsewhere there is a familiar underlying frustration: young people questioning whether the opportunities promised to them are actually attainable. In Spain, for example, more than two-thirds of people aged 18 to 34 were living with at least one parent in 2025. Across Europe, housing costs have made it increasingly difficult for young adults to establish independent lives.
The circumstances aren’t identical to those of 1977. In many respects, living standards, education and opportunities have improved enormously over the intervening decades. Yet the underlying problems remain remarkably similar.
The Clash’s Own Contradictions
There’s a delicious irony surrounding Cheat. The Clash were signed to CBS, one of the world’s major record companies, despite emerging from a punk movement supposedly opposed to the established music industry. Some accused them of selling out. The band saw the record deal as an opportunity to reach a much wider audience. You can see both sides, although one rather suspects there was a lot of ego thrown into the mix, the sort if thing that saw them implode five years later….but would we have had London Calling if they hadn’t moved.
Indeed, were they compromising their principles, or simply using the system to achieve something worthwhile? It’s the sort of contradiction that makes Cheat interesting. “Cheat cheat, or don’t get anywhere….”
The song itself was apparently developed relatively late in the band’s early repertoire, around the period leading up to their first album, which was recorded in February 1977 with producer Mickey Foote.
Another curiosity is that Cheat disappeared from the American version of the album, released in 1979. Along with several other original tracks, it was replaced by later recordings, including Complete Control and (White Man) in Hammersmith Palais. Far better songs but feel inconsistent with the vibe and throw the direction of the album.
Fifty Years and the Same Old Questions
Perhaps the most interesting thing about Cheat is that it doesn’t provide a solution. Yet, approaching the fiftieth anniversary of the album, I find it fascinating that a little punk song recorded in 1977 can still provoke such relevant questions. Perhaps society has progressed considerably in half a century. But if young people are still wondering whether playing by the rules will ever get them anywhere, you have to ask whether we’ve really learned very much at all. Maybe for some people bucking the system is the only way to secure a goof life.
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Something About England: Amazon.co.uk: Harris, Mr Christopher, Turner, Louise: 9798181129351: Books
Welcome to Denham, a fictitious Sussex village where behind respectable doors, well-tended gardens and familiar faces, things have a habit of going badly wrong.
Obsession, ambition, deception, jealousy and petty rivalry run through this collection of tragi-comical and satirical short stories. From poltergeists and lottery winners to cricket club feuds and environmental disasters, ordinary people embark on discovering just how quickly an ordinary life can unravel into an extraordinary mess.
Darkly funny, occasionally poignant and populated by characters who are rarely quite what they seem, these stories explore the peculiarities of Middle England, and the uncomfortable territory between respectability and ruin.
