[[quoteright:334:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/gangoffour_7438.png]]
[[caption-width-right:334:The classic 1979 lineup. Left to right: Jon King, Andy Gill, Hugo Burnham, Dave Allen.]]

->''To Hell with poverty!''\\
''We'll get drunk on cheap wine!''

Gang of Four were a British PostPunk band and one of the TropeMakers of DancePunk. They combined {{Funk}} rhythms, jagged guitars and simple bass lines with a heavy emphasis on politics and a sardonic approach to love and sex. While never big in the charts, their mix of PunkRock, {{Funk}}, and Dub Reggae has been influential since their debut in 1979. Bands from Music/{{REM}} through Music/FranzFerdinand to Music/RedHotChiliPeppers cite them as an influence.

The classic lineup contained Jon King on vocals, Andy Gill on guitars and backing vocals, Dave Allen on bass, and Hugo Burnham on drums. The band dissolved and reformed multiple times, transitioning their style from PostPunk DancePunk to NewWaveMusic, Dance Rock, and back to PostPunk with their revival in the TurnOfTheMillennium.

Gill passed away at the age of 64 on February 1, 2020; the band [[https://twitter.com/gangof4official/status/1223653715363663884 announced]] his death that same day via Website/{{Twitter}}. It appeared to be the end of the band-until King and Burnham announced another reunion in October 2021.

Not to be confused with the 1960s Chinese Communist group from whom the band take their name.

!!Studio Discography:
* ''Entertainment!'' - (1979)
* ''Yellow'' - (1980, EP)
* ''Solid Gold'' - (1981)
* ''Another Day/Another Dollar'' - (1982, EP)
* ''Songs of the Free'' - (1982)
* ''Hard'' - (1983)
* ''Mall'' - (1991)
* ''Shrinkwrapped'' - (1995)
* ''Return the Gift'' - (2005, re-recordings of songs from their first three years)
* ''Content'' - (2011)
* ''What Happens Next'' - (2015)
* ''Happy Now'' - (2019)

!!Love Will Get You Like a Case of Tropes:
* AntiLoveSong: "Anthrax"
-->"Love will get you like a case of anthrax\\
And that's something I don't wanna catch"
* CoverAlbum: ''Return the Gift'' is a cover album of their material from 1979-1982. They mostly did it to fix the drums, which they likened on the old albums to cardboard.
* DancePunk: TropeMakers with their combination of danceable funk rhythms and jagged Punk guitars.
* FauxAffablyEvil: Referenced in the captions on the ''Entertainment!'' cover:
-->''The Indian smiles, he thinks that the cowboy is his friend. The cowboy smiles, he is glad the Indian is fooled. Now he can exploit him.''
* IntentionallyAwkwardTitle: The band took their name from a faction of Chinese Communists from the Cultural Revolution who were charged with treason.
* IntercourseWithYou: "Damaged Goods"
-->"Your kiss so sweet, your sweat so sour\\
Sometimes I'm thinking that I love you\\
But I know it's only lust"
* NewSoundAlbum: While they never entirely abandoned their signature sound, they altered it enough to count as this on these records:
** ''Songs of the Free'' transitioned to a more accessible NewWaveMusic sound.
** ''Hard'' and ''Mall'' were RAndB records.
** ''Shrinkwrapped'' brought back the Dance Rock.
** ''Return the Gift'' returned the band to their jagged PostPunk sound, plus bigger drums.
** ''What Happens Next'' is full-blown {{industrial}}.
* NewWaveMusic: Transitioned to this with ''Songs of the Free'' through ''Mall''.
* PostPunk
* ShoutOut: Music/MenWithoutHats gives them one in their song "Living In China".
* TwoLinesNoWaiting: "Anthrax" has Jon singing in the left channel while Andy talks about writing love songs in the right.
----