Police and Thieves
| "Police and Thieves" | |
|---|---|
| Single by Junior Murvin | |
| from the album Police and Thieves | |
| B-side | "Grumbling Dub" |
| Released | May 1976 (JA)/July 1976 (UK) |
| Format | 7", 12", 45rpm |
| Recorded | May 1976, Black Ark Studio, Kingston, Jamaica |
| Genre | Reggae |
| Label | Wild Flower/Island WIP 6316 |
| Songwriter(s) | Junior Murvin, Lee "Scratch" Perry |
| Producer(s) | Lee "Scratch" Perry |
| "Police and Thieves" | |
|---|---|
| Song by The Clash | |
| from the album The Clash | |
| Released | 8 April 1977 |
| Recorded | March, 1977 |
| Genre | Punk rock, reggae |
| Length | 6:04 |
| Label | CBS |
| Songwriter(s) | Junior Murvin, Lee "Scratch" Perry |
| Producer(s) | Mikey Foote |
"Police and Thieves" (a.k.a. "Police and Thief") is a reggae song first recorded by the falsetto singer Junior Murvin in 1976. It was covered by the punk band The Clash and included on their self-titled debut album released in 1977.
The song was originally written by Junior Murvin. Murvin approached Lee "Scratch" Perry in May 1976 and auditioned the song at Perry's Black Ark studio; Perry decided to record the song the same afternoon, and decided to alter the lyric slightly. Players on the track included Boris Gardiner (bass), Ernest Ranglin (guitar), Sly Dunbar (drums), Keith Sterling (keyboards), and Joe Cooper (organ), with backing vocals provided by Barry Llewellyn and Earl Morgan of The Heptones.
The next day dub versions were mixed and versions with different lyrics recorded. The song, about gang war and police brutality, was out on the street in a couple of days, backed by The Upsetters' dub version "Grumbling Dub", and became a big hit in Jamaica. Released in Jamaica on Federal Records' Wild Flower subsidiary label (as "Police and Thief") it was issued in the UK by Island Records in July, and proved to be a bigger sales and club hit in England than in Murvin's and Perry's native Jamaica. It was also successful in the US, where it was issued on the Mango label. Island also issued a 12-inch version with Jah Lion's deejay version "Soldier and Police War", and Glen DaCosta's saxophone version "Magic Touch" added.
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