Dog Eat Dog (Adam and the Ants song)

Shortly after the single's release, the band performed "Dog Eat Dog" on Top of the Pops on 16 October 1980, helping launch the single to number 4 on the UK Singles Chart,[2] and increasing anticipation from the forthcoming album Kings of the Wild Frontier (released 3 November 1980).[3]

In his 2007 autobiography, Stand and Deliver, Adam said that "Dog Eat Dog" was inspired by a Margaret Thatcher quote he'd read in a newspaper. The expression refers to a situation of fierce competition in which people are willing to harm each other in order to succeed. The lyrics of this song are about bands in competition with each other, and doing just that.[4]

The B-side to the single was "Physical (You're So)." It was a rerecording of an old favourite among "Antpeople" which, up to this point, had been known as "Physical" or "You're So Physical." The song was first recorded by Ant as a four track home demo in the Chelsea flat of Linda Ashby and was first played live in March 1978. Adam and the Ants performed the song at a John Peel session on 10 July 1978 and recorded a full band demo at Decca Studios circa August 1978. Originally a medium-fast song, the tempo was gradually slowed down until by late 1978 it was a slow song. Although used as a set opener on the Spring 1980 Ants Invasion UK tour, since late 1980 onwards it has been mostly used as a final encore with Ant removing his shirt during the opening chords.

This particular version was recorded during the Kings of the Wild Frontier LP sessions circa August 1980. On this version, Ant can be heard saying, "Eat your heart out Do It," during the track's opening riff in direct reference to Do It Records' unofficial release of an old version of the song which had been recorded during sessions for Dirk Wears White Sox and then discarded from the track listing, on the B-side of the Zerox single repress some months earlier.[5] This version, along with two other Dirk out-takes, was reissued in March 1982 as The Antmusic EP.

"Physical (You're So)" was not included on the UK edition of Kings of the Wild Frontier. However, when the album was released in the US, the track "Making History" was dropped in favour of "Physical (You're So)" & "Press Darlings" (the B-side of "Kings of the Wild Frontier")[6] for the American release.[7]

"Physical" was covered by Nine Inch Nails, and appears as one of the two bonus songs on Broken.[8]

• Dog Eat Dog by Adam and the Ants on YouTube
• Dog Eat Dog (Adam and the Ants song) at Discogs (list of releases)