Bruce Foxton

[Crusoe]

Don't worry, he hasn't gone to the great gig in the sky. I saw a message on Bluesky, from Stiff Little Fingers, saying that he has announced his retirement due to health concerns. Best wishes to Bruce and here's hoping that he has a long, happy retirement.

[Lozz196]

56 minutes ago, Crusoe said:

Don't worry, he hasn't gone to the great gig in the sky. I saw a message on Bluesky, from Stiff Little Fingers, saying that he has announced his retirement due to health concerns. Best wishes to Bruce and here's hoping that he has a long, happy retirement.

I saw the title of this thread and dreaded opening it, as I understood Bruce had had some health issues recently.

 

Great bassist, one of my main inspirations to play bass, and a nice chap too - only met him the once, which was a real "we`re not worthy" moment for me, he could clearly see it and put me at ease, asking my opinions of the stage/sound/lighting etc of where we were playing. 

[Wolverinebass]

1 hour ago, Lozz196 said:

Great bassist, one of my main inspirations to play bass, and a nice chap too - only met him the once, which was a real "we`re not worthy" moment for me, he could clearly see it and put me at ease, asking my opinions of the stage/sound/lighting etc of where we were playing. 

I met him in Glasgow in 98 or 99. I don't know if they still do it, but Stiff Little Fingers used to play the Barrowlands in Glasgow every St. Patrick's day without fail. He was just walking through Queen Street station and obviously, one had to have a quick chat. He was a really nice guy.

[NAS Bass]

A real shame he’s had to give it up. Written and played some iconic bass lines and when I’ve met him he has always been a good bloke. 

[Crusoe]

16 hours ago, Wolverinebass said:

I met him in Glasgow in 98 or 99. I don't know if they still do it, but Stiff Little Fingers used to play the Barrowlands in Glasgow every St. Patrick's day without fail. He was just walking through Queen Street station and obviously, one had to have a quick chat. He was a really nice guy.

They do still play Glasgow every St Patrick's Day. Obviously, Bruce hasn't been in the band for a few years now, but I was lucky enough to see him play with them quite a few times.

[Linus27]

I was also worried opening this thread  Great bass player and doesn't get as much credit as he deserves among the top names. I only met him once as we were supporting Stiff Little Fingers at the Forum and he came over to say hi. 

[Lozz196]

1 hour ago, Crusoe said:

They do still play Glasgow every St Patrick's Day. Obviously, Bruce hasn't been in the band for a few years now, but I was lucky enough to see him play with them quite a few times.

Yep I saw him with SLF a good few times. One of those strange things, he`s known for being in The Jam but was with SLF for longer.

[Nail Soup]

What a great player and inspired many to pick up the bass.
I saw From The Jam a year or two ago and Bruce did not look well then. And he missed a lot of gigs. So no surprise about the retirement.
FTJ have said that the band will continue without Bruce..... seems strange seeing that the name is based on the fact that they contain an original member.

[vbance]

 

[Lozz196]

7 minutes ago, Nail Soup said:

What a great player and inspired many to pick up the bass.
I saw From The Jam a year or two ago and Bruce did not look well then. And he missed a lot of gigs. So no surprise about the retirement.
FTJ have said that the band will continue without Bruce..... seems strange seeing that the name is based on the fact that they contain an original member.

Yes I thought that when I saw them last year, he def looked a bit frail.

 

I suppose they can sell FTJ as it being songs from The Jam? And they have been going a long time now.

[mikebass456]

Great little edit of Bruce's bassline from Start! on the current Sainsbury's advert 😎🤘

[BassTool]

I assumed summat may be up healthwise when some of his basses came up for sale a while back, notably his Wal..either that or he was skint.

 

Loved his playing and sound on the early Jam stuff tho, never realised he'd played longer with SLF  😳

[TrevorR]

Saw this posted up by FTJ - such a shame that he’s laying his (live) bass down. But your health is your health. Hope that his health improves without the stresses of road life.

[stewblack]

I wish him a long and happy retirement. He has enriched my life beyond measure.

His playing was one of the major reasons I wanted to play the bass.