Which punk band recorded the 1977 single Oh Bondage Up Yours!?

X-Ray Spex recorded the 1977 single “Oh Bondage Up Yours!”.

The song was released by EMI on September 16, 1977, with Poly Styrene on lead vocals. Its famous opening combines a shouted declaration with a burst of saxophone, immediately announcing a sound that was more colorful and theatrical than conventional guitar-led punk. Jak Airport’s saxophone became a central part of the band’s identity.

Poly Styrene wrote the song after seeing consumer goods and packaging everywhere in modern life. The word “bondage” refers to social and commercial constraint rather than a private activity, and the song’s satire targets the way consumer culture can limit individual freedom.

“ Oh Bondage Up Yours!” did not become a major chart hit at the time, but it became one of the most celebrated singles of the British punk era. It is sometimes associated with the later album Germfree Adolescents, but the single was released more than a year before that album. X-Ray Spex’s original version remains the canonical recording.