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---
title: Brexit Vote: The Clash Have Got the Perfect Song
description: On Thursday, 46 million registered voters in the U.K. are asking the same question as The Clash: &quot;Should I Stay or Should I Go?&quot;
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article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T07:33:40.960Z
og:title: This Is the Brexit Song You Didn&#x27;t Know You Needed
og:description: Should the U.K. stay or should it go?
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twitter:title: This Is the Brexit Song You Didn&#x27;t Know You Needed
twitter:description: Should the U.K. stay or should it go?
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# The Brexit Vote Is the Perfect Excuse to Revisit This Song by The Clash

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by 

[TIME Staff](https://time.com/author/time-staff/)


## TIME Staff


Jun 23, 2016 9:02 AM UTC

by 

[TIME Staff](https://time.com/author/time-staff/)


## TIME Staff


Jun 23, 2016 9:02 AM UTC

“If I go there will be trouble, and if I stay it will be double,” sings The Clash’s Mick Jones, “so you’ve got to let me know, should I cool it or should I blow?”

The song was first recorded in 1981, but in 2016 Britain, the sentiment could not be more fitting. On Thursday, the U.K. asks itself the same question as The Clash: “Should I Stay or Should I Go?”

More than 46 million Britons are registered to vote in what is expected to be a tight race to decide if the country remains in the European Union, or leaves — an option that’s been dubbed “Brexit.”

The band’s politically outspoken front-man, the late Joe Strummer — perhaps fittingly in the modern context — delivers the song’s backing vocals in Spanish.

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