Guitarist Bob Lewis wrote the music and came up with the title concept, while bassist and singer Gerald Casale penned the verses.

According to author Simon Reynolds, with its stop-start rhythms and angular arrangement, "Be Stiff" exemplified Devo's stance against soft rock complacency.

[1] An early demo of "Be Stiff" with a very different sound appears on the collection Hardcore Devo: Volume Two (1991), recorded in either 1974 or 1975.

"Be Stiff" was also produced in London in limited quantities on clear and yellow vinyl, released at the same time as five colored vinyl versions of "Whoops-a-Daisy" by Stiff Records artist Humphrey Ocean and the Hardy Annuals.

A website devoted to Mickey Jupp offers the following review: All versions were recorded on the Stiff mobile at a sound check during the tour one very cold October afternoon.

He just sang the words, "Be Stiff" over and over again, then Brady suddenly decided to put in a bit out of Hendrix's "Purple Haze".

A second studio version produced by Brian Eno was later issued as the B-side of the "Come Back Jonee" 7-inch single.