Bruce Douglas Foxton was born the youngest of three boys on 1 September 1955, in Woking, Surrey, England, to parents Henry and Helen.

Foxton also penned a number of other tracks, the most notable being "Smithers-Jones", done as a straightforward rock take for the B-side of "When You're Young" and later reworked with strings for the Setting Sons album.

He had other minor UK hits in 1983 and 1984 with the singles "This Is the Way" and "It Makes Me Wonder",[5] and played in several bands, including Sharp with former Jam member Rick Buckler, before joining Stiff Little Fingers.

He stayed with Stiff Little Fingers for 15 years, during which time they recorded five albums, namely, Flags and Emblems, Get a Life, Tinderbox, Hope Street and Guitar and Drum.

A complete concert (recorded at the London Astoria in December 2007) was released on DVD in 2008 through the London-based indie label Invisible Hands Music.

[9] Foxton played bass and contributed backing vocals on the songs "Fast Car/Slow Traffic" and "She Speaks" included on Weller's solo album, Wake Up the Nation, released in April 2010.

On 25 May 2010, at the Royal Albert Hall, Foxton joined Weller onstage for the first time in 28 years, to perform three songs, "Fast Car/Slow Traffic", "The Eton Rifles" and "The Butterfly Collector".

[10] Co-written with From The Jam singer Russell Hastings and featuring drummer Mark Brzezicki, guest musicians included Paul Weller.

[15] In January 2025, From The Jam announced that that due to ongoing health issues the final dates of the forthcoming Setting Sons tour would be Bruce's last performances with the group.

[16] In early 2009, Foxton's wife of 25 years Pat, who had worked in public relations for United Artists and CBS, died of breast cancer.