They released 18 consecutive top 40 singles in the United Kingdom, from their debut in 1977 to their break-up in December 1982, including four number one hits.

[11] The band drew upon a variety of stylistic influences over the course of their career, including 1970s punk and new wave and 1960s beat music, soul and rhythm and blues.

Bruce Foxton provided backing vocals and prominent basslines, which were the foundation of many of the band's songs, including the hits "Down in the Tube Station at Midnight", "The Eton Rifles", "Going Underground" and "Town Called Malice".

[22] After the non-LP single "All Around the World" nearly reached the UK Top 10, the Jam, having achieved a notable and loyal following in such a short time,[23] were pressed to produce more material quickly.

Bruce Foxton, generally considered a lesser songwriter than Weller, contributed two songs to the LP ("Don't Tell Them You're Sane" and "London Traffic"),[24] both of which attracted criticism.

His composing output gradually decreased, leaving Weller firmly established as the band's chief songwriter.

[28] Around this time, the Jam slimmed their team of two producers to one, Vic Coppersmith-Heaven, who helped develop the group's sound.

It also contained two songs previously rejected for single release, the manic "Billy Hunt" and the acoustic ballad "English Rose".

[26] Following two successful and critically acclaimed non-LP singles, "Strange Town" and "When You're Young",[30] the band released "The Eton Rifles" in advance of their new album.

According to Weller he wrote "That's Entertainment", a bitter slice-of-life commentary on the drudgery of modern working-class life, in around 15 minutes upon returning inebriated from the pub.

[11] Despite the group's lack of commercial success in America, it even made American magazine Rolling Stone's list of the 500 greatest songs of all time.

"[15] Two non-LP singles, "Funeral Pyre" and "Absolute Beginners" (named after Colin Macinnes' novel of the same title) were released in 1981,[41] both reaching No.

1 hit "Town Called Malice" has a Motown-style beat,[45] and has been described by the Irish Independent as "a class-war tirade set to a post-punk Northern Soul groove".

[47][48][49] When "Town Called Malice" reached number one in the UK the group had the honour of performing both it and its double A-side, "Precious" on Top of the Pops.

[11] The latter featured Tracie Young on vocals;[51] a few months later, she also guested on the Style Council's debut single "Speak Like a Child".

[53] The last date on the original itinerary had been scheduled for 9 December 1982 at Guildford Civic Hall, close to the band's hometown of Woking.

Buckler told the Woking News and Mail in 2012: "It was like we were going to be driving over a cliff at the end of the year, and you keep thinking 'Well, maybe he'll change his mind'.

[57] As the farewell tour neared its end, Polydor released a live album titled Dig the New Breed, a collection of songs from various concert performances over the band's five-year career which, while commercially successful, met with mixed reviews.

The month after the final concert in Brighton, Polydor re-released all sixteen of the band's singles, nine of which re-entered the UK charts on 22 January 1983.

[11] A five-CD box set Direction Reaction Creation, featuring all of the Jam's studio material (plus a disc of rarities) peaked at No.

[64] Foxton went on to replace Ali McMordie in a reformed Stiff Little Fingers in 1990, remaining with the band until January 2006, when he quit to pursue other projects.

After the Jam split, Buckler formed Time UK with Jimmy Edwards and Ray Simone,[65] formerly of Masterswitch, ex-Tom Robinson Band guitarist Danny Kustow and (briefly) former Radio Stars/Sparks bassist Martin Gordon.

In 2006, Foxton performed on stage with The Gift at some of their concerts,[67] and went on to join the band as bassist, with Moore moving to second guitar and keyboards.

[73] In June 2006, it was reported that Weller and Foxton met backstage at The Who's Hyde Park concert, and a ten-minute conversation ended with an embrace.

[73] Foxton claimed that the two became friends again in 2009 and this led to them collaborating for two tracks on Weller's solo album Wake Up the Nation in early 2010.

[73] From 26 June to 27 September 2015, an exhibition entitled The Jam: About the Young Idea ran at Somerset House in London.

[75][76][77] For the first time, all three members of the band, the Weller family and music archivist Den Davis opened up their archives for the exhibition.

In September 2015, The Jam: About the Young Idea, the documentary film, directed by Bob Smeaton, was broadcast on Sky Arts.

[82][83][84] About the Young Idea was an exhibition held at the Cunard Building in Liverpool, which was opened by Buckler and ran from 1 July to 6 October 2016.

[85] Curators Nicky Weller, Den Davies and Russell Reader drew together a wide range of memorabilia including personal items provided by the band members.