When Kelly, now living in London, left the band in the mid-eighties, John Gibson took over in front of the bass stack. Towards the end of the decade, however, a different split was on the horizon.

An interest in the new wave country of Steve Earle and Dwight Yoakam inspired McLaughlin and Gore to form a side project, The Removal Men, which they ran alongside Gags. The new two-piece soon became a three-piece, and then added a drummer, as they established a new following and circuit of venues.

Gags, however, continued. ‘The rule of thumb was, if Bernie was behind the drums we were Gags. If he wasn’t, then we were The Removal Men and the setlist would reflect that,’ says McLaughlin by way of a signpost.