“Shot By Both Sides” (1978) – Magazine * Written by Howard DeVoto and Pete Shelley * Produced by Mick Glossop and Magazine * UK 45: “Shot By Both Sides” / “My Mind Ain’t So Open”
Debut single by Howard Devoto’s post-Buzzcocks quintet built on a snarling ascending guitar riff that would work well as a US crime show TV theme. The single version strikes harder than the version on their Real Life LP. In his Heart of Rock and Soul, Dave Marsh points to Bruce Springsteen’s opening riff for “Roulette” (recorded in 1979 and released as a 1988 B-side) as a “Shot By Both Sides” mimic, but it’s really just vaguely similar. DeVoto’s former Buzzcocks bandmate Pete Shelley, who also used the main riff for that group’s “Lipstick,” gets co-writing credit.