I first saw Gil Scott-Heron perform in 1985 at the Brazilian club SOB's [1] in Manhattan, which during that period functioned as his home-base. His unique musical fusion of jazz, blues, rap, funk, and soul was captivating and his radical political vision was transformative, not just for me, but for a generation of musicians and activists especially in the hip-hop community.
The pioneering poet and musician is often credited as one of the progenitors of hip-hop with Public Enemy's Chuck D, Aesop Rock, Talib Kweli, Kanye West and Common all citing the poet/songwriter as a chief influence.
Tragically, Scott-Heron died Friday afternoon [2] in New York at the tender age of 62.
Best known for the song "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised [3]" which firmly entered the cultural lexicon after appearing on his 1971 album Pieces of a Man, Scott-Heron later battled drug problems and was incarcerated for a period during the 2000s, but he never stopped touring, and in 2010 he released the well-received I'm New Here.
His political legacy was vast and his connections to social movements deep. He was particularly active in the civil rights struggle and the anti-nuclear movement of the 1970s and 1980s. He wrote probably the most moving song ever about the perils of nuclear power ("We Almost Lost Detroit"), undoubtedly the catchiest tune decrying the exploitation of mine workers, ("Three Miles Down,") and what became the anthem of the anti-Apartheid movement, ("Johannesburg.")
In 1979 he performed alongside Bruce Springsteen, Jackson Browne and many others at the MUSE [4] benefits at Madison Square Garden, and in 1985 he led the protest anthem "Sun City" in a star-studded line-up featuring Bob Dylan, Steve Van Zandt, RUN DMC, Lou Reed and Miles Davis.
His writing also touched on domestic violence, addiction, the increasing gap between rich and poor, political disillusionment and what a bad actor Ronald Reagan had been.
It's impossible to select a top ten from Scott-Heron's vast canon but the choices below represent an effort to highlight his astonishing musical range, his incisive political commentary and his incendiary live performances.
We'll be compiling additional written and musical tributes in the next few days.
B Movie
Home is Where the Hatred Is
Johannesburg
We Almost Lost Detroit
Three Miles Down
The Bottle
Winter in America
Whitey on the Moon
Shut 'Em Down
Comment #1
A Toast to the People
The pioneering poet and musician is often credited as one of the progenitors of hip-hop with Public Enemy's Chuck D, Aesop Rock, Talib Kweli, Kanye West and Common all citing the poet/songwriter as a chief influence.
Tragically, Scott-Heron died Friday afternoon [2] in New York at the tender age of 62.
Best known for the song "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised [3]" which firmly entered the cultural lexicon after appearing on his 1971 album Pieces of a Man, Scott-Heron later battled drug problems and was incarcerated for a period during the 2000s, but he never stopped touring, and in 2010 he released the well-received I'm New Here.
His political legacy was vast and his connections to social movements deep. He was particularly active in the civil rights struggle and the anti-nuclear movement of the 1970s and 1980s. He wrote probably the most moving song ever about the perils of nuclear power ("We Almost Lost Detroit"), undoubtedly the catchiest tune decrying the exploitation of mine workers, ("Three Miles Down,") and what became the anthem of the anti-Apartheid movement, ("Johannesburg.")
In 1979 he performed alongside Bruce Springsteen, Jackson Browne and many others at the MUSE [4] benefits at Madison Square Garden, and in 1985 he led the protest anthem "Sun City" in a star-studded line-up featuring Bob Dylan, Steve Van Zandt, RUN DMC, Lou Reed and Miles Davis.
His writing also touched on domestic violence, addiction, the increasing gap between rich and poor, political disillusionment and what a bad actor Ronald Reagan had been.
It's impossible to select a top ten from Scott-Heron's vast canon but the choices below represent an effort to highlight his astonishing musical range, his incisive political commentary and his incendiary live performances.
We'll be compiling additional written and musical tributes in the next few days.
B Movie
Home is Where the Hatred Is
Johannesburg
We Almost Lost Detroit
Three Miles Down
The Bottle
Winter in America
Whitey on the Moon
Shut 'Em Down
Comment #1
A Toast to the People
Copyright © 2011 The Nation
Article printed from www.CommonDreams.org
Source URL: http://www.commondreams.org/view/2011/05/29-0
7 Comments so far
Show AllEvery human being should know about this.
In memory of GSH - some links to the people we should study and give thanks to the possibility of solidarity in struggling for Mother Earth
Wisdom of Chief Oren Lyons 2010 - change values or you will not survive - nature knows no mercy
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OyDCbbScgMw&NR=1
Steve Newcomb on the Doctrine of Discovery
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bI9NAIfock&NR=1
http://www.galdu.org/web/?giella1=
I was moved by the film for several reasons. First, Mr. Chappelle is fully cognizant of the Black man's experience within a White-dominant culture, yet he transcends blame and hatred. He genuinely loves people and is the midpoint embodiment between Chris Rock and Martin Luther King (in my eyes).
Second, since the film worked like a documentary concentrating on those who partook of this concert/block party, it revealed the incredible energy of many people who live in difficult conditions. Some miraculously manage to thrive, like the grass that grows between the cracks. (I believe that metaphor comes from a Pete Seeger tune.)
I felt a visceral sense of relatedness to all of them, and admired their passion and conviction. Their beauty was so clear to me; and what was equally lucid was that everyone pretty much wants the same basic things...nor are these about war, financial enslavement, or unjust horrors. The decency of the persons the film interviewed was inspiring.
Some of the rap performers (and I am not essentially a fan of that "art") explained that they grew up in Bed or Sty, and the ONLY thing that kept them out of trouble with the police was music. The power of song, rhythm, and the swaying energy caught up in the articulation of its visions is something no policing force can stop.
I saw the future in the faces of the crowd there assembled, and it made me feel hopeful, even in these dark times where state power has over-reached its boundaries the way so many rivers now similarly flood their established banks. With so much light radiating from their beings, the path out of darkness lives.
I have a Gil Scott Heron album and will give it a listen tonight...
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=2787517403276391321#
It is riveting and a great glimpse of this aware artist.
As for GSH, the activist-poet, I was introduced to his music and thoughts through a now defunct college radio station. It came out of Georgetown University, believe it or not-- WGTB.
"By the 1970s, the station had shifted course to music-oriented programming. WGTB became well-known throughout the Washington, DC metro area as a voice for new music, and more notably as a voice for the political left, broadcasting anti-war programming across a 60-mile radius. Maintaining a political voice for dissidents of the day established the station as a mainstay among the left-wing community. This stance was the source of considerable friction between the station and the university administration, resulting in several shutdowns, and eventually the end of WGTB*. In 1979, to mark the creation of the University of the District of Columbia (UDC), Georgetown donated WGTB’s 6700 watt signal (90.1 FM) to UDC. This signal was later sold by UDC in 1997 to C-SPAN for $25 million." (from this site: http://georgetownradio.com/about) What a flip, huh? *I remember the biggest flap was an hour show sponsored by a group that defined themselves as "black, militant, dykes on bikes". I miss those days and the great programming! DC still has a Pacifica station, but I hate to say it is a watered down version of WGTB and much less diverse and daring. Maybe it is time to get a short range station up and running in the inner city that honors that spirit.
I think I have some old cassettes gathering dust that I recorded from that station. Probably toast by now.
RIP Gil. You definitely opened my eyes to the big, bad world.
PHOTIUS: Thanks for the musical referral. I have to check... I still have all my old vinyl albumns because it would cost a FORTUNE to replace them (mostly jazz) on C.D. or DVD or whatever the intended next built-in-obsolescence-geared technology.
Yeah, I get a REALLY high vibe around Chappelle. He transcends racism, but understands what it is to be the underdog... he's got a heart of gold, and a decent enough sense of humor.
Thanks for your responses, guys. Write on!