We're making history

There's a lot of music I listened to in 1978 that I'm no longer interested in.  And there are a few things that are as timely and compelling now as they were then.

Linton Kwesi Johnson's poems of the 70s and 80s written about England's National Front, the Brixton Uprising and the death of Blair Peach could just as easily have been about USA 2020's Unite The Right, the Black Lives Matter movement and George Floyd.  If you're personally or emotionally involved in the movement today, when you listen to Johnson perform his poems you'll think he was forecasting your present.

This week (Monday August 24, 3:00-5:00 PM on WRIR, for two weeks afterwards at wrir.org/listen, check your local listings for airing on other radio stations, and any old time at my podcast site) Global A Go-Go presents a two-hour special on the poetry and music of Linton Kwesi Johnson, on the occasion of his 68th birthday and his recent award of the 2020 PEN Pinter Prize.

Podcast: radio4all.net/index.php/program/106446
All the podcasts: radio4all.net/index.php/series/Global+A+Go-Go


Artist | Country | Song | Recording | Label | Year

Oliver Lake | USA | Separation | Matador Of 1st & 1st | Passin' Thru | 1997
Joe Strummer & The Mescaleros | England UK | Global A Go-Go | Global A Go-Go | Hellcat | 2001

Poet & The Roots | England UK | Five Nights Of Bleeding (For Leroy Harris) | Dread Beat An' Blood | Front Line | 1978
Linton Kwesi Johnson | England UK | Sonny's Lettah (Anti-Sus Poem) | Forces Of Victory | Island | 1979
Linton Kwesi Johnson | England UK | New Crass Massahkah | Making History | Island | 1984

Hugh Roy & John Holt with Tommy McCook & The Supersonics | Jamaica | Wear You To The Ball | Wear You To The Ball / The Ball - single | Treasure Isle | 1970
Winston Williams | Jamaica | Sweet Like Candy | Sweet Like Candy - single | Smash | 1970
Dillinger | Jamaica | Cokane In My Brain | CB 200 | Island | 1976
I. Roy | Jamaica | Black Man Time | Presenting I. Roy | Trojan | 1973
Peter Tosh | Jamaica | Here Comes The Judge | Here Comes The Judge / Rebeloution - single | Shock | 1971

Linton Kwesi Johnson | England UK | Fite Dem Back | Forces Of Victory | Island | 1979
Poet & The Roots | England UK | Man Free (For Darcus Howe) | Dread Beat An' Blood | Front Line | 1978
Linton Kwesi Johnson | England UK | Reggae Fi Peach | Bass Culture | Island | 1980
Linton Kwesi Johnson | England UK | Peach Dub | LKJ In Dub | Island | 1980

Anthony Joseph | Trinidad & Tobago-England UK | Caribbean Roots | Caribbean Roots | Heavenly Sweetness / Strut | 2016
Ikwunga | Nigeria-USA | Di Bombs | Calabash: Afrobeat Poems, Volume 1 | Rebisi Hut / Dele Sosimi Productions | 2004

Linton Kwesi Johnson | England UK | Inglan Is A Bitch | Bass Culture | Island | 1980
Linton Kwesi Johnson | England UK | Di Black Petty Booshwah | Bass Culture | Island | 1980
Linton Kwesi Johnson | England UK | Di Eagle An' Di Bear | Di Eagle An' Di Bear / Wat About Di Workin' Claas? - single | Island | 1984

Benjamin Zephaniah & Eliza Carthy with Trans-Global Underground and Simon Emmerson | England UK | Tam Lyn Retold | The Imagined Village | Real World | 2007
Dan Le Sac Vs Scroobius Pip | England UK | Thou Shalt Always Kill | Thou Shalt Always Kill - single | Lex | 2007
Nickodemus | USA | Give The Drummer Some | Endangered Species | Wonderwheel | 2005