RIBS TPTD: The Mind Of Gil Scott-Heron

Gil Scott-Heron. Poet. Musician. Activist.

GSH (as his fans like to refer to him) is another on of my favorite music artists that, unfortunately, you do not hear played much anymore. It’s a shame because Gil was unique during his heyday in the 70s and 80s in that he was about the only music artist blending  jazz, poetry and political commentary. Now, of course, the intermixing of these three themes was nothing new per se, as many artists did this during those uniquely exciting and turbulent years of the 60s. It’s just that by the time of the mid-to-late 70s and into the 80s it had more or less died out… except for Gil.

We have a special treat on tap for you this week as we delve deeply into the mind of Gil Scott-Heron and examine his poetry, his music, and most importantly the inspiring and often politically critical messages in his words and lyrics. In keeping with the “triple play” theme of our little Thursday get togethers, we’ve cooked up not 1, not 2, but a 3-mix offering of Gil Scott-Heron for you today covering a wide range of the material he’s produced over the years.

For some of you (over the age of 45) a lot of this may be a walk down memory lane as Gil espouses his views on the Watergate scandal that brought down the Nixon administration, the hypocrisy of the Ronald Reagan administration, and the overblown, over exaggerated Bicentennial celebration, in addition to sharp, biting commentary about life and struggles in the inner city and the rest of the world. For the rest of you, well… sit back, get comfortable and open up your mind, as you are about to get a valuable education and history lesson.

This week we present to you:

Gil Scott-Heron, The People’s Poet

RIBS TPTD: Gil Scott-Heron, part 1
Alternate (if you have a problem using the javascript pop-up): Click here.
Right-click here to download .MP3 file (92Mb, 1:19:40)

Playlist, part 1:

1. Inner City Blues [Reflections]
2. New York City [It's Your World]
3. The Get Out Of The Ghetto Blues [Free Will]
   
4. Gun [Reflections]
5. H2Ogate Blues [Winter In America]
   
6. Guerilla [The First Minute Of A New Day]
   
7. Delta Man (Where I’m Comin’ From) [Bridges]
8. No Knock [Free Will]
   
9. Message To The Messengers [Spirits]
   
10. The Train From Washington [Real Eyes]
11. Washington, D.C. [Moving Target]
12. “B” Movie [Reflections]
13. Pieces Of A Man [Pieces Of A Man]
14. Paint It Black [Small Talk at 125th & Lennox]
15. Winter In America [The First Minute Of A New Day]

We start off the mix with four selections of commentary on life in the inner city. I’ve always loved Gil’s adaptation of Marvin’s Inner City Blues and how he weaves his own magic with it. And Gun from the “Reflections” LP is a catchy tune with a nice beat and a powerful message. Even if you are a casual GSH fan, H2Ogate Blues should need no introduction as it may be one of his more recognizable tunes. My two favorites in the Part 1 mix are Message To The Messengers from his last studio LP, “Spirits” which is a plea to this generation’s rappers to be about something and speak up for positive changes in the community; and “B”-Movie from “Reflections” (set on top of a catchy beat/chant) which is, IMHO, one of his sharpest and humorously biting political commentaries on the Reagan Whitehouse:

“The idea concerns the fact that this country wants nostalgia. They want to go back as far as they can — even if it’s only as far as last week. Not to face now or tomorrow, but to face backwards. And yesterday was the day of our cinema heroes riding to the rescue at the last possible moment. The day of the man in the white hat or the man on the white horse or the man who always came to save America at the last moment — someone always came to save America at the last moment — especially in ‘B’ movies. And when America found itself having a hard time facing the future, they looked for people like John Wayne. But since John Wayne was no longer available, they settled for Ronald Reagan — and it has placed us in a situation that we can only look at — like a ‘B’ movie.”

We continue in Part 2 where we left off in Part 1 and start it off with the classic, The Revolution Will Not Be Televised. Also included in mix #2 is Bicentennial Blues, another bit of jazz poetry/social commentary that should make you think; and Johannesburg, Gil’s look at the (at the time) apartheid regime ruling South Africa. The pearls of this mix though are at the end with the three part, The Other Side, which sounds eerily autobiographical if you are familiar with some of the demons of addiction that Gil has be dealing with these past few years. And we finish up with my partner’s all time favorite GSH song which should be recognizable to most of you, The Bottle.

RIBS TPTD: Gil Scott-Heron, part 2
Alternate (if you have a problem using the javascript pop-up): Click here.
Right-click here to download .MP3 file (92Mb, 1:19:31)

Playlist, part 2:

1. The Revolution Will Not Be Televised [The Revolution Will Not Be Televised]
2. Madison Avenue [Secrets]
3. A Legend In His Own Mind [Real Eyes]
   
4. Bicentennial Blues [It's Your World]
5. South Carolina (Barnwell) [From South Africa To South Carolina]
   
6. Johannesburg [From South Africa To South Carolina]
   
7. We Almost Lost Detroit [Bridges]
8. Lady Day And John Coltrane [Pieces Of A Man]
   
9. Blue Collar [Moving Target]
   
10. Waiting For The Axe To Fall [Real Eyes]
11. Work For Peace [Spirits]
12. Angel Dust [Secrets]
13. The Other Side, part I [Spirits]
14. The Other Side, part II [Spirits]
15. The Other Side, part III [Spirits]
16. The Bottle [Winter In America]

With the third and final mix in our Gil Scott-Heron Triple Play Thurs-Day, I wanted to focus on Gil’s “ballads” (if I can loosely use that term to describe these selections). One of the things that sometimes gets lost in an analysis of the “People’s Poet” is his musical talent and the beautiful melodies he created, especially during the period when he was teamed up with Brian Jackson. Most of the selections here in Part 3 are on the slow/mellow side composed of poignant, melodic music, yet still containing those thought provoking lyrics that are Gil’s trademark.

Morning Thoughts is simply a beautiful “love song” both musically and lyrically, as is A Lovely Day. A Very Precious Time is one of those songs the just “touches me” for some unexplained reason ever since I first heard it so many years ago. And there is no man on this earth who has a daughter who won’t understand and “feel” Your Daddy Loves You.

We momentarily take the tempo of the mix up a notch or two with Is That Jazz? and Hello Sunday! Hello Road!, and then bring it back down to “jazzy mellow” with my favorite “travelin’ down the road” cut, 95 South (All Of The Places We’ve Been). And finally we finish up and take you on home with messages of peace and perseverance in the form of Peace Go With You Brother and Don’t Give Up.

RIBS TPTD: Gil Scott-Heron, part 3
Alternate (if you have a problem using the javascript pop-up): Click here.
Right-click here to download .MP3 file (92Mb, 1:17:44)

Playlist, part 3:

1. Beginnings (The First Minute Of A New Day) [From South Africa To South Carolina]
2. Morning Thoughts [Reflections]
3. A Lovely Day [From South Africa To South Carolina]
   
4. Song For Bobby Smith [Winter In America]
5. You Could Be My Brother [Real Eyes]
   
6. Rivers Of My Father [Winter In America]
   
7. Combinations [Real Eyes]
8. A Very Precious Time [Winter In America]
   
9. Give Her A Call [Spirits]
   
10. Your Daddy Loves You [Real Eyes]
11. Is That Jazz? [Reflections]
12. Hello Sunday! Hello Road! [Bridges]
13. Grandma’s Hands [Reflections]
14. 95 South (all Of The Places We’ve Been) [Bridges]
15. Peace Go With You Brother [Winter In America]
16. Don’t Give Up [Spirits]

Whew! Hope you enjoyed this extended excursion into the music and mind of, again IMHO, an underrated musician/composer/poet/activist. Remember, while Gil Scott-Heron is around there will always be a: Message In The Music.

Enjoy!

Technorati Tags: soul, netinfoweb, TPTD, playlist, mp3, mp3blog, soul music, jazz, Rhythms In Black Satin, RIBS, Gil Scott-Heron

Powered by ScribeFire.

Popularity: 10% [?]