Scordatevi le atmosfere da spiaggia caraibiche, scordatevi di trovare un sottofondo per il joint con gli amici. Questa è l'altra faccia del reggae, come Linton Kwesi Johnson, il poeta del dub, la insegna: un sound denso e notturno, ipnotico e dilatato, insaporito con sapidi aromi jazz nell'accompagnamento e nelle frequenti code strumentali. In questo contesto si stagliano parole taglienti come machete. Parole recitate rigorosamente in patois con piglio ora declamatorio, ora dimesso e ora beffardo, per tratteggiare con colori scuri la realtà di un immigrato giamaicano in un contesto di povertà e segregazione (realtà tra l'altro vissuta in prima persona).
Dopo le vette di "Forces Of Victory", il terzo album dell'ex membro delle pantere nere inglesi è un nuovo successo qualitativo dove la title-track apre le danze con la sua vertigine mesmerizzante e quasi lisergica che fa il paio con gli echi cupi ma languidi di "Street 66". Degni di nota anche gli sprazzi di lirismo che emergono nel commovente madrigale urbano di "Loraine" e nell'accorata elegia di "Reggae Fi Peach", omaggio vibrante e commosso a una vittima del potere.
Pura poesia (anzi, dub poetry) che fa di Linton Kwesi Johnson un degno erede dei suoi progenitori, i griots dell'africa occidentale, trapiantato nella giungla di cemento bagnato londinese; il cantore dei senza voce nel ghetto di Brixton, di chi ha lasciato la terra dei padri per fuggire dalla fame solo per rimanere invischiato a Babilonia, in un mondo che non li comprende, li irride e li teme e che inevitabilmente li porterà a dire che "Inglan Is A Bitch".
Elenco tracce testi e video
01 Bass Culture (06:05)
Bass Culture
-Linton Kwesi Johnson
muzik of blood
black reared
pain rooted
heart geared;
all tensed up
in the bubble and the bounce
an the leap an the weight-drop.
it is the beat of the heart,
this pulsing of blood
that is a bublin bass,
a bad bad beat
pushin gainst the wall
whey bar black blood
an is a whole heappa
passion a gather
like a frightful form
like a righteous harm
giving off wild like is madness
02 Street 66 (03:44)
The room was dark
Dusk howling softly 6 o'clock
Charcoal light
The fine sight
Was moving black
The sound was music mellow steady flow
And man son mind just mystic red, green, red, green
Your scene
No man would dance but leap and shake
That sharp through feeling right
Shape that sound
Tumbling down
Making movement, ruff enuff
Cos when the music met I-tops(?)
I felt the sting, knew the shock, yeah, had to do and ride the rock
Outta dis rock shall come a greener riddim
Even more dread than what the breeze of glory bred
Vibrating violence is our own(?) move
Rocking with green rhythm
The drought and dry root out
The mighty poet I Roy was on the wire
Weston did a skank and each man laugh and feeling irie, dread I
Street 66, the said man said
Any policeman come here will get some righteous, raasclot licks
Yeah mon, whole heapa licks
Ours(?) beat, the scene moving right
When all on a sudden
Bam, bam, bam, a knocking pon the door
"Who is dat?", aksed Weston, feeling right
"Open up, it's the police, come on, open up"
"What address do you want?"
"Number 66, come on, open up"
Weston, feeling high, replied, "Yes, this is Street 66, step right in and
take some licks."
05 Inglan Is a Bitch (05:25)
w´en mi jus´ come to Landan toun
mi use to work pan di andahgroun
but workin´ pan di andahgroun
y´u don´t get fi know your way around
Inglan is a bitch
dere´s no escapin it
Inglan is a bitch
dere´s no runnin´ whey fram it
mi get a lickle jab in a bih ´otell
an´ awftah a while, mi woz doin´ quite well
dem staat mi aaf as a dish-washah
but w´en mi tek a stack, mi noh tun clack-watchah
Inglan is a bitch
dere´s no escapin it
Inglan is a bitch
no baddah try fi hide fram it
w´en dem gi´ you di lickle wage packit
fus dem rab it wid dem big tax rackit
y´u haffi struggle fi mek en´s meet
an´ w´en y´u goh a y´u bed y´u jus´ can´t sleep
Inglan is a bitch
dere´s no escapin it
Inglan is a bitch
a noh lie mi a tell, a true
mi use to work dig ditch w´en it cowl noh bitch
mi did strang like a mule, but bwoy, mi did fool
den awftah a while mi jus´ stap dhu ovahtime
den awftah a while mi jus´ phu dung mi tool
Inglan is a bitch
dere´s no escapin it
Inglan is a bitch
y´u haffi know how fi survive in it
well mi dhu day wok an´ mi dhu nite wok
mi dhu clean wok an´ mi dhu dutty wok
dem seh dat black man is very lazy
but if y´u si how mi wok y´u woulda sey mi crazy
Inglan is a bitch
dere´s no escapin it
Inglan is a bitch
y´u bettah face up to it
dem a have a lickle facktri up inna Brackly
inna disya facktri all dem dhu is pack crackry
fi di laas fifteen years dem get mi laybah
now awftah fifteen years mi fall out a fayvah
Inglan is a bitch
dere´s no escapin it
Inglan is a bitch
dere´s no runnin´ whey fram it
mi know dem have work, work in abundant
yet still, dem mek mi redundant
now, at fifty-five mi gettin´ quite ol´
yet still, dem sen´ mi fi goh draw dole
Inglan is a bitch
dere´s no escapin it
Inglan is a bitch
is whey wi a goh dhu ´bout it?
06 Loraine (04:11)
Whenever it rains I think of you
And I always remember that day in may
When I saw you walking in the rain
I know not what it was nor why
For ususally I'm quite shy
I ax'd your name, you smile and said "Lorraine"
I ax'd if I could share your umbrella
You smiled and said "what a cheeky little fella"
Now I'm standin' in the rain in vain, Loraine
Hoping to see you again
Tears fall from me eyes like rain, Loraine
A terrible pain in me brain, Loraine
You're drivin' me insane
Whenever it rains I think of you
And I always remember that day in may
When I saw you walking in the rain
I know not what it was nor why
For ususally I'm quite shy
but from the moment I saw you
I knew, that I needed you in my life
from that moment on I knew
that I wanted you for my wife
Now I'm standin' in the rain in vain, Loraine
Hoping to see you again
Tears fall from me eyes like rain, Loraine
A terrible pain in me brain, Loraine
You're drivin' me insane
Whenever it rains I think of you
And I always remember that day in may
When I saw you walking in the rain
I know not what it was nor why
For ususally I'm quite shy
I said " let's go back to my place for some coffee"
You frown and said "well, kiss me batty"
I fell so ashamed, I did not even notice
When your bus came, and went again
Now I'm standin' in the rain in vain, Loraine
Hoping to see you again
Tears fall from me eyes like rain, Loraine
A terrible pain in me brain, Loraine
You're drivin' me insane, Loraine, Loraine, Loraine
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