Linton Kwesi Johnson - Inglan Is a Bitch

I remember at the time of its release that many reviewers considered Bass Culture a slight disappointment because it didn't reach the highs of Forces of Victory. Granted, following up a record as great as Forces of Victory is no easy task, but all these years later I wonder what were people thinking. Bass Culture is tremendous, another successful collaboration between Johnson and Bovell with songs that are, at times, even more confrontational (e.g., "Inglan is a Bitch") than anything he had previously recorded. I will admit that the Dub Band sounds better on Forces of Victory, but Johnson is hitting his stride at the time of this release and experimenting with song structure and lyrics a little more (i.e., not everything is explicitly political here). Still, I defy anyone to come up with a reason to not own this record. An extra added bonus is John Kpiaye's great guitar playing.

Produced by: Linton Kwesi Johnson & Dennis (Blackbeard) Bovell
Recorded at Gooseberry Sound Studios
Engineered by: John Caffrey, Mark Lusardy & Dennis Bovell
Tape-Op: Sid
Mixed by: Dennis Bovell

Vocals: Linton Kwesi Johnson
Bass: Vivan Weathers, Floyd Lawson
Guitar: John Kpiaye
Keyboards: Dennis Bovell & Webster Johnson
Alto Sax: James Danton
Tenor Sax: Buttons Henry Tenyue
Trumpet & Flugelhorn: Dick Cuthell & Patrick Tenyue
Trombone: Rico
Harmonica: Juilio Finn

From the Island/Mango album Bass Culture, released May 7, 1980

Category:

People & Blogs

Tags:

• Linton
• Kwesi
• Johnson
• Inglan
• Is
• Bitch

[PoochieStyle]

engelland is ne nutte - und wird es immer bleiben. nächster beweis am sonntag im wm-achtelfinale^^

[RastaChaka]

@PoochieStyle that's right

und wie werden sie spielen ??

[schwebre]

@PoochieStyle ich möchte mal wissen, was die soziale ausbeutung, von der lkj singt, mit fußball zu tun hat. so gern ich die deutsche nationalmannschaft gewinnen sähe - diesen kommentar halte ich für chauvinistisch

[RastaChaka]

@schwebre sehe ich auch so

lkj's radikalen National song

aber ich mag ihn !

one love

[ycooky]

:D :D :D the new summit :D :D :D (insider)

[RastaChaka]

yeah

this is another varieties of the english language

and he is the best :D

[chaipasquoi]

This song remembers me when I asked my way to Brixton, London, because there was a concert with Augustus Pablo.The Londonians said to me that It was supposed to be dangerous for me because I'm white and there were supposed to be thiefs... it was 3 am and I was about to take a taxi, when three Jamaicans came to me:"What are you doing man?Are you mad?In London taxi drivers are thiefs everybody knows that!Night bus is not far away!" How can it be that a civilized country puts peoples in a ghetto?

[mikedonn71]

England has no social mobility. It rains constantly. It smells like fish and chips and vinegar. The people have nothing. Come to America, land of the free.

[mikedonn71]

America is the land where anyone can be president regardless of background. Even the poorest immigrant can become a billionaire. In England, the rigid rules of feudalism and monarchy smash the dreams of its subjects.

[mikedonn71]

England is this archaic, dying civilisation where class and ethnic divisions are set in stone much like they were in Victorian times. Fortunately America is a society where anyone can succeed.

[superstimpack18]

ENGLAND IS A BIG UGLY BIAATCHHH WITH A BIG PUNANNY....STOP LICK DA PUSSY BOMBOCLAT....

[pinstripeballbag]

currently analysing this for my postcolonialism module at uni. i was ridiculously happy to see it come up as a set text

[stickoish]

wid out a dout mi breddra, chrue mi bredren

[45caliper]

LKJ 4 EVER