| features in: Album Chart of 1982 → ● Album Chart of the Decade: 1980s → |
Any Robert Wyatt fans desperate for an all-new solo album (there hadn't been such a thing since 1975) would have to wait a while longer yet, but this got close to it, rounding up 8 of the recent Rough Trade single sides, one compilation track and one previously unreleased cut, a version of the traditional standard, “Red Flag”. Opening track “Born Again Cretin” (the only Wyatt original in the set) had featured on the NME's “C-81” cassette in April, 1981. 1980's “At Last I Am Free” was a surprise Chic cover and “Caimanera”, sung in Spanish, might translate as “Sing when you're winning”, although I might have made that up. 1981's “Grass” was originally done by Ivor Cutler on his 1975 LP “Velvet Donkey” - nice to see these two continue to support each other. The other side of that 45, “Trade Union”, was billed to Dishari, a Bengali group invited into the studio by Robert. Songwriter Abdus Salique had to leave East Pakistan in 1970 because of left-wing political activities, but continued his work in East London, where he became the spokesman for the Bengali community, later to be a Labour councillor. “Stalin Wasn’t Stallin’” is sung a capella. It was originally recorded in that way by the gospel group Golden Gate Jubilee Quartet (of which the song’s writer Willie Johnson was a member) in 1943. Again, the other side of the single is included here, “Stalingrad” by Peter Blackman, a West-Indian poet who reads his own piece, unaccompanied, closing the album thoughtfully. Just before that, with piano, the ever-grim “Strange Fruit” revisits Billie Holiday's timeless anti-racist piece from 1939, whilst “Arauco” is another sung in Spanish. As you can gather from this brief synopsis, there's much to unpack here. Relax, take a sip of something fresh and cool, enjoy.
The Jukebox Rebel
05–Apr–2011
| Tracklist |
| A1 | [03:10]  Robert Wyatt - Born Again Cretin (Robert Wyatt) Alternative Folk |
| A2 | [04:17]  Robert Wyatt - At Last I Am Free (Bernard Edwards, Nile Rodgers) Songwriter |
| A3 | [05:18]  Robert Wyatt - Caimanera (Carlos Puebla, José Fernández) Folk |
| A4 | [02:39]  Robert Wyatt - Grass (Ivor Cutler) Alternative Folk |
| A5 | [03:22]  Robert Wyatt - Stalin Wasn’t Stallin’ (Willie Johnson) Soul |
| B1 | [03:09]  Robert Wyatt - Red Flag (Traditional) Folk |
| B2 | [03:37] Robert Wyatt - Strange Fruit (Abel Meeropol) Jazz |
| B3 | [04:35]  Robert Wyatt - Arauco (Violeta Parra) Alternative Folk |
| B4 | [03:44]  Dishari - Trade Union (Abdus Salique) Asian |
| B5 | [05:46]  Peter Blackman - Stalingrad (Peter Blackman) Poetry |
