Saturday, 14 July 2012

It have some good Fusic in England

You are invited to post observations on how British music changed owing to the music of the immigrants from the Caribbean, South Asia, Africa, etc.  How did Calypso translate to England?  What are the roots of Dub?  What do we think of M.I.A. and the kind of politics she brings to the table.  Etc.  Do we get to listen to the radio here?
Here's "Crooked Beat," by The Clash, to give you some sounds to contemplate.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dPMG52AOiiE
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4 comments:

  1. Kelsey McKinney15 July 2012 at 15:10

    I tried to do some legitimate research about the international response to M.I.A.'s political commentary, but ended up listening to every song she has ever written instead. Despite my obsession with her sophomore year of high school, I never read enough into her lyrics. Now, however, I am beginning to understand how a Sri Lankian immigrant chanting "I'm knockin on the doors of your hummer (hummer)//Yea, we're hungry like the wolves," is more than just a catchy phrase.

    I tend to have a lot of respect for people who are granted influence and try to use it for more than promoting their new perfume, but not a lot of respect for people who tweet "fuck the New York Times" after a controversial article is written about them. So, I guess I am at a loss here.

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  2. Unknown15 July 2012 at 15:53

    I see that calypso is mentioned quite a few times in Selvon's works so I wanted to do a little bit more research on it. Originally a traditional form of music used by slave to describe their situation it started to expand once slavery was abolished. The music was extremely popular in the Caribbean and, by default, it became very popular in the places where they migrated.

    In England, it's popularity began with the arrival of the Empire Windrush. Lord Kitchner is one of the most famous calypso artists. Supposedly, he sang "London is the Place for Me" as soon as he got of the ship and then released the song a few years later. Because he was already popular in Trinidad, he brought this popularity to England. I didn't find much on how popular it was among the Enlgish but it seems that during the 1950s calypso became a very popular style throughout England and the U.S.

    Here's the link for "London is the Place for Me." It's very appropriate and interesting to consider alongside the context of "The Lonely Londoners."

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dGt21q1AjuI

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  3. Meredith15 July 2012 at 16:05

    I found reading about the roots of Dub really interesting. I honestly had no idea that it originated in Jamaica. The span of its influences is just ridiculously large, and I don't even know where to begin to say something about Dub. But I do know that Dubstep, the latest movement in the Dub subculture, originated in South London. One of the biggest supporters for the Dubstep movement is actually described in his wikipedia article as the son of an "upper middle class cotton merchant." For me, that really just accentuated the range of the influence of the original Dub music movement, which was largely dominated by Jamaicans, Jamaican immigrants, and the like.

    And on the subject of M.I.A., I have extremely mixed feelings about her music video for Born Free. The lyrics and the song itself are powerful, in my opinion. But I feel like the video might have been a tad too sensationalist and over the top. The video, at least for me, distracts from the message present in the lyrics: the life of the poor, oppressed individual trying to make a living, giving "the man" the finger, etc.
    I'm interested to hear any other perspectives.
    Lyrics: http://www.directlyrics.com/mia-born-free-lyrics.html
    Video: http://vimeo.com/11219730

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  4. Unknown22 July 2012 at 13:25

    Admittedly, before this course, I had paid little attention to the Dub genre and the artists typically associated, but I do have a soft spot for Post-Punk music, a genre that has much in common with Dub. While Post-Punk tends to buck the lackadaisical style often attributed to Dub, Post-Punk exhibits a similarly sparse method of instrumentation (unfairly criticized as "droning") and a snarling, uniquely political edge.

    Bands like Gang of Four and The Fall (who admittedly crib many of their tricks from Krautrockers like Can and Faust) owe much of their unique style to the surging popularity of Dub. Sonically jagged but somehow still groovy, these bands successfully merge elements of Dub with the emergent 70's Art-Rock scene in England to forge a wholly unique and vibrant identity amidst the rapidly changing landscape of English popular music.

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