Linton Kwesi Johnson: C or D, S & D

I only have his debut Dread Beat an' Blood. Normally this type of dub-poet stuff doesn't do much for me, but Dread Beat is intoxicating musically -- and one of the few albums that successfully creates an air of political menace. Does he have better albums? Is everything downhill since Dread Beat? And most important of all, is Kwesi spelled with a K or a Q?

Forces of Victory and LKJ in Dub are both great, Bass Culture less so but still good. lost track after that.

With a K. I have a few LKJ albums - Dread, Forces of Victory, Bass Culture, Making History - and there's not a massive amount of variety but they're all good. Most of the best stuff is on the 33-track Independant Intravenshan: The Island Anthology, along with dub versions. Depending on how much you know about the political context, it's worth googling stuff like the death of Blair Peach and the New Cross fire because some of the songs are very specific and topical in the reggae tradition of music being "the ghetto's newspaper".

(xp) Aw, Bass Culture is possibly my favourite! But if you're after "political menace" then Forces of Victory or Making History are probably better picks.

love this guy, maybe my favorite reggae artist. there are some great live shows floating around on Dimeadozen and the like, I recommend those as well as the LPs mentioned upthread. He has a live 2LP but I've never even seen it.

^is real good. i have it.

Making History is one of those albums that sounds good at any time of day; you can drop it into any sequence.

also: Tings an' Times is super grate.

Dread Beat is intoxicating musically

Maybe you already know about him, but you should check out some Dennis Bovell then. The Pressure Sounds comp "Decibel" has a lots of good stuff on it.

Classic, of course.

Tings an' Times is super grate.

hell yeah! my fave reggae disc of the 1990's.
co-inky: was just gettin' ready to put on In Concert (from 1988).

also, beg to differ a little w/Dorianlynskey's re: "not a lot of variety" comment. Making History sounds hardly anything like DB&B for example

Yeah, I'll retract that - I was dashing that first post off from memory, and because I've listened to a lot of it out of sequence I underrated the differences in production as Dennis Bovell came more to the fore. I think LKJ produced Dread on his own.

Is he still a visiting professor at Middlesex University?

I was wondering what he is up to these days. My quickie google search did not show any change since he got to Middlesex. Has anybody seen that 2004 (I think) dvd? I wonder how it is.

total classic

I love getting the lyrics book out and reading them to myself.

Bass Culture is far and away my favourite LKJ album. D B and B is great, too, but Bass Culture was the one that made me question where poetry stops and music begins. I think those words sound like reggae even before he starts singing/reciting them.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gzO5Qwo1xEg

Reggae Fi Peach day

Wow.

Not much new with LKJ these days, as far as I can tell.

40 years today since the New Cross massacre, I thought it was worth marking here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FUMYAqAlAXA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=scBif3NgbNE

These two are both from "Making History" three years later - the former telling the story of the horror of the fire and its immediate aftermath, the latter putting it in a global context. "Wat About Di Workin' Claas" has always been particularly important to me: the horn line is one of those that runs through my head quite often, not least when I go through New Cross, which is a couple of miles down the road from where I live.

The rhythm of "Wat About Di Workin' Class" is so 'international' in style as to barely be reggae anymore, jazz-piano solo and all; it goes along quite lightly for LKJ, particularly compared to the heaviness of a lot of his records. LKJ's obvious anger and contempt also treads lightly, as he points the finger calmly and clearly.

we’re thrown right into the tragedy of the 1981 New Cross fire (where 13 young Black people were killed in a suspected arson attack, later ignored by the government) – powerfully seen here in black and white news photos beneath the spoken words of Jamaican poet Linton Kwesi Johnson’s New Cross Massakah

In the film series Small Axe, there's an episode depicting Black British novelist Alex Wheatle – a DJ who found literature in prison after getting involved in the 1981 Brixton uprising.

"40 years today since the New Cross massacre"

I'm a day late, but marking the occasion with a LOUD LKJ morning.

"the Liberal Party is not very hearty"

this guy is so good

Whenever I listen to him I end up with 'England is a bitch' stuck in my head for days.

He's the master. I often shout 'madness, madness, war!' at my kids. They don't flinch.

There was a really good compilation in that Island 2cd series from the early 90s I think it was called Independent iNtavenshun or something pretty similar.

same series had good sets from Steel Pulse, Aswad, Black Uhuru and a few others

Apparently 'The Crown' used Inglan is a Bitch.

It did. I nearly fell off my sofa and had to go Google who the music supervisor was.

"Stand Down Margaret" by The Beat was another good one they used on it.

LKJ is all time!

I think there are a couple of his tracks in The Crown. (Also, yeah, the Specials, Beat, and ... the Cure and Joy Division?). Many in the one episode, though, about the working class guy confronting the Queen.

The Johnson stuff is in a different episode, though, iirc.

"I often shout 'madness, madness, war!' at my kids."

This really made me laugh.

In my house (we have a six-year old and an eight-year old) it's quite often "war among the rebels".

"madness, madness, war!" is cracking me up too

I had "Fite Dem Back" in my head a lot this summer

LKJ is magnetic. It's his voice, all the contrasts in his grave tone, but also his unique hypnotic loops. I would probably put Forces of Victory in a top 10 of all music.
I am actually looking to discover his writing. Recs ? Simply go for The Penguin collection Mi Revalueshanary Fren: Selected Poems ?

Mi Revalueshanary Fren: Selected Poems is excellent

i had (but lost) Tings an' Times: Selected Poems which i loved too.

As an aside, this is well worth watching. 80s BBC documenantary about mighty dub poet Michael Smith. All parts are on Youtube. This bit features Smith, LKJ and the legendary C.L.R. James. i randomly saw it at the time and habe been in love with the work of all 3 of them ever since.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NE3kVwyY2WU

Linton Kwesi Johnson - Time Come, book just out on Picador is highly recommended.

Thanks. Wonder what he's up to these days. Got a bunch of awards and honors pre-Covid it appears.

I mean I wonder what he's up to besides doing the book

"Loraine" is my jam

i'm not sure what he's been up to. sadly not touring! i read recently that he really regrets all the touring he did in the 80s as he feels he should have devoted that time to writing more. i'm glad he didn't as i loved seeing him live.

O shot. Cld not b moar jelly

Thx 4 book rec, stirmonster!

he is the absolute best

Recently interviewed on the Beeb (This Cultural Life): https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001l1wp Worth a listen.

thanks for the link!

https://www.bam.org/linton

Aww man, I want to go up to Brooklyn and see Linton Kwesi Johnson September 20th.

Yeah, my friend is excited to have tickets, and sent the trailer:

North American Premiere of 2K Restoration at BAM on Saturday September 20 followed by a live performance by Linton Kwesi Johnson: http://bam.org/lkj

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/25/arts/music/dread-beat-an-blood-linton-kwesi-johnson.html?unlocked_article_code=1.1VA.53oP.l0DSYBHLjzuw&smid=nytcore-ios-share

Dread Beat an Blood movie re- released. Plus details on what LKJ is up to now and his health issue

From that interview:

"What are you currently working on?

Over the past 25 years I’ve had one ambition: to make an instrumental album of my own musical compositions and play the bass myself. I’ve completed that (an album titled “Speechless”). Dennis Bovell helped me to arrange the music and he mixed it. I might release it as a limited edition next year, or maybe it will be released posthumously."

Hope he'll be able to release it while he's still with us!

I couldn't read the interview (even unlocked the nyt nows requires a sign-in), but the doc looks fantastic:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCPWl0ll_pY

Some of the same topics get covered in the Will Hermes interview as well, good stuff

https://newmusicoldmusic.substack.com/p/interview-linton-kwesi-johnson

well lol at me, I've already seen the doc as it's a bonus feature on the Babylon blu ray. Obviously time to watch it again

thanks for the interview link!

My friend is helping release a 10" of new dubs alongside the wider release of this doc:

https://www.instagram.com/p/DbG4fYOoImO/?img_index=1

i think it's fairly limited.

This part of NY Times piece is sad-

What prompted your decision to stop performing live with Dennis and the Dub Band?

I have a serious problem with my lower lumbar region. I can’t stand up very long without being in an awkward position. When that music is happening you can’t stand around like a statue: You at least have to move your knees or shake your legs.

DREAD BEAT AN BLOOD opens at Film Forum in NYC for a week-long run (through July 31), with Linton Kwesi Johnson in Concert, a short but absolutely killer 1985 concert film of Johnson and the Dennis Bovell Dub Band, shot at the Albany Empire in Deptford for the Channel Four public affairs series The Bandung File. Both films will screen in LA on July 30 via Mezzanine at 2220 Arts + Archives (2220 Beverly Blvd). Screenings are planned for this fall in Austin and Philly.

from the Will Hermes substack

I have some FM concert show recordings from that period and it is absolute peak stuff