Gil Scott-Heron released 11 studio LPs from 1970 to 1982 and 2 more in 1994 and 2010 respectively. His early recordings declaimed militant speeches in poetic style and his theme ‘The Revolution will not be televised’ (1971) is now considered the first modern rap track in history. He has been teaming up with Brian Jackson (keyboardist, flautist, singer and composer from Brooklyn, N.Y.) since 1971 delivering blues, jazz and jazz-funk, achieving mass popularity with tracks like ‘The bottle’ (1974), ‘Johannesburg’ (1975) and ‘New York City’ (1976). After 1985, Scott-Heron’s life was plagued with issues related to drug-addiction, prison and Hiv/Aids. His 1994 and 2010 recordings were critically acclaimed as cult comebacks.
2010 I’M NEW HERE – I’m new here ∙ Me and the Devil (orig. 1937 Robert Johnson) ∙ On coming from a broken home (spoken) ∙ 1998 RADIO PERF. – We almost lost Detroit (orig. 1977) ∙ 1994 SPIRITS – Message to the messengers ∙ 1985 ARTIST UNITED AGAINST APARTHEID – Let me see your ID ∙ 1982 MOVING TARGETS – Black history / The world ∙ Fast lane ∙ 1981 REFLECTIONS – Washington D.C. ∙ B movie ∙ 1980 REAL EYES – Waiting for the axe to fall ∙ 1980 ‘1980’ – Willing ∙ Push comes to shove ∙
1978 SECRETS – Show Bizness ∙ Angel dust ∙ 1977 BRIDGES – We almost lost Detroit ∙ Song of the wind ∙ 1976 IT’S YOUR WORLD – It’s your world ∙ New York City (is killing me) ∙ 1975 FROM SOUTH AFRICA TO SOUTH CAROLINA – Johannesburg (live) ∙ 1975 THE FIRST MINUTE OF A NEW DAY – Ain’t no such thing as Superman ∙ 1974 WINTER IN AMERICA – The bottle ∙ Winter in America ∙ 1972 FREE WILL – The get out of the ghetto blues ∙ 1971 PIECES OF A MAN – A sign of the ages ∙ The Revolution will not be televised ∙ 1970 SMALL TALK AT 125th AND LENOX (Poetry) – Brother (spoken words) ∙