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Thursday, September 12, 2024

Gil Scott-Heron - "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised" (Part II-Official Audio, information, & comments)



Ace Records, Oct 7, 2013

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Edited by Azizi Powell

This is Part II of a two part pancocojams series on African American Gil Scott Heron's now classic 1970 spoken word piece "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised".

This post showcases a YouTube sound file of "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised". This post also includes information about Gil Scott Heron. It also includes a Wikipedia excerpt about "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised" as well as selected comments from the discussion thread of this showcased sound file.

Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2024/09/gil-scott-heron-revolution-will-not-be.html  for Part II of this pancocojams series. That post showcases a YouTube sound file of Gil Scott Heron's "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised" and presents an online quote about the overall meaning of that spoken word and a Wikipedia excerpt about some of the cultural references in that masterpiece. The complete words for the "Revolution Will Not Be Televised" is also included in that post.

The content of this post is presented for historical, socio-cultural, and aesthetic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to Gil Scott Heron for his legacy and thanks to all those who are featured in the "Revolution Will Not Be Televised" recording. Thanks also to all those who are quoted in this post and thanks to the publishers of this sound file on YouTube.
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Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2012/04/five-examples-of-spoken-word-poetry.html for a closely related 2012 pancocojams post entitled "Five Examples Of African American Spoken Word Poetry".

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INFORMATION ABOUT GIL SCOTT HERON
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gil_Scott-Heron
"Gilbert Scott-Heron (April 1, 1949 – May 27, 2011)[8] was an American jazz poet, singer,[3] musician, and author known for his work as a spoken-word performer in the 1970s and 1980s. His collaborative efforts with musician Brian Jackson fused jazz, blues, and soul with lyrics relative to social and political issues of the time, delivered in both rapping and melismatic vocal styles. He referred to himself as a "bluesologist",[9] his own term for "a scientist who is concerned with the origin of the blues".[note 1][10] His poem "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised", delivered over a jazz-soul beat, is considered a major influence on hip hop music.[11]

Scott-Heron's music, particularly on the albums Pieces of a Man and Winter in America during the early 1970s, influenced and foreshadowed later African-American music genres, including hip hop and neo soul. His recording work received much critical acclaim, especially for "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised".[12] AllMusic's John Bush called him "one of the most important progenitors of rap music", stating that "his aggressive, no-nonsense street poetry inspired a legion of intelligent rappers while his engaging songwriting skills placed him square in the R&B charts later in his career."[6]

Scott-Heron remained active until his death, and in 2010 released his first new album in 16 years, titled I'm New Here. A memoir he had been working on for years up to the time of his death, The Last Holiday, was published posthumously in January 2012.[13][14] Scott-Heron received a posthumous Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2012. He also is included in the exhibits at the National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) that officially opened on September 24, 2016, on the National Mall, and in an NMAAHC publication, Dream a World Anew.[15] In 2021, Scott-Heron was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, as a recipient of the Early Influence Award.[1]"...

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INFORMATION ABOUT "THE REVOLUTION WILL NOT BE TELEVISED" SPOKEN WORD
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Revolution_Will_Not_Be_Televised
" "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised" is a satirical poem and Black Liberation song by Gil Scott-Heron. Scott-Heron first recorded it for his 1970 album Small Talk at 125th and Lenox, on which he recited the lyrics, accompanied by congas and bongo drums. A re-recorded version, with a full band, was the B-side to Scott-Heron's first single, "Home Is Where the Hatred Is", from his album Pieces of a Man (1971), featuring a distinctive bass-line by jazz bassist Ron Carter. It was also included on his compilation album, The Revolution Will Not Be Televised (1974). All these releases were issued on the Flying Dutchman Productions record label.

The song's lyrics either mention or allude to several television series, advertising slogans and icons of entertainment and news coverage that serve as examples of what "the revolution will not" be or do. The song is a response to the spoken-word piece "When the Revolution Comes" by The Last Poets, from their eponymous debut album, which opens with the line "When the revolution comes some of us will probably catch it on TV".[2]

It was inducted to the National Recording Registry in 2005.[3]

In 2021, it was ranked at No. 258 on Rolling Stone's "Top 500 Best Songs of All Time".[4]"...

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SELECTED COMMENTS

DISCUSSION THREAD  #1
From https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vwSRqaZGsPw
(with numbers added for referencing purposes only)

1. @shaneelder2183, 2015
"This brother had a keen understanding of media and hegemony. His poetry is still relevant, still prescient, still right on. The revolution will not be texted, will not be tweeted, will not be televised, will not be televised. The revolution will be live."

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Reply
"Yep,.... just change out some of the items... celeb names.... not much has changed it seems."

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Reply
"Amazingly prescient for 1970. As well as being an excellent song/poem, it's a significant precursor of rap and a great little chronology of commercials, personalities and trends of the time. I can never get enough of this."

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Reply
"Absolutely 100% relevant 2021"

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"the father of street poetry"

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Reply
"I think more like the father of rap. street poetry had been going strong long before this."

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Reply
"Beat Poets, Nuyorican poets, jazz to rap.....all spoken word performance, all connected, and all the words to accompany or foster needed social change. Thank you GSH and Miguel Piñero....just for starters. (Anyone here, if you never saw the flick "Piñero" you may want to check it out...puts so much into perspective.) Gawd I love this stuff!"

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Reply
8. @nedludd7622, 2021

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Reply
"+ The Last Poets, The Watts Prophets."

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10. @fosgate375, 2016

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"Broadcast on WVTF Roanoke, Virginia Sunday Night Jazz (NPR) show this past summer. What a gas that was! I had almost forgotten the song, now here I am on you tube experiencing this piece of musical history!"
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""TRWNBT came out my first year in college! The law students used to play it frequently at the University of Iowa Afro-House! It’s a good feeling to read young people are listening to great relevant music these days!"

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"Great song I forgot all about this song, great song!!! It use to be on the radio back in the day!"

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"I’m 65 and I remember listing to Gil in the late 60’s and early 70’s. Along with The Last Poets. Things haven’t changed at all. The Revolution will be on Facebook. Go figure."

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15. @stangarrett9447, 2022

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16. @erflingnot, 2022
"Reading the comments….. this is exactly where I need to be today…. Thanksgiving 2021! Thank you Mr. Scott -Heron ! Have faith we are all exactly where we need to be…. It is aligned…. The universe…. The sun the moon and stars! There is nothing new….. Evolution is a circle!"

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17.@michellecayne2386, 2022
"He is right! He was ahead of his time. It not about the colour of the skin. It is about people around the world. The Revolution will not be telivised by mainstream media."

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"My dad turned me on to Gil when I was in High school back in the 70s. Still relevant"

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"oh... i remember when this came out... we were young and thought by the time we were old things would be different. for a while things did improve but i am heartbroken that my black brothers are still looking for that brighter day. my generation truly dropped the ball."

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20. @rtblues, 2023
"THIS man is the true OG and nobody today can touch him. To think WHEN he made this makes it even more incredible (You had to be there! I had to buy a 2nd copy back in the day because I wore the first one out.) This is high-art and historic greatness that endures! GSH FOREVER"

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"I am so happy to hear this again. Iii have tried to explain the poetry to music perforners in the late 60s and early 70s, but I have had difficulty to have people believe me. In the coffee houses and small clubs in the era I speak of this type of entertainment was plentiful and there were so many poets. The advertising of these venues called it rapping with or without musical accompanying and it was mostly social and political commentary. Some called it the spoken word. This guy was among the best, for sure."

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22. @jaytheboatguy, 2023

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22. @okjmc8339, 2024
"so relevant even more than 50 years later"

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"Today... the revolution will be streamed."

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24. @peggyjones319, 2024
"Right on, brother Gil Scott Heron!"
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25. @RichardkPriore, 2024
"We’re all living it !!!!."

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This concludes Part II of this two part pancocojams series.

Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome.
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