Linton Kwesi Johnson

Rip It Up, Issue 98, 1 September 1985, Page 8

Linton Kwesi Johnson

Jamaican-born but a British resi

dent since 1963, Linton Kwesi Johnson at 33 has recorded four LPs which stand as both musical and poetic landmarks. By combining his dark, prophetic verse with the bubbling, backfiring rhythms of Denis Bovell, LKJ has created a new force: the Dub Poet. His groundbreaking work has spawned many others, such as Mutabaruka, the late Michael Smith and Oku Onoura.

LKJ holds an honours degree in sociology and in 1977 won the Cecil Day Lewis Fellowship, becoming Writer In Residence for the London Borough of Lambeth. He has published two books of verse, The Living and the Dead and Dread Beat An' Blood, the latter also forming the bulk of his debut LP of the same name. The two follow-up LPs, Forces of Victory and Bass Culture, consolidated and strengthened his

reputation, piercing British racism though the heart, reminding the youth of their culture and heritage, a subject dear to his heart. Johnson took a long break from recording after Bass Culture, immersing himself in playing live, as well as researching a definitive history of Jamaican music which resulted in a 10-part radio series, From Mento To Lovers' Rock. Last year, he returned to the studio to cut Making History, an album of profound vision and wisdom.

"Knowledge is essential for living," he says. "You have to be wellinformed if you're going to be able to survive in the modern world.”

There’s not a single dud track on the LKJ compilation, but its finest moment has to be Bass Culture’s ‘Street 66’, a moody piece of sparse riddim, brittle and pent-up emotion, teetering on the brink of violence. An ominous harmonica heightens the seething atmosphere as LKJ deadpans.the story of a party raided by the police. This man will not be denied.