“The Revolution Begins” brings together every recording Gil Scott-Heron made for Bob Thiele’s Flying Dutchman label – three landmark albums that helped shape modern black music and introduced one of its most influential voices.
From the unforgettable spoken-word power of ‘The Revolution Will Not Be Televised’ to the soul, jazz and social commentary of ‘Pieces Of A Man’ and ‘Free Will’, these recordings emphasise Scott-Heron’s incredible artistic development over the course of just a few years. Long regarded as essential works, they have often been reissued in incomplete or poorly presented collections. For this set, we’ve returned to the original master tapes to deliver the best sound these recordings have ever enjoyed, revealing new depth in both Scott-Heron’s words and the music. The collection also includes every Flying Dutchman recording, including a rare collaboration with Bernard ‘Pretty’ Purdie that has never previously been reissued, plus an alternate version of ‘Free Will’ assembled from the original tapes.
disc one
1. LADY DAY AND JOHN COLTRANE
2. HOME IS WHERE THE HATRED IS
3. SAVE THE CHILDREN
4. THE REVOLUTION WILL NOT BE TELEVISED
5. DID YOU HEAR WHAT THEY SAID?
6. PIECES OF A MAN
7. SPEED KILLS
8. EVERYDAY
9. I THINK I'LL CALL IT MORNING
10. WHEN YOU ARE WHO YOU ARE
11. FREE WILL
12. OR DOWN YOU FALL
13. THE NEEDLE'S EYE
14. THE MIDDLE OF YOUR DAY
15. A SIGN OF THE AGES
16. WHO'LL PAY REPARATIONS ON MY SOUL?
disc two
1. INTRODUCTION / THE REVOLUTION WILL NOT BE TELEVISED
2. WHITEY ON THE MOON
3. NO KNOCK
4. SMALL TALK AT 125TH & LENOX
5. BILLY GREEN IS DEAD
6. SEX EDUCATION: GHETTO STYLE
7. THE VULTURE
8. THE PRISONER
9. ...AND THEN HE WROTE MEDITATIONS
10. PLASTIC PATTERN PEOPLE
11. THE GET OUT OF THE GHETTO BLUES
12. ARTIFICIALNESS
13. AIN'T NO NEW THING
14. BROTHER
15. EVOLUTION (AND FLASHBACK)
16. THE KING ALFRED PLAN
17. ENOUGH
18. PAINT IT BLACK
19. OMEN
20. WIGGY
21. COMMENT #1
22. THE SUBJECT WAS FAGGOTS
disc three
1. DID YOU HEAR WHAT THEY SAID? (ALT TAKE 1)
2. THE MIDDLE OF YOUR DAY (ALT TAKE 1)
3. FREE WILL (ALT TAKE 1)
4. THE GET OUT OF THE GHETTO BLUES (ALTERNATE ENDING)
5. SPEED KILLS (ALT TAKE 3)
6. THE KING ALFRED PLAN (ALT)
7. NO KNOCK (ALT)
8. WIGGY (ALT)
9. AIN'T NO NEW THING (BREAKDOWN TAKE)
10. BILLY GREEN IS DEAD (ALT)
11. ...AND THEN HE WROTE MEDITATIONS (ALT)
12. NO KNOCK (BREAKDOWN ALT TAKE)
13. FREE WILL (ALT TAKE 2)