John Cooper Clarke : Evidently Chickentown
[Purchase]
In April of 1980 English performance poet John Cooper Clarke released Snap Crackle + Bop, a UK#26 album. The bard of Salford's new album came out months into the Margaret Thatcher two prong attack on the working class and trade unions. There wasn't much to look forward, reflected in Clark's "Evidently Chickentown":
The bloody clubs are bloody full
Of bloody girls and bloody guys
With bloody murder in their eyes
A bloody bloke is bloody stabbed
Waiting for a bloody cab
You bloody stay at bloody home
The bloody neighbors bloody moan
Keep the bloody racket down
This is bloody chicken town
Clarke made little money from his brief flirtation with fame, telling The Guardian in 2012 "No. I ain't waving the victim flag, but considering the massive impact I've had on British culture, it's fucking diabolical how poor I am." It's true he has inspired all kinds of teens making music these days.
Another highlight of Snap Crackle + Bop is "Beasley Street", a form of reportage on life in poverty:
The girls are on the shelf
Their common problem is
That they're not someone else
The dirt blows out
The dust blows in
You can't keep it neat
It's a fully furnished dustbin
Sixteen Beasley Street
No comments:
Post a Comment