Announcing: Gil Scott-Heron at Greenbelt 2010
We're thrilled to announce that Gil Scott-Heron will headline Mainstage at Greenbelt 2010.
Gil is a pioneer of socially-conscious soul music; a legend of spoken word, who - in recognition of his poetry as showcased in "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised" - has sometimes been dubbed "The Godfather of Rap"; an intelligent activist and flat-out the coolest man you will ever see - we're so excited about Gil coming to Mainstage and are breathless in anticipation of what his show may bring.
Gil arrives at Greenbelt on the back of "I'm New Here", his first album for fifteen years. Rather than treading ground he's trodden before, "I'm New Here" marries Gil's brilliant vocals with atmospheric accompaniment reminiscent of the sounds of Burial and Massive Attack, filtered through the blues. It has been rapturously received, with the review on Pitchfork breaking it down:-
Three songs reveal him as an adept interpreter of three generations' worth of roots music: Robert Johnson's "Me and the Devil" rendered as vintage Massive Attack, a minimalist, piano-driven orchestral reworking of the Brook Benton-written Bobby "Blue" Bland classic "I'll Take Care of You", and the unexpected but deftly claimed title track, sourced from Smog. [...] Comparisons have been made to what Rick Rubin did for Johnny Cash in the 90s, and the parallels are there: I'm New Here and American Recordings are both cover-heavy, starkly-produced releases where rebellious icons become reflective as they hit their sixties.
Upon Gil's return to public life, Newsnight did an interview with him which is a great introduction to the importance of his body of work, and . It's on Youtube, and part one and part two are embedded below, alongside some other videos to act as a primer for Gil's Mainstage performance.
