I, like many people came across Billy Bragg due to his pop masterpiece "Don't Try This At Home" in the early 90s. Bought the album, danced to "Sexuality" and saw the show. Since that time I've just been completely in love with the man. His ability to take difficult political issues and craft them into memorable songs you want to sing-along with for me ranks up there with the all-time greats.

Inspired by his new box-set release, cnn.com has a gret article on the man right now:
http://www.cnn.com/2006/S...index.html

A 'one-man Clash'
Billy Bragg: Inspired by Dylan, soul -- and Margaret Thatcher

By Todd Leopold
CNN
Thursday, March 23, 2006; Posted: 3:00 p.m. EST (20:00 GMT)
Some of Billy Bragg's influences: soul music, Bob Dylan, Margaret Thatcher.

Margaret Thatcher? Did she put out an album?

It wasn't that, says Bragg, the British singer-songwriter known for his political songs ("There Is Power in a Union," "Take Down the Union Jack"), romantic odes ("The Fourteenth of February," "A Lover Sings") and songs combining the two ("Trust," "Sexuality"). It was what the former British prime minister stood for, how she changed the country when she took office in 1979.

"She began to attack the things I always valued," says the affable musician in a phone interview from New York. He says he wasn't political before she took power ("I didn't even bother voting") but her actions, such as invading the Falkland Islands and crushing the British miners' strike, roused him to action.

And yet Bragg, 48, who has been described as a "one-man Clash," resists the label of political singer-songwriter. Yes, politics is a big part of his work, but so are other passions, he says -- music, fatherhood, relationships.

This is a man, after all, who once wrote a song called "Levi Stubbs' Tears," neatly linking the forceful emotion of the Four Tops front man with the story of a woman trying to rebuild her life.

Bragg wants to be judged on the whole of his output.

"I don't mind the label of political singer," he says. "But I do mind being dismissed as one."

'The electric guitar was crucial'

Bragg's early output -- the albums "Life's a Riot with Spy vs. Spy" (1983), "Brewing Up with Billy Bragg" (1984), "Talking with the Taxman About Poetry" (1986) and "The Internationale" (1990) -- back him up. The four CDs recently have been re-released in special editions by Yep Roc Records.

With a handful of exceptions, the songs on the albums feature Bragg's bare-bones arrangements: his charged, working-class-accented voice accompanied by a cutting electric guitar. There are only occasional hints of percussion or extra instrumentation, and that was the idea, says Bragg.

"When I first started making records it was the height of the New Romantics," he says, invoking the label given to bands such as Spandau Ballet, whose records and images focused on pristine, sometimes robotic production and pristine, sometimes robotic grooming. "Coming after punk, I thought this was outrageous.

"I thought about how no one was making music I wanted to hear, the idea of one man on his own against the world married to [the fury of] punk," he continues. "So the electric guitar was crucial. ... It was the most suitable instrument to cut through the bulls---."

Bragg first got the thrill of political recognition as a child, when he swapped a copy of the Jackson Five's greatest hits for Bob Dylan's "The Times They Are A-Changin'." The sound was revelatory, he says.

"It sounded so raw, unearthly," he says. "[That voice] could have come from 100 years ago."

Then came punk, notably the Clash, furthering inspiring Bragg with its immediacy. But he's been careful to not get too specific or strident in his own songs, striving for a timelessness and a desire to open minds, if not change them.

"Every night you have a chance to change someone's perspective," he says.

Youth and wisdom

Bragg has a strong fan base in Britain, where his songs have hit the top 10 and his albums sell respectably. "Spy vs. Spy" sold 100,000 copies with almost no promotion.

He remains more of a cult singer in the United States, despite enthusiastic concert audiences and the relative success of his 1991 album "Don't Try This at Home," which spawned the college radio hit "Sexuality."

His greatest U.S. success, interestingly enough, has come through one of his musical forebears, the great folk singer Woody Guthrie. Guthrie had left behind hundreds of lyrics, which his daughter, Nora, entrusted to Bragg for new songs. Bragg collaborated with the band Wilco on the Guthrie works. The result , 1998's "Mermaid Avenue," earned rapturous reviews and good sales. A second edition, "Mermaid Avenue Vol. II," came out in 2000.

Bragg is, of course, a different man than he was during the Thatcher years, just as the world is a different place. He's a father now, and though he was never a pure firebrand -- his romantic songs put the lie to that image -- he's a little older, more willing to see the grays amid the blacks and whites.

But he also takes pride in the brash singer he was 20 years ago. Many of the songs stand up, he says. And then there's the DVD of Bragg in 1985 that is included with the box set "Volume One," which he watched with trepidation not long ago.

"I was dreading him saying something that would embarrass the older me, but he didn't," he says. "I would like to think the younger Bragg would understand the older one, and what he's trying to do.

"It's not like I've gone through a stadium phase," he adds. "I still play the same clubs and I enjoy it. ... It's what I always wanted to do, and I get paid for it."





I him! Any other fans of Billy on the org?

I know it's a long shot, but I thought I'd try

"The Billy Bragg File"

Born: December 20, 1957, in Barking, England

Key musical event: As a child, exchanging a Jackson Five greatest hits LP for Bob Dylan's "The Times They Are A-Changin' "

Early career: A punk band, Riff Raff, late '70s

Albums include: "Life's a Riot with Spy vs. Spy" (1983), "Talking with the Taxman about Poetry" (1986), "Workers Playtime" (1988), "Don't Try This at Home" (1991), "William Bloke" (1996), "Mermaid Avenue" (with Wilco, 1998), "Mermaid Avenue Vol. II" (with Wilco, 2000), "England, Half English" (2002)

Notable songs: "A New England," "Greetings to the New Brunette," "Sexuality"; a cover of the Beatles' "She's Leaving Home" went to No. 1 in the UK in 1988.

Tidbit: Once joined the British Army, then paid 175 pounds to get out -- money he described as the best 175 pounds he ever spent.

and, now I present the fancypants box-set which I must save up some ca$h to add to my collection:



Product Description

"Trying to change the world by singing about it is a dirty business but someone has to do it." --Billy Bragg, 1988

Billy Bragg, once-described as a "one-man Clash," has spent the last two decades writing and performing passionate, witty, socially conscious music. In doing so, he's forged a career that has seen the London Times declare him a "national treasure," while in the States, Woody Guthrie's daughter, Nora, handpicked Bragg to resurrect the spirit of America's own radical dissenter, assigning him the task of bringing Woody's unfinished songs and lyrics to life. The latter's result, Mermaid Avenue, brought him and collaborators Wilco a Grammy nomination. 1983's Life's a Riot with Spy Vs. Spy first introduced the world to Billy's style--roughly strummed electric guitar and stark vocals belying a keen sense of melody and committed, deeply humane lyrics on topics ranging from life and love to social upheaval and the plight of the working class. Yep Roc Records has re-issued Bragg's first four releases singly and as a 9-disc box set that includes 2 bonus DVDs with previously unavailable live footage. The releases include his debut, along with Brewing Up with Billy Bragg, Talking to the Taxman About Poetry, and a disc that combines the The Internationale and Live & Dubious EPs. Each release features the remastered original and a second disc of bonus material, much of it previously unavailable and handpicked by Billy and longtime Bragg cohorts Grant Showbiz and Wiggy--a labor of love indeed.

I was a moderate fan in the eighties. I have three of his releases from that era on vinyl:

1) Brewing up with...
2) Talking with the Taxman about Poetry
3) and a release that I believe combined two UK-only EPs on one vinyl 33 1/3. I can't remember what this was called, but I remember it having A New England and Milkman of Human Kindness on it.

Greetings to the New Brunette and A New England were the songs I liked the most at the time, and they're basically the only two that remain indelibly stamped in my memory.

I saw him in...must have been '88, because I distinctly remember seeing him and then leaving next day for the Lovesexy show in MPLS. He was great - better than Prince, truth be told. On a tangent, the opening act was the Beatnigs, who featured Michael Franti, who would go on to form Disposable Heroes of Hiphopracy and Spearhead. Their only album was a self-titled release on Alternative Tentacles that is a pretty neat little piece of industrial funk.

I'm afraid I don't really listen to him anymore. I still respect his talent, but...I don't really want to drag politics into this, but I can't really adequately say why I've grown incapable of listening to his songs without mentioning that I strongly disagree with his anti-free-market/anti-free trade views. There are lots of artists who undoubtedly hold the same views who I will listen to with enjoyment - but with BB his politics and music are so intertwined that I can't separate the two.

I also have to add that the first volume of Mermaid Avenue had some absolutely brilliant stuff on it, though I generally prefer the tracks sung by Jeff Tweedy.

Endo, you know this story already but I went out with Billy's manager's daughter for nearly three years. he always was cool to me. he's a real passionate dude and means everything he says. there's no wishy washy shit about him. my last Billy show was Glastonbury 2003. Endo you were there right? he rocked it!

I once insulted his wife without realizing i insulted her. someone asked me a question and i was in a seriously bad mood that day and i walked in the house. they asked it and i didn't realize what the question was and i replied," how about a 2 x 4 to the back of the head?". he looked at me like,"huh?"

when i realized i had done something stupid, i asked what the question was again and i was like," oh shit Billy, i'm so fucking sorry. that's not what i meant". he was cool ok, no probs.

then we all proceeded to show off our new winter jackets. it's kinda funny now but not then.


lesson to be learnt: LISTEN when a rock star is in the room, even if he is looking thru a christmas catalogue or NOT!

damo...

a few things:

-The Mermaid Avenue CDs. I really like both of them, although Vol 1 is my favorite of the set. I was shocked after getting through each of them that I too preferred the Jeff Tweedy songs to Mr. Bragg's.

-The politics. A lot of Billy's stances I agree with. One thing that always impressed me when I saw him was that he clearly did his research before touring. When in MPLS he would always touch on current events in our political climate and be very informed about it. It probably helped that for most of these years, we had the most liberal senator in the country and he was very well known, but...That being said, the last tour I saw, Billy was not nearly as informed about his rants with local/US politics. Or maybe it's that I'm older and wiser now. Whichever, his viewpoint for the first time seemed a bit out-of-touch or ill-informed. Regardless, I still LOVE hearing the man speak. With his later releases, especially William Bloke I much preferred the "personal" songs when he discussed fatherhood, married life, etc to the political songs.

-Greetings and Milkmen. Classic tracks. Definately my favorites of his early material. From the 90s on it's hard for me to point out favorites. Don't Try This At Home is one of my all-time favorite albums and has so may great coming-of-age memories tied to it that I can't select "favorites" from it.

-Lovesexy in MPLS? You were there? That was my first concert ever. Good stuff!

Milty said:

That's a CRAZY story. I woulda just wanted to disappear at the time. IT's awesome that he was just cool about it. It's good to know that his persona as an artist reflects his true self.

And, I remember being all jealous about your ties to Billy

And, thanks to you we actually crossed his path at Glasto 03. We were walking around, trying to figure out where your band was playing (? I believe, or were you there to support a band). Anyways, we never found You (DAMMIT) but we did cross Billy's path and walked behind him for a while as he was chatting with a friend.

And, yup, we saw his performance in 03 and it was stellar!

-The Mermaid Avenue CDs. I really like both of them, although Vol 1 is my favorite of the set. I was shocked after getting through each of them that I too preferred the Jeff Tweedy songs to Mr. Bragg's.

California Stars and Hesitating Beauty are so bloody good. I've still not heard the second volume, but I will get around to picking it up one of these days.



... current events in our political climate and be very informed about it.

A very intelligent, knowledgeable person, without question. We were in the middle of provincial election campaigns here both times I saw him and he made insightful, interesting comments that showed that he had done some reading, or had some fairly rigorous conversations.



-Lovesexy in MPLS? You were there? That was my first concert ever. Good stuff!


I was there! Were you at opening night one or the second show? There were two gigs in MPLS on that tour, right?

I actually saw George Michael the next night as well - I'm no fan, but he was great too.
[Edited 3/26/06 12:29pm]

from endo's photo album:

Billy Bragg in 1992...at The Northern Lights record shop in MPLS ( I miss that place)





WOW, we were all young back then. He's such a cutie!

damosuzuki said:

California Stars A local brew pub had Vol 1 in their jukebox for a while and I would play that track every time

damosuzuki said:

I was at opening night. I was in 9th grade, and I got my older sister to take me. THANK GOD FOR THAT, lol. Too bad I couldn't have made both shows, but hey, I was young.

endorphin74 said:

ya too bad we didn't link up. maybe one day i'll come to Minnie and harrass you guys there!

Milty said:

I still kick myself a little for not finding you. Had I only had a celphone which worked there. Ah well...

And, you are always welcome in MPLS. You will have to join us some day. WE have lotsa comfy places for you to stay

endorphin74 said:

Ah, I've got a few grey hairs on you then - I was 18 at the time, and I was at opening night as well.

I just saw him last Sunday @ the Fine Line. I am no Billy expert- still wet behind the ears, but I bought the "Essential Billy Bragg" and have "England Half English" that I absolutely love. My fav tracks are Distant Shore and Some Days I See the Point.

damosuzuki said:

a-ha! your OLD then!

dancinggyrl said:

I'm dumb, I soooo shoulda got tix for that show. Ah well....next time!

endorphin74 said:

I'm ready to be fitted for my wheelchair and colostomy bag, practically!

damosuzuki said:

yeah, I'm about to get a walker to help me move around after nights of dancing...

endorphin74 said:

I remember that! We never found Milty.

And yes, it was.

Fucking Commie.

I like what I have heard from him so far-
I could be a fan

2freaky4church1 said:

he'd prolly take that as a compliment.

Milty said:

shanti0608 said:

If you are ever interested in checking out more of him, pick this up:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/...oding=UTF8

It's: Must I Paint You a Picture? The Essential Billy Bragg

A fantastic compilation of all his material. It's a great way to be introduced

endorphin74 said:

Cool- thanks!

Why is it a longshot? I'm a fan! I saw him twice play in Rhode Island around 1990. He was fantastic. I love his records. I respect that he performs with passion and conviction and uses his artform to spread the word and teach.

I love Talking with the Taxman about Poetry, and the Mermaid Avenue albums!

That box set...

Thanks for the article, endorphin74, and thanks to everyone else for their comments.

heartbeatocean said:

most threads I post in this forum sink like a stone. So, I didn't have much hopes for this one. But, I've been pleasantly surprised by people's responses!

CandaceS said:

Doesn't that set just look fantastic??!!!

I can't wait to pick it up.