Linton Kwesi Johnson in 2009. Photo by ismocritico666. Licensed under Creative Commons, courtesy Wikimedia Commons.
Linton Kwesi Johnson (aka LKJ) (born 24 August 1952) is a UK-based dub poet. His poetry involves the recitation of his own verse in Jamaican Patois over dub-reggae, usually written in collaboration with renowned British reggae producer/artist Dennis Bovell.
Life[]
Youth and education[]
Johnson was born in Chapelton, Jamaica. He came to England in 1963, attending Tulsa Hill secondary school.[1]
He studied for a degree in sociology at Goldsmiths College in New Cross, London (which currently holds his personal papers in its archives), graduating in 1973.[2]
While still at school he joined the British Black Panther Movement,[3] helped to organize a poetry workshop within the movement, and developed his work with Rasta Love, a group of poets and drummers.
Career[]
Johnson at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, 2008. Photo by Porcupiny. Courtesy Wikimedia Commons.
Johnson's poems originally appeared in the journal Race Today, which published his debut collection of poetry, Voices of the Living and the Dead, in 1974.[2] Dread Beat An' Blood, his second collection, was published in 1975 by Bogle-L'Ouverture.[3]
Johnnson wrote for New Musical Express, Melody Maker, and Black Music in the 1970s, and served as writer in residence for the London Borough of Lambeth.[2]
Music[]
Johnson's best-known albums include his debut Dread Beat an' Blood, Forces of Victory, Bass Culture and Making History. Across these albums are spread classics of the dub poetry school of performance – and, indeed, of reggae itself – such as "Dread Beat An' Blood", "Sonny's Lettah", "Inglan Is A Bitch", "Independent Intavenshan" and "All Wi Doin Is Defendin". His poem Di Great Insohreckshan is his response to the 1981 Brixton riots.[4] The work was the subject of a BBC Radio 4 program in 2007.
Johnson's work, allied to the Jamaican "toasting" tradition, is regarded as an essential precursor of rap.
Johnson's record label LKJ Records is home to other reggae artists, some of whom made up The Dub Band, with whom Johnson mostly recorded, and other Dub Poets, such as Jean "Binta" Breeze. Past releases on the label include recordings by Mikey Smith.[2]
Of late, Johnson has only performed live on an intermittent basis, perhaps as a result of modern reggae's shift towards the more spontaneous and rapid-fire performers of ragga or dancehall.
Writing[]
Most of Johnson's poetry is political, dealing mainly with the experiences of being an African-Caribbean in Britain, "Writing was a political act and poetry was a cultural weapon...",[4] he told an interviewer in 2008. However, he has also written about other issues, such as British foreign policy or the death of anti-racist marcher Blair Peach. His most celebrated poems were written during the government of Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. The poems contain graphic accounts of the alleged racist police brutality occurring at the time (cf. Sonny's Lettah). Johnson's poetry makes clever use of the unstandardised transcription of Jamaican Patois.
Recognition[]
In 2004 Johnson became an Honorary Visiting Professor of Middlesex University in London. In 2005 he was awarded a silver Musgrave medal from the Institute of Jamaica for distinguished eminence in the field of poetry.[3]
A collection of his poems has been published as Mi Revalueshanary Fren by Penguin Modern Classics. Johnson is one of only 3 poets to be published by Penguin Modern Classics while still alive. In 2006 he became the 2nd living poet, and the only black poet, to be published in the Penguin Classics series.[5]
Publications[]
- Dread, Beat, and Blood. London: Bogle-L'Ouverture, 1975.
- Inglan is a Bitch. London: Race Today, 1980.
- Voices of the Living and the Dead. London: Race Today, 1983.
- Tings and Times: Selected poems. Newcastle upon Tyne, UK: Bloodaxe, 1991.
- Mi Revalueshanary Fren: Selected poems. London: Penguin, 2002.
- Selected Poems. London: Penguin, 2006.
Except where noted, bibliographical information courtesy WorldCat.[6]
Audio / video[]
Linton Kwesi Johnson - Street 66
Linton Kwesi Johnson - Inglan Is A Bitch
Poet Linton Kwesi Johnson reads Tings at Windrush celebrations
Discography[]
- Live in Paris with the Dennis Bovell Dub Band - Wrasse, 2004 (DVD).
- Live in Paris - Wrasse, 2004.
- Straight to Inglan's Head - Universal, 2003 (Compilation).
- LKJ in Dub: Volume 3 - LKJ Records, 2002.
- Independent Intavenshan - Island, 1998 (Compilation).
- More Time - LKJ Records, 1999.
- A Cappella Live - LKJ Records, 1996.
- LKJ Presents - LKJ Records, 1996.
- LKJ in Dub: Volume 2 - LKJ Records, 1992.
- Tings An' Times - LKJ Records, 1991.
- Dub Poetry - Mango, 1985 (Compilation).
- LKJ Live in Concert with the Dub Band - LKJ Records, 1985.
- Reggae Greats - Mango, 1984.
- Making History - Island, 1983.
- LKJ in Dub - Island, 1980.
- The Best of Linton Kwesi Johnson - Epic, 1980 (Compilation).
- Bass Culture - Island, 1980.
- Forces of Victory - Island, 1979.
- Dread Beat an' Blood - Virgin, 1978. (As Poet And The Roots)
See also[]
References[]
Notes[]
- ↑ Linton Kwesi Johnson (b. 1952), The Poetry Archive. Web, Feb. 1, 2014.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Larkin, Colin (1998) The Virgin Encyclopedia of Reggae, Virgin Books, ISBN 0-7535-0242-9, p. 147-8
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Forbes; Peter (2002). "comtemporarywriters.com". Linton Kwesi Johnson. Archived from the original on 2009-05-13. http://www.webcitation.org/5gkBz9hdD. Retrieved 2009-05-13.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Wroe, Nicholas (8 Mar 2008). "The Guardian" (in English). Archived from the original on 2009-05-13. http://www.webcitation.org/5gkAzHBsJ. Retrieved 2009-05-13.
- ↑ http://www.meppublishers.com/online/caribbean-beat/archive/index.php?id=cb62-1-68
- ↑ Search results = au:Linton Kwesi Johnson, WorldCat, OCLC Online Computer Library Center Inc. Web, Feb. 1, 2014.
External links[]
- Poems
- "Sonny's Lettah"
- "Bass Culture (for Big Yout)" at Caribbean Poetry
- Audio / video
- Books
- Linton Kwesi Johnson at Amazon.com
- About
- Linton Kwesi Johnson at the British Council
- LKJ Records Official website
- Spike Magazine Interview
- Interview with Graham Brown-Martin for Trace Magazine
- Interview with Yuri Prasad in Socialist Review (2002)
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