History Music / ScrittiPolitti

One of the many bands to come out of PostPunk, Scritti Politti were formed in 1977 in Leeds, by Green Gartside and Niall Jinks. They're one of the bands that marked the shift from PostPunk to its "phase two", New Pop, although, unlike other bands commonly associated with the movement, like ABC, TheAssociates and FrankieGoesToHollywood, were far more intelectual, not only in their lyrics, but also in their ability of mixing Pop melodies and a certain avant-garde spikiness. Their name comes from Antonio Gramsci's political writings, which were markedly Marxist.

One of the many bands to come out of PostPunk, Scritti Politti were formed in 1977 in Leeds, by Green Gartside and Niall Jinks. They're one of the bands that marked the shift from PostPunk to its "phase two", New Pop, although, unlike other bands commonly associated with the movement, like ABC, TheAssociates and FrankieGoesToHollywood, were far more intelectual, not only in their lyrics, but also in their visual package and their ability of mixing Pop melodies and a certain avant-garde spikiness. Their name comes from Antonio Gramsci's political writings, which were markedly Marxist.

** "Asylums In Jerusalem" is a this to {{Nietzsche}}'s thing about the preponderance of desert prophets and fake seers who were Jesus's competitors.

** "Jacques Derrida" is, [[CaptainObvious] well...

The cracks of the streets waste no time on beats".

* SingerNamedrop: The name of the band is mentioned a couple of times in "Tinseltown To The Boogiedown".

One of the many bands to come out of PostPunk, Scritti Politti were formed in 1977 in Leeds, by Green Gartside and Niall Jinks. They're one of the bands that marked the shift from PostPunk to its "phase two", New Pop, although, unlike other
bands commonly associated with the movement, like ABC, TheAssociates and FrankieGoesToHollywood, were far more intelectual, not only in their lyrics, but also in their visual package and their ability of mixing Pop melodies and a certain avant-garde spikiness. Their name comes from Antonio Gramsci's political writings, which were markedly Marxist.

Other non-musical influences included people like Bakunin, JacquesDerrida, Deleuze, and Lacan. They lived in a squat house in Camden Town, London, and, besides being a commune, they were also aware of various left-wing movements in Europe, interacting with them at times. They were also one of the bands more capable of practising the DIY attitude, by making their record sleeves themselves and listing production costs and their squat address in said sleeves.

* SillyLoveSongs: '''Deconstructed''', which managed somehow to avoid being silly.

* ''Cupid & Psyche'' (1985)

Tropes Used By The Band:
* Cover Version: "She's a Woman" (TheBeatles) and "Take Me In Your Arms And Love Me" (Gladys Knight)

Released in 1985, ''Cupid and Psyche '85"'' was [[NewSoundAlbum something different altogether]] (as previewed a year earlier in their single "Wood Beez (Pray Like Aretha Franklin)". A series of complex programmed soul/funk/dance-style songs which also put a strong emphasis on deconstruction (Derrida-style), it came at the tail end of New Pop, which was receiving a backlash in America (though it didn't stop the single "Perfect Way", which almost made the top ten on the Billboard Hot 100 during 25 weeks). Despite that, it attracted the attention of people like Miles Davis (who covered "Perfect Way" and later borrowed his trumpet for "Oh Patti (Don't Feel Sorry For Loverboy)"), Chaka Khan (whose single "Love of a Lifetime" was co-written, co-produced and featured backing vocals by Green), and allegedly Prince.

After recovering in South Wales (Green's birthplace), he decided that Scritti should "go Pop", that is, to make music that could appeal to the masses, in order to infiltrate their ideas in a more presentable (and sugar-y) format. However, the rest of the commune weren't really happy (despite Green writing them dozens of arguments about why it would be better for them) and, one by one, started to leave (including Niall Jinks). This idea came from Green, while recovering, listening to the new R'n'B and Hip-Hop sounds coming out of New York.

The new songs started to come out in 1981. "The "Sweetest Girl"" was featured in a free cassette tape given by NME called C81, which also showcased bands that would also become well-known like Pere Ubu, Orange Juice, or The Raincoats. The song featured Robert Wyatt, on piano. The songs were far more melodic now, as shown in their debut album, ''Songs To Remember'', released on Rough Trade, which also showcased an interest in Reggae.

The new songs started to come out in 1981. "The "Sweetest Girl"" was featured in a free cassette tape given by NME called C81, which also showcased bands that would also become well-known like Pere Ubu, Orange Juice, or The Raincoats. The song featured one of the few respected "old dinossaurs" of the time, Robert Wyatt, on piano. The songs were far more melodic now, as shown in their debut album, ''Songs To Remember'', released on Rough Trade, which also showcased an interest in Reggae.

After recovering in South Wales (Green's birthplace), he decided that Scritti should "go Pop", that is, to make music that could appeal to the masses, in order to infiltrate their ideas in a more presentable (and sugar-y) format. However, the rest of the commune weren't really happy (despite Green writing them dozens of arguments about why it would be better for them) and, one by one, started to leave (including Niall Jinks).

Their first single "Skank Bloc Bologna" picked up a good amount of airplay on the John Peel show, and it was followed by the release of two E.Ps (one of them the "2nd Peel Session"). However, a greater exposure caused Green Gartside's stage frights, coupled with a certain debilitation of his health, to suffer a [[CreatorBreakdown big mental breakdown]].

After recovering in South Wales (Green's birthplace), he decided that Scritti should "go Pop", that is, to make music that could appeal to the masses, in order to infiltrate their ideas in a more presentable (and sugar-y) format. However, the rest of the commune weren't really happy (despite Green writing them dozens of arguments about why it would be better to them) and, one by one, started to leave (including Niall Jinks).

[[caption-width-right:344: The more famous line-up: [[FaceOfTheBand Green Gartside]] and {{ThoseTwoGuys}}]]

Other non-musical influences included people like Bakunin, JacquesDerrida, Deleuze, and Lacan. They lived in a squat house in Camden Town, London, and, besides being a commune, they were also aware of various left-wing movements in Europe, interacting with them at times. They were also one of the bands more capable of practicing the DIY attitude, by making their record sleeves themselves and listing production costs and their squat address in said sleeves.

Their first single "Skank Bloc Bologna" picked up a good amount of airplay on the John Peel show, and it was followed by the release of two E.Ps (one of them the "2nd Peel Session"). However, a greater exposure caused Green Gartside's stage frights, coupled with a certain debilitation of his health, to suffer a [[CreatorBreakdown big mental breakdown]].

[[caption-width-right:344: The more famous line-up: [[FaceOfTheBand Green Gartside]] and {{ThoseTwoGuys}}]].

[[caption-width-right:344: The more famous line-up: [[FaceOfTheBand Green Gartside]] and [[ThoseTwoGuys]]

Their first single "Skank Bloc Bologna" picked up a good amount of airplay on the John Peel show, and it was followed by the release of two EPs (one of them the "2nd Peel Session"). However, a greater exposure caused Green Gartside's stage frights, coupled with a certain debilitation of his health, to suffer a [[CreatorBreakdown big mental breakdown]].