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The Hear & Now: More than revolutionary, Gil Scott-Heron was true artistic genius

  • June 21, 2011 at 9:24 am

The first date my wife and I went on was Valentine's Day 1996. I took her to see Gil Scott-Heron, the influential musician, author and poet known as the godfather of rap, who died May 28 in New York City.

It was a test, really, because if she didn’t like him, our first date was going to be our last. At this point, all I knew about her was that she was easy on the eye and for whatever reason, she seemed to have an interest in me. That was enough to elicit my attention, but the first real test of our mutual compatibility hinged on whether she liked Scott-Heron.

The only reason I knew about the show at the Student Commons at VCU was because of a single flier advertising his appearance that night. I saw it on a rare walk through the campus. I was dumbfounded. how could I just now be finding out about it?

At that point, I was listening to Scott-Heron on a daily basis, and I immediately went to the office of the Black Caucus to make sure that this wasn’t some sort of joke. The girl in the office had no idea what I was talking about when I asked about buying tickets, and it took her a good 20 minutes before she found someone who did.

I didn’t mind waiting, though. I couldn’t believe that I was actually going to see Scott-Heron live.

When he came out that night, he started off with a rambling monologue that was equal parts comedy routine, political rally and religious sermon. his caustic, understated wit reminded me of the social satire of Dick Gregory and Lenny Bruce as he tackled a variety of subjects from Ronald Reagan (whom he eviscerated on the scathing “B-Movie” from his 1981 release, “Reflections”) to David Koresh, leader of the Branch Davidian religious sect, to the state of black America with derisively ardent humor and acumen. his stream-of-consciousness narratives engaged the listener as if he were talking to you directly. He had that elusive everyman quality of Dave Chappelle and Chris Rock with the brain and intellect of Cornel West, Noam Chomsky and Kwame Ture. I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone before or since so casually enthrall an audience.

And then it came time for the music. Sitting behind his keyboard, he launched into a solo rendition of his plaintive ballad “Winter in America.” The starkness of the arrangement highlighted and punctuated his sparse, scarred vocal on this heartbreakingly eloquent assessment of moral bankruptcy. from there, Gil and his band launched into muscular 1970s funk-jazz versions of his biggest hits, including the Latin-tinged dance-floor stomp “The Bottle”; the acerbic junkie confessional “Home Is Where the Hatred Is”; and the subtle, unassuming soul of “Ain’t No such thing As Superman.” from beginning to end, I was completed riveted by the performance.

At the end of the concert, I looked over to see if my date enjoyed the show as much as I did. she smiled, and I knew she was transfixed, too.

We’ve been together ever since.

As with the music of Stevie Wonder, Curtis Mayfield or Bill Withers, when I listen to Gil Scott-Heron, I want to be a better person. Though he probably will be most remembered for coining the phrase “the revolution will not be televised,” he was much more than that. He was Medgar Evers, Marvin Gaye, Richard Pryor, Maya Angelou and Alex Haley all in one package. Though he could never escape his addictive demons, his albums (my favorites are his 1970s and early ’80s collaborations with flutist Brain Jackson) and books convey a power, depth and intelligence that come from true artistic genius.

Thanks for everything, Gil. I’ll never forget you.

The Hear & Now: More than revolutionary, Gil Scott-Heron was true artistic genius

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