RIP Gil

RIP Gil - music legend, poet and a prophet.

Rest in peace Gil Scott-Heron.

I first heard GSH on Wellington's Radio Active student radio station and was blown away by his lyrical genius. He was on-point and to the point when he expressed his social, cultural and political observations/views.

He didn't need a 4,000 word feature article to deliver his key messages - a four minute track was more than enough to make a deep, meaningful and lasting connection. It helped that he had an amazing voice and that his music was groovy as hell.

I was lucky enough to see him perform at the Jazz Cafe in London in 1991. It's a bit of blur now - a lot of cheap red wine was consumed on the night - but I remember it being a celebration of sorts with plenty of people dancing and maybe, even a conga line.

Here's my favourite Gil track - B Movie - 12+ minutes of genius and still sounds fresh, relevant and vital today.

Guardian's GSH Obit