'England, Half-English', is his first album of all-original songs in over five years, features Billy and his touring band The Blokes continuing that spirit of rollicking collaboration. As always, Billy deftly mixes the p... more »ersonal and the political on a dozen tracks that are by turns joyous, rocking, angry, inspiring, melancholy and beautiful. 2002.« less
'England, Half-English', is his first album of all-original songs in over five years, features Billy and his touring band The Blokes continuing that spirit of rollicking collaboration. As always, Billy deftly mixes the personal and the political on a dozen tracks that are by turns joyous, rocking, angry, inspiring, melancholy and beautiful. 2002.
"First, let me say, I have been a huge fan of Billy's since 1990. I have attended concerts, bought T-shirts, and played his music full blast on many a day.The album contains a few gems, a few mediocre songs, and a few that are painful to hear. Being a HUGE fan of the British Isles, I found the song "Take Down the Union Jack" to inspire a bit of melancholy and a bit of acceptance...the Isles have changed.Other songs like "Baby Farouk", "Distant Shore", and "Tears of My Tracks", bring you to remember some of his older albums quite fondly.This album is fairly decent, but is missing something. Compared to William Bloke this is one notch below. This album most directly corresponds to Don't Try This at Home...So, if you are a Billy Bragg fan, you should buy this album (if only for Take Down the Union Jack). If you have never listened to Billy before, then I suggest you go pick up Back to Basics or William Bloke before hand."
It's called satire
John C Washburne | 03/26/2002
(4 out of 5 stars)
"To the genius from Portland who seems to think Billy is a racist: you might also enjoy reading the work of cannibal author Jonathon Swift."
The Latest but not quite the Greatest...
Ben | Walcott, IA | 03/12/2002
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Barreling out of the success of the Mermaid Avenue collections, a popular Woody Guthrie-written collaboration with Wilco, Billy Bragg went into the studio with producer Grant Showbiz and his touring band The Blokes to put out a rollicking good and fun album that shows his changing style.Billy shows an almost Beatles-esque style on his first track, entitled St. Monday, which speaks in a joking manner of the workplace hours in an office.No Power Without Accountability, the fifth track on the album, shines with a Springsteen-like flavour that makes you almost believe that Max Weinberg is in the back of the studio wailing away on the set to drum out the steady snare beat which is so unaccustomed in Billy Bragg albums. The highlight of the album comes with "Take Down the Union Jack", a different kind of song that many die-hard Bragg-fans have been missing. From the first words of this anti-nationalist anthem, Billy Bragg is accompanied by just his guitar, alone against the world, and one is reminded of his old days.
It made me remember a picture of him that I have, taken from the back, where he is standing alone in front of a crowd at Wembley Stadium, with his guitar slung behind him like the last lone socialist soldier.
And being the only person under 40 that can pull off talking about Socialism without coming off self-conscious, he may be the last of his breed."
A few gems
John C Washburne | St. Louis, Missouri USA | 03/21/2002
(3 out of 5 stars)
"To put my cards on the table, I'm a huge Billy Bragg fan. However the moments of genius are getting fewer and further between. This record is solid but unspectacular, with a few exceptions. "Distant Shore" is classic, heartfelt Billy Bragg, and the acoustic guitar work is gorgeous. "Another Kind of Judy" is this record's "Sexuality", and "Jane Allen" is a lot of fun. "Baby Faroukh" is a standout as well. Other than than that it's pretty average. "NPWA" is just awful musically. The lyrics are cool, but to me it's unlistenable. Bragg's live shows are still a killer, though, and I'm planning on being front and center when he comes to the States."
Important and Will Inevitably Grow On You
lhowitt | Long Beach, CA | 06/18/2004
(4 out of 5 stars)
""England Half-English" is the latest plot point on Billy Bragg's biographical music chart. I think it's essential to understand where he's coming from when reviewing a Bragg Album. In listening to Billy's work over the years, I've felt like I've almost been participating in his life, such is the honesty and depth of feeling that goes into his music. That doesn't mean that all of the songs are equally good, of course. But the man has clearly, and publicly, evolved, from angry, caustic punk bard on his first 2 or 3 albums, through the relationship vicissitudes of "Worker's Playtime", the experimentation of "Don't Try This At Home", and the clearly maturer husband and father of "William Bloke". On this album he is once more looking outward, not so much at broad political theory, but at the state of the nation (England, natch). "Distant Shore" is a beautiful plangent song about asylum-seekers, one of the most turbulent (and overheated) issues in the UK right now, from the simple perspective of a man wishing to have some kind of decent existence. "England Half-English" is thematically-linked, being a decisive refutation of white nationalist claims to being the sole owners of "English" identity. It's also got a great beat and cool instrumentation. In "Take Down the Union Jack", Billy revisits the issue of empire once more, this time urging some sort of redefinition of what it means to be English in this age. And it's another gorgeous melody. The final song in this vein is "Baby Farouk". It's not a direct comment on England, but I think it can easily be understood as an appeal to inclusion and tolerance in English society. For me the above four songs alone are well worth the price of admission. But you also get "Some Days I See The Point", which I first found too somnambulent, but now adore for its lush rhythm section and elegantly-punning lyrics, and the bouncy pub-rock numbers "St. Monday", "Jane Allen", and "Another Kind of Judy". (BTW: maybe I've been out of England too long, but I don't know what the first kind of Judy is, let alone the other kind . . . ). Billy's soft American-style vocals on "He'll Go Down" class it as a sequel to "Sugar Daddy" and "Wish You Were Her" on previous albums. I'm not particularly enamoured of "Tears of My Tracks" or "NPWA", the latter being a wee too thudding for my taste. The mystery pick of the bunch is "Dreadbelly" - either Billy is weaving an elaborate metaphor or he'd had a few too many when he wrote the lyrics, cos I can't understand a bleeding word of it. Jaunty, though. In sum, "England Half-English", like all Bragg albums, repays many listens. It has wonderful tunes, powerful and fun lyrics alike, and meaningful songs. It's not his previous work, but then, don't expect Billy Bragg to stand still - he evolves; hopefully, his audience does too."