Gil Scott-Heron: The Bottle

Considerado por muchos como uno de los padres del rap, ante todo era un poeta de la realidad que le rodeaba. Asi es como Gil Scott-Heron denunciaba la existencia de ghettos raciales, la miseria, la violencia y las drogas que cebaban las masas negras más desfavorecidas. El jazz, el soul y el funk era su medio de luchar y mostrar el camino equivocado que muchos estaban tomando. Su voz templada y seductora recitando sus letras, unas veces cantando, otras hablando..., pero siempre con la base rítmica de la música negra, convirtiéndole en una lanza muy temida por el poder americano blanco existente por aquellos años 70.

Canciones como "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised", "Inner City Blues" o "The Bottle", son esencia reinvindicativa del orgullo de pertenecer a una mayoría oprimida y necesitada de líderes. Líderes como él, capaces de encauzaran la fuerza que les aupara del pozo social en el que se encontraban. Si, él es un guía, pero tambien un poeta, y un músico que ha dejado una huella profunda donde generaciones siguientes han sabido encontrar el empuje para continuar avanzando en la música y en sus vidas.

Letra

See that black boy over there, runnin' scared
his ol' man's in a bottle.
He done quit his 9 to 5 to drink full time
so now he's livin' in the bottle.
See that Black boy over there, runnin' scared
his ol' man got a problem
Pawned off damn near everything, his ol'
woman's weddin' ring for a bottle.
And don't you think it's a crime
when time after time, people in the bottle.

See that sista, sho wuz fine before she
started drinkin' wine
from the bottle.
Said her ol' man committed a crime
and he's doin' time,
so now she's in the bottle.
She's out there on the avenue, all by herself
sho' needs help from the bottle.
Preacherman tried to help her out,
she cussed him out and hit him in the head with a bottle.
And don't you think it's a crime
when time after time, people in the bottle.

See that gent in the wrinkled suit
he done damn near blown his cool
to the bottle
He wuz a doctor helpin' young girls along
if they wuzn't too far gone to have problems.
But defenders of the dollar eagle
Said "What you doin', Doc, it ain't legal,"
and now he's in the bottle.
Now we watch him everyday tryin' to
chase the pigeons away
from the bottle.
And don't you think it's a crime
when time after time, people in the bottle.