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Free Will

 
Album Review: Free Will
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Free Will

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  • Artist: Gil Scott-Heron
  • Rating: StarStarStar
  • Release Date: 1972 08
  • Total Time: 36:43
  • Type: Lyrics are included with the album
  • Genre: Rhythm & Blues

Review

Gil Scott-Heron's third album is split down the middle, the first side being a purely musical experience with a full band (including flutist Hubert Laws and drummer Pretty Purdie), the second functioning more as a live rap session with collaborator Brian Jackson on flute and a few friends on percussion. For side one, although he's overly tentative on the ballad "The Middle of Your Day," Scott-Heron excels on the title track and the third song, "The Get Out of the Ghetto Blues," one of his best, best-known performances. The second side is more of an impromptu performance, with Scott-Heron often explaining his tracks by way of introduction ("No Knock" referred to a new police policy whereby knocking was no longer required before entering a house, "And Then He Wrote Meditations" being Scott-Heron's tribute to John Coltrane). His first exploration of pure music-making, Free Will functions as one of Scott-Heron's most visceral performance, displaying a maturing artist who still draws on the raw feeling of his youth. The Bluebird reissue from 2001 includes eight alternate takes, best being an alternate of the title track. ~ John Bush, All Music Guide

Tracks

Track TitleComposersPerformersTime
Free Will Brian Jackson, Gil Scott-Heron Gil Scott-Heron (3:43)
The Middle of Your Day Brian Jackson, Gil Scott-Heron Gil Scott-Heron (4:32)
The Get out of the Ghetto Blues Brian Jackson, Gil Scott-Heron Gil Scott-Heron (5:12)
Speed Kills Brian Jackson, Gil Scott-Heron Gil Scott-Heron (3:18)
Did You Hear What They Said? Brian Jackson, Gil Scott-Heron Gil Scott-Heron (3:32)
The King Alfred Plan Gil Scott-Heron Gil Scott-Heron (2:47)
No Knock Gil Scott-Heron Gil Scott-Heron (2:12)
Wiggy Gil Scott-Heron Gil Scott-Heron (1:37)
Ain't No New Thing Gil Scott-Heron Gil Scott-Heron (4:36)
Billy Green Is Dead Gil Scott-Heron Gil Scott-Heron (1:30)
Sex Education: Ghetto Style Gil Scott-Heron Gil Scott-Heron (:51)
...And Then He Wrote Meditations Gil Scott-Heron Gil Scott-Heron (3:16)

Credits

Brian Jackson (Vocals), Charles Stewart (Photography), Charles Saunders (Percussion), Jean-Pierre Chalbos (Digital Remastering), Gil Scott-Heron (Guitar), Bob Simpson (Mixing), Horace Ott (Conductor), Hubert Laws (Piccolo), Charlie Saunders (Percussion), Daniel Baumgarten (Reissue Producer), Gil Scott-Heron (Piano), Daniel Baumgarten (Reissue Preparation), Bernard "Pretty" Purdie (Drums), Brian Jackson (Piano (Electric)), Ray Ross (Photography), Ray Ross (Cover Photo), Alex Dutilh (Liner Notes), Eddie Knowles (Percussion), Gil Scott-Heron (Vocals), David Spinozza (Guitar), Haig Adishian (Design), Hubert Laws (Flute), Gerald Jemmott (Bass), Brian Jackson (Piano), Horace Ott (Arranger), Bob Thiele (Producer)
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Wikipedia: Free Will (album)
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Home > Library > Miscellaneous > Wikipedia
Free Will
Studio album by Gil Scott-Heron
Released August 1972
Recorded March 2–3, 1972
RCA Studios
(New York, New York)
Genre Soul, fusion, proto-rap, spoken word soul
Length 36:43
Label Flying Dutchman/RCA
FD-10153
Producer Bob Thiele
Professional reviews
Gil Scott-Heron chronology
Pieces of a Man
(1971)		 Free Will
(1972)		 The Revolution Will Not Be Televised
(1974)
Alternate cover
2001 Bluebird reissue cover

Free Will is the second studio album by American soul poet and musician Gil Scott-Heron, released in August 1972 on Flying Dutchman Records. Recordings sessions for the album took place on March 2 and 3, 1972 at RCA Studios in New York City, and production was handled by producer Bob Thiele.[7] It is the follow-up to Scott-Heron's critically acclaimed studio debut, Pieces of a Man (1971), and it is the second album to feature him working with keyboardist Brian Jackson.[1] Free Will is also Scott-Heron's final studio album for Flying Dutchman.[8] The album reissued on compact disc in 2001 by Bluebird Records.[7]

Contents

Music

Free Will featured a format which divides the LP's two sides, musically. The first side is made up of 5 recordings done by Scott-Heron and the entire band, which once again featured Brian Jackson playing a major role as he did on the previous album, Pieces of a Man.[1] Unlike that album, Free Will is shorter in length with tracks below the three and a half minute mark. The title track opens up the album with a meditation on personal responsibility. One of Scott-Heron's best known performances, "The Get out of the Ghetto Blues" is a moving ghetto warning and features bluesy instrumentation by pianist Brian Jackson and guitarist David Spinozza.[1] The second side functions more as a live rap session with Brian Jackson on flute and a couple of percussionists.[1] "Ain't No New Thing" emphasizes Scott-Heron;s black pride, which he previously displayed on his debut album, by presenting an argument about the placement of black culture into the American mainstream:[5]

We used to white people tryin' to rob us
Why don't they try stealing some of this power
It ain't no new thing … anything they don't understand
They try to destroy
We used to having black innovators
copied and sent back to us
We used to having people try to rob us,
it ain't no new thing

—Gil Scott-Heron, "Ain't No New Thing"

"Wiggy" is a haiku-like appreciation of natural black hair.[6] The themes of police brutality, violence, and self-exploration are still present as they were on Scott-Heron's previous albums. "No Knock", a reference to a police policy whereby knocking is not required before entering a house, and "....Then He Wrote Meditations", a tribute to John Coltrane, continue these themes.[1]

Track listing

Original LP

Side one
# Title Writer(s) Length
1. "Free Will"   Scott-Heron, B. Jackson 3:30
2. "The Middle of Your Day"   Scott-Heron, B. Jackson 4:30
3. "The Get out of the Ghetto Blues"   Scott-Heron, B. Jackson 5:04
4. "Speed Kills"   Scott-Heron, B. Jackson 3:15
5. "Did You Hear What They Said?"   Scott-Heron, B. Jackson 3:28
Side two
# Title Writer(s) Length
6. "The King Alfred Plan"   Scott-Heron 2:45
7. "No Knock"   Scott-Heron 2:12
8. "Wiggy"   Scott-Heron 1:38
9. "Ain't No New Thing"   Scott-Heron 4:29
10. "Billy Green Is Dead"   Scott-Heron 1:30
11. "Sex Education: Ghetto Style"   Scott-Heron 0:50
12. "... And Then He Wrote Meditations"   Scott-Heron 3:14

Bonus tracks

2001 compact disc reissue bonus tracks.[7]

# Title Writer(s) Length
13. "Free Will" (Alternate take) Scott-Heron, B. Jackson 3:02
14. "Speed Kills" (Alternate take) Scott-Heron, B. Jackson 3:25
15. "The King Alfred Plan" (Alternate take) Scott-Heron 3:01
16. "No Knock" (Alternate take) Scott-Heron 2:04
17. "Wiggy" (Alternate take) Scott-Heron 1:35
18. "Ain't No New Thing" (Breakdown take) Scott-Heron 3:34
19. "Billy Green Is Dead" (Breakdown take) Scott-Heron 2:57
20. "Free Will" (Breakdown take) Scott-Heron, B. Jackson 2:53

Personnel

Musicians
Production
  • Bob Thiele - producer
  • Bob Simpson - mixing
  • Charles Stewart - cover photo

Notes

  1. ^ a b c d e f Bush, John. Review: Free Will. Allmusic. Retrieved on 2009-08-02.
  2. ^ Columnist. "Review: Free Will". Down Beat: 90. December 2001.
  3. ^ Sweeting, Adam. Review: Free Will. The Guardian. Retrieved on 2009-08-02.
  4. ^ Stark, Karl. "Review: Free Will". The Philadelphia Inquirer: December 23, 2001.
  5. ^ a b Sanders, J.Victoria. Review: Free Will. PopMatters. Retrieved on 2008-07-11.
  6. ^ a b Larkin, Colin. "Review: Free Will". Virgin Encyclopedia of Popular Music: March 1, 2002.
  7. ^ a b c Track listing and credits as per liner notes for Free Will CD reissue
  8. ^ Bush, John. Biography: Gil Scott-Heron. Allmusic. Retrieved on 2008-07-09.

References

  • Gil Scott-Heron, Alex Dutilh. Free Will. reissue liner notes. Sony Music Entertainment Inc.. 

External links

v • d • e
Gil Scott-Heron
Studio albums
Pieces of a Man (1971) · Free Will (1972) · Winter in America (1974) · The First Minute of a New Day (1975) · From South Africa to South Carolina (1975) · Bridges (1977) · Secrets (1978) · 1980 (1979) · Real Eyes (1980) · Reflections (1981) · Moving Target (1982) · Spirits (1994)
Other albums
Small Talk at 125th and Lenox (1970) · The Revolution Will Not Be Televised (1974) · It's Your World (1976) · The Mind of Gil Scott-Heron (1978) · The Best of Gil Scott-Heron (Arista) (1984) · Tales of Gil Scott-Heron (1990) · Glory: The Gil Scott-Heron Collection (1990) · Minister of Information: Live (1994) · Ghetto Style (1998) · The Gil Scott-Heron Collection: Sampler 1974-1975 (1998) · Evolution (And Flashback): The Very Best of Gil Scott-Heron (1999) · Tour de Force (Live) (2004) · Save the Children (2004) · Anthology: Messages (2005)
Singles
"Home Is Where the Hatred Is" · "The Bottle" · "Johannesburg" · "Superman" · "Hello Sunday! Hello Road!" · "Storm Music" · "Re-Ron" · "Winter in America" · "Space Shuttle" · "Don't Give Up" · "The Klan"
Other songs
Related topics

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

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Album Review. Copyright © 2009 All Media Guide, LLC. Content provided by All Music Guide ®, a trademark of All Media Guide, LLC. All rights reserved.  Read more
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