The Streets Of London by Soothsayers - Red Earth Music [REDE011]

The Streets Of London

Soothsayers

A 3 track dub single (12m 45s) — released October 1st 2012 on Red Earth Music

#world #dub

Soothsayers create a deep and spiritual, lyrically conscious musical experience, and have built up a loyal fan base through their consistently high quality live performances around the world and their expanding catalogue of vinyl and cd releases on their own Red Earth label. Comparisons to the work of the Wailers and Fela Kuti go some way to describing the Soothsayers' sound, but originality is the key to the continuing success and longevity of the group.

Originally released on 30th July 2012 on the album "London Calling" as well as featuring on Soothsayers' forthcoming album "Human Nature" (to be released October 2012)

In April 2012 Soothsayers were presented with a list of classic songs about London and asked to choose one and arrange/record it in their own style for a compilation album called "London's Calling" featuring bands from the cream of London's multi cultural music scene. They chose "The Streets of London" by Ralph McTell because they were familiar with the tune and liked the message in the lyrics, and because they immediately saw the potential to recreate it in a reggae context using the 3-part vocal harmony style that is fundamental to their forthcoming album.

The result is this unexpected but beautiful heart warming slice of reggae groove, featuring bubbling guitars and piano, strident horns, and the beautiful vocal harmonies of Idris Rahman, Robin Hopcraft and Julia Biel.

Already marked by many as the stand out track on the "London's Calling" album, the band are so happy with it they have incorporated it into their live set and included the song in the track list for their new album due to be released in October 2012.

Soothsayers rarely think about recording covers but this one has got soul and takes the original to such a different place they couldn't resist it. The underlying message in the song is still as relevant today as it was when Ralph first released the song in 1974.

Already being played on Radio 2, and BBC London, with upcoming plays scheduled on BBC6 music and more....

The best tracks are the bravest and least expected with Soothsayers providing a languid and thoughtful reggae treatment of Ralph McTell’s Streets of London. - The Guardian

Among the successes are Brixton’s Soothsayers morphing Ralph Mctell’s Streets of London into a reggae lament. - The Observer

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