Talking With the Taxman About Poetry

I've only ever heard Billy Bragg by extension of Wilco. I have some sense for what to expect, but we'll see how he stands alone here. A bit more sparse than most of his work with Wilco (with the exception of Ingrid Birgman), but just as folksy. I will say with his accent I have a hell of a time making sense of anything he's saying. Even still, I really enjoy Levi Stubbs' Tears -- the super sparse, scratchy guitar shines while Bragg croons something. There Is Power in a Union feels like it was made specifically for playing at a rally. Fine enough song. I'm a hard 2 on this album. While I appreciate Billy Bragg's existence and there are a few standout songs this style of music doesn't do a ton for me. Would have been a 3, but I firmly believe that he should not have touched Sin City by the Flying Burrito Brothers. That was a perfect song in original form and did not need a mandolin laden cover.

The guitar and piano on this album are pretty good. But I can not get over this guys voice he sounds like if someone was doing a bad impression of himself. I don't understand what this album is supposed to be. I am trying to listen more in depth but i just can't get over how ridiculous his singing is.

Kinda sounds like Damon Albarn. Or I guess he sounds like Billy Bragg. Either way this was meh. Nothing special. Honestly trending more towards hate. 1.5 but will give a 2. Won't be coming back Billy Boi.

"Talking with the Taxman About Poetry" by Billy Bragg falls short of expectations. Released in 1986, it aims to combine Bragg's political messages with his folk-punk style, but the execution is uneven. Tracks like "Levi Stubbs' Tears" and "Greetings to the New Brunette" showcase his social commentary, but the album's repetitive themes and lyrical approach might become tiresome. The production, while authentic, lacks the dynamic flair to fully engage the listener. While Bragg's honesty and intent are commendable, some tracks lack the punch to stand out, making the album feel a bit monotonous. "Talking with the Taxman About Poetry" might appeal to dedicated fans of Bragg's unique blend of folk and politics, but for others, its impact could be limited.

not my style

I made it through the first disc of a two disc album. I tried but just couldn't do it

Really really forgettable: honestly all memory of listening to this has disappeared within hours of having it on, it was just so incredibly boring and mind-numbing. Okay it wasn't awful and had some bearable tracks but for an album of this length I just felt at the end of the day I was wasting my time listening to it.

i listened to this when i was polishing glasses and i was so sad this was amplified by this albums exploration of thatcherite misery without any of the solace that meaningful music brings im supposed be a socialist or something but if i have to hear that power in a union dirge again i swear

Hauskoja biisejä, mutta jäivät vähemmistöksi. Yksi soittokerta riitti tälle kokonaisuudelle.

Vähemmällä biisimäärällänolisin pärjännyt. Ei kuitenkaan ajanut ärsyttävyyteen asti, vaikka aikalailla sama boogie joka biisissä

I gave this one and a half-arsed listens dawdling between sadness and doldrums. The experience was summed up when without thinking I told my one-year old, “shall we turn the boring record off?” I like the man, but the music does nothing for me, and his proclamatory lyrics leave little space for mystery or humour. Listening to his optimistic throating of socialist axioms depressed me; we know how this story is going to go. My heart says three, my head says two. Sorry Billy x

Early into the album, I scoffed at the top-rated global comment, "The voice ground me down to a fine, lubricant grade powder" but now at 75% through it, I can't help but to agree. Even still, this is better than a 1-star album.

Not a big fan. Everything kind of sounded the same.

- Liked about half the songs on it, the other half were pretty boring - Enjoyed the message behind some of the songs - Can only listen to so much folky rock in my life - Train Train, Levi Stubbs' Tears

first time listening probably not something i’d listen to again

WITH THE SOUNDS OF IDEOLOGY!!! wasn’t a fan, but it was somewhat listenable. There were some catchy parts, but definitely something I wouldn’t come back to.

This album had some pretty overtly radical/political music that I definitely identify with but I can’t say I really enjoyed listening to it too much. Like yeah it’s cool that there’s a song about how badass unions are but there are so many (mostly hip hop/60s folk) artists I’d rather listen to for politically charged music cuz this guys voice sucked and the sound wasn’t very notable.

I desperately wanted to like this one. The folksy lyrics, the simple instruments, almost everything seemed to lie in place, but man I am not a fan of Bragg's vocals! I feel bad, genuinely, because there's more than a few, shall we say, unique vocalists I do enjoy, but alas - I can't say this is one of them. I appreciate this for what it is, and even liked a few of the songs, but I can't say I'm a fan.

Meh

Pretty good id say, nothing spectacular but I kinda liked it

Thought this wasn't bad but I wouldn't ever choose to play it. The cockney accent gets a bit hard to listen to after a full album, but the music isn't bad.

Harmillinen kaksi.. alkaa eka biisi huhhuh äännähdys ulos... huhhuh...

can't stand this guy Only morrisey can get away with singing this many fake notes 2

Not a fan of this. Simply put it does not sound good to me.

Why no drums? I wouldn’t return to this, but it’s not terrible.

Elvis never meant shit to me.

Like a reeeeeaaaally Bri'ish Johnny Cash. Would be a 1 if it wasn't for the lyrics.

His voice really didn't do it for me. But im sure there are good songs in here. 2/5

There is some wit here along with the defiant young working man vibe. The first two songs have some charm but in general the lyrics are pretty grim and the activist messages lack a certain subtlety (although the anthemic There Is Power in a Union is pretty good). The album is also way too long. Maybe if it was a little easier on the years it wouldn't be quite so tough to take.

It sounds like a very long demo. About twice as long as it should be. Apparently the original release didn't have as many songs as the internet version. Some songs are good, most are average. The lyrics are better than the music. Favorite song: Greetings to the new brunette.

Talking with the Taxman About Poetry is the third album by English singer-songwriter Billy Bragg. This folk punk album contains some of Billy Bragg's best work and was seen as a great leap forward for his music. It also featured more musicians than his previous albums. The album has many political themes about the world, but this didn't affect the music in a negative way. I thought the album was decent, but nothing special. It was a fun album that performed well critically while making some political points. Give it a listen if you like folksy music.

Favorites: -Greetings to the new brunette: 6,8 -Train train: 6,5 -The marriage:6,3 -Ideology: 6,6 -Levi stubbs' tears: 6,3 -Honey, I'm a big boy now: 6,4 -There is power in a union: 6,2 -Help save the youth of America: 6,5 -The passion: 6 -The warmest room:

Just didn't do much for me. Pleasant for a few songs, but gets old

very cockney. enjoyable.

Not really my thing

Джаз-блюз бард с охуенной обложкой и интересными местами текстами. Но как-то мимо меня пролетело, еще из-за сведения

Разговор с фининспектором о поэзии... стоп, Маяковский?!? Что он тут забыл вдруг... Бегло пробежавшись по Википедии понял, что без Genius'a в этот раз скорее всего не обойдусь. Открыв первую же песню, одну из каких-это строк с аннотацией, я улетел конкретно: "I'm more impressionable when my cement is wet". Ну как красиво завернул, а)) И так почти все композиции. Прям отменная текстовая составляющая. Но по музыке - ну, это бардовская песня. И прям вот в классическом её понимании: аранжировки минимальны, где-то вообще всего один инструмент играет. Есть классные блюзовые и джазовые вставки. Но почему-то я уверен, что таких альбомов и так куча. А этот попал сюда из-за остросоциальной лирики, которую я всё-таки не до конца понимаю и не готов ставить этот альбом выше многих других только из-за неё. 2/5. Тема Маяковского осталась не раскрыта. А жаль, я уж думал, будет какой-нибудь оммаж, помимо названия.

Абсолютно мимо

I love Billy Bragg Iove his socialism, the way he creates new narratives away from the mainstream. His music suck though.

Eh up, yer gonna join the trade union, lad? Sure, but do I have to listen to Billy Bragg?

Not for me.

Je ne comprends pas le truc des accents. Des fois, il est full vieux British et au début du 2e disque, il est Sud-ouest des E-U. Autrement, c’est le propos que je devine être l’important. Ce serait un genre de Springsteen Britanique... Musicalement, c’est plutôt pauvre et répétitif. Ce sont des chanson quoi.

The type of music that can pass right under my nose and I wouldn't notice.

Slightly generic mildly wanky folk stuff

A little bland, but the songs topics try to make up for that. Seeing as though I don't have must stake/interest in England's political situation, much of the songs do not have much of an impact on me. 4/10

Kovin on keskinkertaista mun korvaan vaikka usein akustisesta ”flokkipunkista” tykkäänkin. Kai tässä on vähän liian vähän sitä punkkia ja toisaalta folkkia mun makuun. Vähän tällänen kahden markan juttu. Sen mitä taas teksteistä sain selvää niin vaikutti ihan hyvältä. Kansi taas kerran hieno. Kauheen kriittinen mä oon...

Presumably this is mostly lyrics oriented and political, which is not really my thing. Musically it is fairly uninteresting, although I like the vocal + electric guitar combination on some of the songs.

Folk punk, politisk, akustisk guitar

Don’t like lead singer’s voice

Very folksy. On the right side of history but the music sucks

Not something I would ever return to or could enjoy

Funny how some writers are drawn to their central concept like a magnet. In this dude's case, he seems pretty goddamn passionate about politics, a topic which I've always maintained zero interest in. So, between that and his not-quite-musical-but-almooooost-there voice, we were never going to be a suitable match between artist and listener. Sorry Billy, but you ain't for me matey.

Billy is naast zanger ook 'campaigner' lees ik in zijn bio. Vermoeiend!

Wel aardig, maar ook hier trekt de stem me te weinig.

Begon aardig maar na een paar nummers werd het voor de derde dag op rij iets waar ik echt niet tegen kon. Lekkere reeks zijn we aan het maken!

Not my cup of tea - made it half way thru- no more…

This album never really stuck with me. It felt long and the British style was difficult at times to grasp. The guitar playing was decent and rhythmically it was ok, but it didn’t feel like anything special to me. 3.7/10

Another meh... for future versions of the list they should look into other language records more than keeping fillers like this

First listen, good sound. 2/5

It feels like this album jumps genre a lot, but he doesn't do it very well. All the songs feel like they have something missing in them. His voice isn't suited for most of the songs he sings, and the backing track feels somewhat hollow. Favorite track: Train Train

Something about this just kind of annoys me. It might just be me and my mind right now but I couldn’t get through it.

Wzl oke maar niet wauw

No me gustó

Hmmm... Don't know what to say about this one except it seemed like the background noise when you go to a pub for a pint. I'm sure there's some cultural significance to this and may be stronger if I were aware of British politics of the '80s (I couldn't listen to Morrissey cover this stuff either). This isn't terrible and I did enjoy some of the rich Gibson, but I'm not gonna brag about Billy's album on my weekend readout.

did not enjoy it, but it's not horrible

That’s longer than I want to talk with the Taxman about anything. And little of the conversation was about poetry. It was about politics, and a girl leaving because she wasn’t respected, but not a lot of analysis of Robert Frost. This is described as folk punk, but I’m not getting too much punk (except for the aforementioned raging at the political machine). Instead, it veers between overly British singer-songwriter and American folk. Some of it was witty and charming, but not enough.

This one is mixed for me, I like some of the music but I think I would like it more with a different lead singer.

The Tracks Of My Tears was my favorite song. I’m a sucker for harmony, so I also enjoyed Hold The Fort. I do not care for the lead singer’s voice. I would prefer this album be turned off if it were on.

Nah

Despite broadly sharing the same politics as Bragg, he's never done anything for me at all. This didn't change my mind.

it was alright, didn't make it thru the entire thing but sounded too country ish

Boring - all tracks sounded the same

Sounds like an old British punk frontman has done his own more folky acoustic album. It's OK, I think it needs more time to appreciate. Sounds like it was probably quite popular back in the day. 2/5

Andere Sachen von ihm finde ich besser.

Nur kurz reingehört, bisschen anstrengend.

First part is ok, second cd is full of alternate versions and half-finished songs, which quite ruins the deluxe edition

british, political, idk. kinda repetitive

That's totally not my bag baby

Bei aller Sympathie, das war leider nicht so gut in meinen Ohren.

Billy hat eine treue, langjährige Gefolgschaft, die ich mir vorstelle, wie das mit dem Kaugummirhizom unter der Theke und dem Klo-Sticker Palimpsest mitwachsende/kleben gebliebene Stereo Wonderland Stamm-Publikum. Verzottelt sympa, streitlustig, politisch generell auf der tiefroten Seite. Ich will aber Musik und alles, was sie kann. Bitte keinen Stammtisch Philosophen, der hier den besten JuSo-Parteitag ever untermalt. Für die Haltung extra points.

Primer apropament a Billy Brag i el seu antifolk protesta de so cru. Hi ha algun tema interessant, com el primer tall, però en general se m'ha ennuegat una mica.

2

Mostly a dude with a comically heavy English accent playing guitar and yammer-singing with, maybe, some political message I don't care to hear.

I guess this record is important, for some reason? I liked a couple of the songs, most was just background music.

Pretty British. The wiki says "punk folk" and that makes a ton of sense. It took a while for me to get into it but I eventually started to vibe with it... won't revisit but I guess I'll say 2.5.

2.5 | Pues no hay mucho que decir. Creo que su manera de cantar era muy acertada la descripción que leí; es una mezcla de folk con punk que parece extraño pero en efecto tiene el sonsonete como si fueran los ramones pero con letras más hacia el folk y aunque tiene una guitarra eléctrica los arreglos son más hacia lo acústico. Me agradó pero no me apantalló, creo el problema principal que tengo es que aunque me agradó mucho su manera de cantar sus canciones siempre se escuchan como vacías; me gustan sus letras, esa mezcla de cantar es buena pero siento que hace falta una banda y ese es el problema con el disco. Me hace falta una percusión, no hay bajo, su idea de armar las canciones me deja una sensación incompleta. Algunas llegan a tener el bajo ocasional o alguna percusión (aunque nunca una bateria formal) y pareciera que siempre te quedas esperando que empiece a tocar la banda. A falta de una banda si fuera realmente en arreglos meramente acústicos cuadraría mejor, ese punto medio es interesante pero extraño. Siento que las canciones en sí son buenas y en otra configuración hasta podrían haber pegado comercialmente.

Early British indie. Not for me

Meh

1.5| le voy a poner el 2 solo por qué no sabía que existía el folk punk. Cuando piensas que la rola va a despegar te quedas esperando y esperando hasta que fin y comienza otra vez a despegar y pues nada

Not my cup of tea.

Goofy but harmless

Had no idea there was a genre called folk-punk. Not for me though, sorry.

There was a lot of music to listen to and it all kind of sounded the same to me. I just couldn't get into it.

It's the morning of July 5th and I'm grumpy. I hate this. But even if I wasn't grumpy, I still wouldn't like this.

That was definitely some bullshit, but at least it was marginally better than Mariah Carey’s bullshit.

Christ almighty. Awful voice and lyrics as subtle as a sledgehammer. A vibe and aesthetic no one needs.

it's like a guy standing outside my window with a guitar who won't go away

It was a drag

british folk

WDYM 1 hour and 9 minutes.... Update: 20 songs in and all I can say is.... Not my cup of tea either 😭😭 GIVE ME SOMETHING GREAT PAGE!!! Update 2: Nope.

Booooo!!!!

Not for me

Agree with his views, hate his music

I had a miserable time with this one. And a long miserable time it was too. I wouldn't Bragg if I were you.

no.

Folk punk… and now, I know. For me, basically anything touched by folk or country instantly loses points in my brain. This one gets close to that psychedelic Scottish folk stuff… not unlistenable, but yet another example of the unfair overrepresentation of British music in this list.

Rubbish

2 bit album. I don’t find the lyrics interesting, and I certainly don’t find the music interesting. The guitar sounds farty and the singing is devoid of range and depth.

This is #day640 of my #1001albumsyoumusthearbeforeyoudie challenge, and… the fact that the record takes its title from a poem by Mayakovsky doesn't help my perception of it, to put it mildly. As a Ukrainian, whose country is in its fifth year of full-scale invasion, I don't give a flying fuck about the "great" Russian culture, to put it bluntly. As for the record itself... lame folk protest songs with a mediocre implementation. What do you mean there's another album of his I must hear before I die? This is a 1 out of 5. Looking forward to #day641.

Pretty boring to me, not my style.

No me gustó

Never a good sign when I think an album sounds like a Weird Al parody. I guess Al didn't feel the need; Billy did it for himself.

sram na to

Absolutely not my thing 1/10 Will I add this album to my library? No

Gear: Abyss DIANA MR Artwork: 👺🍽️💸 Production: 🔪💩😖 Music: 🙄😖🤬 Rating: 🤑(🤑)/5

Not a fan. Sounded like a drunk Englishman with the thickest accent known to man singing 12 songs with the same 3 melodies

Mum please can we have Paul Weller for dinner. No we have Billy Bragg at home.

Why does the singer sound drunk?

A local lad, but this is an abomination.

Boring music, nonsensical lyrics.

Interesting album cover - I quite like that illustration. Looks like I've got another folk album on my hands going by the album name. Likely folk rock given that this released in the 80s. Guess I've got nothing more to do than get into this one. Here goes. What the fuck. A jangle poppy/country/rock album with a parlor song influence and cockney vocals. Apparently I'm on the money with my folk prediction, but I'm not sure how this qualifies - there's a subtlety to folk which isn't at all present on this album. This was pretty shit. Jangle pop is one of those genres that I want to appreciate but just can't. I respect the earnest sound, but the signature jangling guitars are just so stiff and stale. Pair that with some horrid cockney vocals and you have yourself a complete swing and a miss. Even worse is the songwriting and lyrics. When this album isn't proselytising you with blunt, dull, dated politics the lyrics are so horrific in their lyrical content, rhyming conventions and vocal flow to the point where I start feeling cagey and irritated. Horrid album. Couldn't wait for it be over. Book time. "Billy Bragg has always stood at the crossroads of the public and the private, exploring political issues and matters of the heart with equal passion." "...the most successful synthesis of his interests." "...the best songs here explore the emotional consequences of politics." I guess the contemporary albums on this list weren't the only ones to make it in on political grounds, huh? Wikipedia says this album was bigger and more complex than his previous outings and garnered a respectable reaction from critics. The singles had modest chart success, but the album doesn't appear to have charted at all. I've been pretty forgiving of the British nepotism picks thus far, but come on. It's obvious that the listmakers are only letting this album through because they like Bragg's politics. He isn't iconic. He isn't particularly successful. The music is dated and shitty. I doubt he's influential and the critics are only moderately favourable towards this music. Again, likely due to his politics. We're pulling this one. In place of this album, I humbly submit Lounge Designers Killer by Capsule for inclusion on the list.

I wish music was real...

Awful

I'm not gonna put myself through this.

primera canción y no, siguiente

Interesting to listen to but I didn’t like it?

This sucks lmao

There’s a point at the end of the second disk of this album where the singer, Billy, outcries that he doesn’t know if he can go on. I think that line really spoke to me on a sort of spiritual level. It was a direct allusion of what I had to go through making it that far into the album. This album was fucking miserable tosh, and I resent the entire country of England for producing it. I was going to give this a 2, but it went on and on and on and on and on and by the time I got to the ending, I couldn’t turn it off fast enough. I really hope the original pressing only had 1 disc, because Spotify has a second disk which is even worse and makes the experience last for well over an hour, which is another point against this album. I rather enjoyed the cool violin on “Train Train”, but dude, the vocals on this album are terrible. If I never have to hear a grown man sing about being a big boy again, it will be too soon. God, I was hoping for something good this morning. Instead, I got this. Bad. Bad album. He’s got a second one on here as well. Please help me. The worst part is that I’m actually in a great mood today, this blokes god forsaken singing just makes me want to vent and get it all out. So, for the free therapy, I thank this album for being as bad as it is. I’m going to go through the other 1 stars again real quick to see if something is finally going to join them. This one might be worthy. It makes an excellent case for being overwhelming shit. I’m upset that the other aspects of the album like the guitar playing, violin and brass are pretty cool so I can’t outright detest it entirely. I do not relate to this album in any way, and with this whiny, annoying singer, I absolutely do not care to either. “Train Train” was bearable, so that’s my pick for best one on this album. Now let’s never speak of this album again so I can get on with the rest of my life. Please. All I can do at this point is hope I get a better album tomorrow.

Lowkey didactic.

Nothing here

Not worth your time!!!!

this album came out on my year of birth! but i don’t like it. sorry. i wish it was more of a rock album, i feel like it would fit his voice more? but there’s a distinct lack of drums and i don’t like that.

nope

I thought I would’ve been more into this. I respect Bragg as a politico-punk troubadour, but this didn’t hit for me. I really can’t pinpoint why.

The instrumentals were not that bad. But I just couldn't stand the vocals.

Just wasn’t crazy about this. So much dissonent guitar and British isle pub themes for my taste. Amazing this is the same Billy from the epic Wilco collab - hope that cracks the top 1001!

An album that noone has heard of, and had zero commercial success. I can't listen to 22 tracks of this. Sorry Billy.

Is this a joke?

I listened to 8 of the 22 tracks and decided this is not an album I need to hear any more of before I die.

Meh

I hope this doesn't come across as bigoted, but people from Essex should not be allowed to sing in public. It's frankly unreasonable to expect us normal people to be exposed to such sounds.

I don't really like this at all Will I listen to again: 0%

No ty buddy

2/10

This is folk. However slightly modernized, it's still folk. I can't stand it.

Can not bare his voice, God bless him

Couldn’t finish it , don’t want to.

I think it was super boring and all the songs sounded the same and I don't think hate is a nice thing to say but I genuinely hated this one.

To anyone reading this review: if you like british folk rock and lyrics with political messages, this album might be for you. It would also be for me if I didn't despise his voice. I have listened to his collaboration with Wilco prior to this project, and if I didn't like this man's voice back then, imagine how much I disliked it now having to listen to an album where he is the only one singing. Besides, another comparition between these two is that this one feels very loud and over-produced, with the singing feeling very inflated and forced. As much as I appreciated some of the lyrics and instrumentation, I'm not willing to subject myself to Billy Bragg's voice anymore.

The 80's were a realtively down decade for music. This project's continued propogation of British singer-songwriters is wearing really, really thin. Here we have an early British Tom Morello prototype. He's a little political (I'm not complaining), and he cannot sign at all. I don't expect to see a Nightwatchman album here for the same reasons I didn't want to see this album. And the production is crap. Tinny and thin-sounding, he needs to actually put pressure on the guitar strings. We also have a double album - this time literally containing multiple recordings of the same song. Cut it down, dude. Almost every song sounds the same. And it's clearly Bragg that's the problem, as his cover of a great song - Tracks of My Tears - is hot garbage. Influence 1. Quality 1. Hits 1. I want to bump him to a 2 for the political statements, but it's just so, so bad. 1

Annoying

I don't know what it is, but this album just doesn't work for me. I think it's partly Mr. Bragg's voice, partly the compositions, and partly the entirely unsubtle lyrics. I could probably work with this if it was just two of the three, but it sadly falls flat. Favorite track: probably the one about trains

I have said before that I don't like politics in music. But if that's what you want to do then the quality of the music has got to shine through first and foremost. Unfortunately Billy has completely failed in this respect. His voice drones on, and for the most part is tuneless. The music is bland and uninteresting. I can however understand why this is here, unlike many of the items included in this list. And he can write a good track when he puts his mind to it, because he has for others to perform. None of that can rescue this piece of rubbish though.

This album is very rough around the edges

I'm sorry, I can't.

Preaching, shallow Punk Folk.

Not for me

Het nummer Train train vond ik wel aardig met de violen, maar voor de rest kon ik er echt niet goed doorheen komen. Ik kan daarom ook niet veel anders zeggen dan: dit is niks voor mij.

Op advies van Timo alleen disk 1 aangezet en zelfs die met moeite afgeluisterd. Schel gitaar geluid zonder andere instrumenten en een stem die vermoeit maakt voor een album waar geen enkel nummer in een van mn playlists gaat.

Oef.... Ik begrijp dat het een wat ouder album is, maar ik ben niet door disk 1 gekomen. Deels te weinig tijd, maar ik kon ook de schelle gitaar op een gegeven moment niet meer aanhoren. Tot aan dat punt helaas niets noemenswaardigs positiefs gehoord 🤷‍♀️

OK? The guitars would be absolutely OK for an improvising busker, or for a friend at a campfire. Even then, the vocals would not be acceptable though. Constant changes in volume don't make the voice sound any less monotone, just more grating. Couldn't stand more than the first half the album. But since everything sounded the same there, I'll just assume the rest sounds the same too.

Not for me but also not an easy listen once I locked in. Listening to it while at a drive thru. It's a 1.7 or 1.5 so giving it a 1.

interesting, it’s not usually the kind i’d go for, but it was okay

No comment

3/10

Stopping this halfway through. Thick British accent rambling on and on is too much.

Etwas eintönig.

Can’t sing, can only play the most basic guitar. His saving grace is his politics which are delivered with the subtlety and nuance that makes left wing ideology so easy to ignore. And I do consider Myself left wing.

Do people actively search this out and sit down at the end of a day and listen to this? Or is this just an album people have to show how liberal they are without actually being liberal? It's just so boring.

1.5 - Bad

I went in expecting to like this as I enjoy folk singer/songwriters but I kind of hated it. Big part was his voice was just obnoxious to me and I didn't enjoy the production on this either sometimes it sounded almost muffled. Lyrics also didn't really do as much as I was hoping. Very disappointed

This British boner sucks

This album was not for me but his newer stuff is decent

2/10. If I were the taxman, I would ask Billy Bragg to shut the fuck up.

Holy shit! This guy’s voice fucking sucks. All other aspects of the music is great, but damn, that voice sucks.

This is really tragic because I love the title, I love alternative, I love folk, and I love British people. But I hate this. Actually I can’t say I hate it cause this is no Scott 2. I just really didn’t like how he sang but honestly all the background music was chill, I think if a completely different person was singing this album I wouldn’t mind it. I don’t even know if the lyrics were good cause I couldn’t stand focusing on listening to him. Also it was crazy long, what the heck man. I will forever feel horrible for giving an alternative folk album a one but it has to be done, the genre’s quality has to be upheld somehow.

I did not like this album at all. The second song was pretty cool because it had a folk punk vibe that came out awesome. But other than that, everything about this album seems like it was designed and engineered for me to hate it in every way imaginable. As an American, the lyrics had no relevance to me, so there was a disconnect on that front. His singing style embodies everything I dislike about run-of-the-mill commercial Britpop. Then there’s the music. It felt as if it was specifically crafted to align with all my dislikes. No matter how open and tolerant you are, and how much you love and appreciate music, you simply can’t like everything. This album was a good reminder of that for me.

Ugh, what a slog...

niin jälleen kerran tämmöinen tyypillinen, tämmönen kiva tämmönen albion album.. omg mut nniinku niin mietteliästä sanomaa rn tapahtuu, niin mietiskelevää saarnaa.. raha, rahat ja siis hake e money, its sa sin. just stay a wayyyy from my stack... seteleitä suuhun nom nom nom nom seteliäää.. lähinnä karsinogeenistä musiikkia tällä kertaa. bro ei ole morrisey,, laulappa omalla äänellä ei tarvi katsomoon sinne katsomoon laulaa vääristetyllä äänellä, ihan omalla äänellä voisi tehdä jotain ainutlaatuista mutta sen sijaan halutaan naminami seteliä.. seteliä suuhun vaan ja kartanolle... ja vihataan verottajaa.. train train

Inget att hänga i julgranen precis

Coincidentally enough, I was doing my taxes while I was listening to this album. It did not help boost my mood. In fact, it was so boring and British that it put me in a worse mood and I couldn't wait for it to be over. The only reason it didn't get a 1 star was because I support unions. Nevermind, that cover of Tracks of my Tears was so horrible that I gotta do it. 1-star it is. Couldn't wait for it to be over.

I made it four songs and couldn't do it. The voice is so grating

I hate this

wasnt my cup of tea

Some male vocalist's voices really don't land with me. The Cure, Morrissey, heck even David Bowie. Billy Bragg falls into this category. The music sounded pretty nice, but that voice, I couldn't get over it. Only made it about 1/3 of the way through the album. Not for me.

yikes

Is he singing or moaning? WTF am I listing to? This is torturous. Gonna rate this shit 1 star

Boring.

Artiste inconnu. L'instrumentation est (trop) minimaliste, et je ne trouve pas la voix très agréable. Le tout est en plus noyé dans une reverb de hall de gare. Résultat très ennuyeux. =>1/5

I did not enjoy this at all…

I didn't like this. The songs all sort of just smooshed together and when the second disc started, I didn't know because all the tracks sound the same. This is not a good record. I don't know what else to say.

We live in such a varied cultural world and the fact that people like this both blows my mind and pleases me at the same time. Its awful dribble tripe, almost tortuous. But if we all liked the same thing this world would be boring. Not as boring as this album though. 0 stars if I could

This is my first one star. I don’t get this album one bit. They songs started sounding all the same and I fast forwarded past them.

Hard pass

Likte da ikkje

I didn’t like the part where he sang. I did like the part where this album ended and something enjoyable came on.

I can't get past the monotonous, shouty voice. And that's coming from one of Mark E Smith's biggest fans. There just doesn't feel like there is much light amongst all that shade.

Possibly the most annoying vocalist I've ever heard. I saw this come up and figured I would hate anything by this condescending, preachy twat - and indeed, it was an absolute horror of an album. I obviously stopped after the original twelve tracks, as any more of this grating bilge would have probably ended me. I think what I hate most about Mr Bragg is his black and white perspective on politics. He has the world view of a poorly informed six year old, "rich people are bad", "unions are good", etc. There's no grey areas, no subtlety whatsoever, just badly sung and boring songs that assume the listeners are already indoctrinated idiots. I'm all for folk-angst-politics in music, but not when it's done as clumsily as it is here. I think I would rather stand next to someone selling Socialist Worker for a couple of hours than have to endure this awful excuse for an album a second time.

Tried to appreciate it as a working class voice, but it's just not fun to listen to. Plus Bragg himself is a case of "live long enough to see yourself become the villain" which takes away from his initial message 1.4

I did not like this album at all. The second song was pretty cool because it had a folk punk vibe that came out awesome. But other than that, everything about this album seems like it was designed and engineered for me to hate it in every way imaginable. As an American, the lyrics had no relevance to me, so there was a disconnect on that front. His singing style embodies everything I dislike about run-of-the-mill commercial Britpop. Then there’s the music. It felt as if it was specifically crafted to align with all my dislikes. No matter how open and tolerant you are, and how much you love and appreciate music, you simply can’t like everything. This album was a good reminder of that for me.

This was dire. Hard to believe this is the same guy who caught me with “Mermaid Avenue”. Absolutely dire.

If you think the cover art looks cheap, wait until you hear the music. Nothing to bragg about!

did not like this one it was long and slow and boring.

Pretentious twat

I can’t stand his voice and the deliberately crap style.

There nothing to Billy Bragg about this record. In fact, vocally, it sounds like something I would mockingly do. Billy Bragg is like Alan Doyle to Europeans. Some East Coast Gaelic sounding songs, that typically I'd enjoy.. But there is nothing more than a sub par, barely hitting mediocre song on this record. The vocals sound awful. The mixing is poor. The guitar tone is dreadful. In one song, Only Bad Signs, the guitar and the vocals just don't match up at all. Nothing lands on the same note. The guitar sounds like it is playing a different song than the vocals. Perhaps this was a live off the floor recording, to get that east coast live pub feel...? Doubtful. This album took me a lot of tries to get through. Usually I can sit through a record, start to finish. But with this record, I just wanted it to end. An hour plus of music and not a single song that I could say anything positive about.

Oi really did nowt loike dis awbumm. And it 'ad two discs! Just a guy singing with his electric guitar... did not like this voice. I hope this is the end of Billy Bragg for me.

This is one of those names like the Replacements or Elvis Costello or Tom Waits that are perennial critics darlings that I tend to avoid. So … this could be something awesome or something annoying. Let’s dive in! Greetings To The New Brunette - hokey fuck-stix this has got a lot of reverb. This song blows, the sound is not really my sound. This bodes ill for this album. Sorry Billy Bragg fans! 1/5 Train Train - well that was a sudden change in direction. Love this more blues sound. 3/5 The Marriage - ok, not my favorite but this guy’s got some serious songwriting range. I feel like I’ve stepped into three different albums so far. Lyrics are inspired, pro-parent sentiment. Not a teenager’s album. 2/5 Ideology - Seems to be a bit of the British Bob Dylan. English political song, like the very definition of a topic I would give 2 poops about. 2/5 Levi Stubbs’ Tears - well I hate this song too. I’m not a huge fan of hometown narrative song you might get from Springsteen etc. 1/5 Honey, I’m a Big Boy Now - what time period is this album happening? 1910s? 1/5 There Is Power In A Union - Lefty protest song. Sure, whatever. Not my thing. 1/5 Help Save The Youth Of America - ok, there was a chance this wasn’t this guys shtick but it very much is. I’m sure this is great for someone. Just not me. 1/5 Wishing The Days Away - got a country vibe other than the British accent. 1/5 The Passion - ok working class living working class life. 1/5 The Warmest Room - 1/5 The Home Front - 1/5 Usually, when I hear an album I heavily dislike, I can still see why it’s on the list. This is no different. British working class folk anthems from the 80s don’t really jive with me. I’m sure this is the premo example of the type of music, but I so just hate it. Also, there’s a type of music critic darling that is really backward looking. I’m sure this guys songwriting craft is 2nd to none. I wouldn’t know Because I can barely listen to it. It definitely feels like he’s 20-30 years too late, and that was in the 80s. 1/5

Ekki mitt te

Good god seriously? I forced myself to finish and hated myself for it.

This was underwhelming.

Protest singers should be judged by the reality of the things they advocate for. In the last thirty years, every issue this blockhead sang for has come to fruition and England is a hell hole for it.

Nope 1/10

Oh boy. That’s a voice I’m not able to get behind. I prefer silence to this album. The instruments were fun but that vocalist is horrible. Will our entire group give this a 1 star? Bet. 2/10

This guy sings like he is doing a fake British accent. Theres really just not much to it. I feel like there is only one dude in this band because the lack of other instruments is telling. He’s telling stories but 1. i could barely understand him 2. They are boring stories. “Honey, I’m a Big Boy Now” was utter shite. Why did it randomly become country? Deportees was hilarious and so completely out of place. Man the longer it went on the more annoying it got. Waste of an hour honestly. 2/10

This guy sings like he is doing a fake British accent. Theres really just not much to it. I feel like there is only one dude in this band because the lack of other instruments is telling. He’s telling stories but 1. i could barely understand him 2. They are boring stories. “Honey, I’m a Big Boy Now” was utter shite. Why did it randomly become country? Deportees was hilarious and so completely out of place. Man the longer it went on the more annoying it got. Waste of an hour honestly. 2/10

Almost made it through the first disk but I could not stand that voice any longer.

I freaking hated this. I wanted to turn off every song and it was a massive struggle to get through.

I never heard of this before and to be honest, I do not feel i missed out.

Billy Bragg has 1 good song and it isn't on this album.

dumb as fuck

Billy Bragg. Auto 1 star.

Too whiny for my liking

Oof, was that second cd really necessary? I only could wish for it to end

Wasn’t my cup of tea

10/10 message, 100% based but musically shite

Really not my cup of tea

Wolfie "Citizen Smith" meets Chas and Dave meets Elvis Costello... and spues out political communist protest songs against Thatcher in support of the miners strike in the 80s... I remember thinking his stuff was shit back in the day, we alll did, well apart from my mate Stevie Baker who thought Billy was a cool up the revolution guy, bless him, he didn't know any better, but nah, listening to it again, 40 years later its still shit.

Fuck billy Bragg

Madre mía,vaya tostón…pobre recaudador de impuestos(PSP)

I vote Labour just to get Billy Bragg to shut up.

Not even going to warrant a full listen on this one, my family love him for some reason, heard it all before, complete and utter garbage

kopija smoths i jos neceg

Possibly the most grating voice in popular music.

Feeling suicidal? Life getting you down? Feel victimised? Don't worry. Billy's got this one covered. Absolute dross.

Boring

To me the production quality of this album and it’s overall sound seem behind the times, even for the 80s. To my untrained ear, by the time he recorded his most popular track “California Stars” in 1998 his sound had matured considerably. Or maybe he just got a much more talented producer.

Huonolla tavalla ei ajaton levy: kumman kuuloset taustat paikoin ja lyriikat aika naivistisiakin.

Ymmärrän idean (The Clash meets Bob Dylan), ja sille voisi olla tilaustakin, mutta lopputulos on yhdentekevä (akustinen kitara meets henkilö joka lukee silloin tällöin sanomalehteä).

Great rhythm section!

oh my god this album is so boring. I feel nothing 2/10

Thought this might be a 2 but it just kept going and getting worse. 1 save.

Excessively British vocals are as grating to me as modern country vocals. There's good album here somewhere but sadly it's buried beneath the sounds of an old Englishman who had one too many at the pub.

At first, folk and punk seems like genres lying on two opposite extremes of music. So what should we expect in "folk punk"? Well, folk and punk still have something in common: politically charged tracks. And Billy Bragg pushed the poetic storytelling of folk and the energetic angst of punk to create this album. The title itself summarizes this attempt. It's a genuine attempt, I guess, but it's a weak one. The tracks felt flat and shallow. Also, I don't think weaving those political proses with such an annoying voice is a good idea. DEFINITELY a difficult album.

Vraiment pas mon bag D'un ennui... j'ai pas terminé Important j'imagine pour le propos engagé parce que c'est sûrement pas pour la musique et les arrangements...

Bragg sounds like he's desperately trying to be Ian Dury on some of these tracks, although without the charm, intelligence or charisma. I get that this music is political, but can't music be both political and fun? Oh, the cover of "tracks of my tears" isn't great.

Did not pay attention the lyrics, I probably should have, but the music itself was a bit too boring for me.

Well the music was shit. Probably a societally meaningful piece of art based on it's lyrics, for some people at a certain point of time. But that has gone and passed. Album should not be on this list.

Billy Braggs vocals are absolutely infuriating to listen to.

Looking at some of the stuff around this album, a lot of them refer to this album as intelligent and rocking like punk. This album is neither. I will not be listening to the second disc, and I could've done without listening to the first. This is like listening to The Clash's singer sing over Bruce Springsteen songs. The only song that I even find tolerable is "Train Train".

Nothing I liked about it

a boring swamp thing

Not it chief

Boring

Terrible