The Last Holiday

Gil Scott-Heron

The mesmerizing posthumous memoir of 'a poet and polemicist whose lyrics have inspired and galvanized generations' GQ

Synopsis

In the autumn of 1980, Stevie Wonder invited Gil Scott-Heron and his band to join him on a forty-one-city tour across America. The purpose of the tour, which included a major rally in Washington on the anniversary of Martin Luther King, Jr's birthday, was to galvanise popular support for the creation of a national holiday in honour of the great civil rights leader. The Last Holiday is Scott-Heron's fascinating account of what took place and how he came to be there.

Raised by his grandmother in Tennessee, Scott-Heron's journey from humble beginnings to becoming one of the most uncompromising and influential songwriters of his generation is a remarkable one. Politically savvy and socially conscious, savagely satirical yet deeply compassionate, he is regularly cited as the godfather of rap, and his unexpected death in May 2011 marked the loss of one of the world's most eloquent musicians. In the words of Sarah Silverman, 'he mirrored ugliness with beauty, audacity and valour'. Chuck D of Public Enemy remarked, 'we do what we do and how we do because of you', and Eminem felt that 'he influenced all of hip-hop'.

A heartfelt and beautifully written memoir, The Last Holiday is full of bright insights into the music industry, New York, the civil-rights movement, modern America, governmental hypocrisy, Stevie Wonder and our wider place in the world. It is also a fitting testament to the generous brilliance of Gil Scott-Heron and to the Spirits that have guided him.

The Last Holiday

Gil Scott-Heron

GIL SCOTT-HERON was born in Chicago in 1949. He has been opening eyes, minds and souls for thirty years. A highly influential and widely admired singer, proto-rapper, jazz pianist, published poet, novelist and socio-political commentator, Scott-Heron remains a unique and major figure in global music. With over fifteen albums to his name, his politically charged output has won him an international following. His work illuminates a philosophy of life that holds human affection as well as political and artistic responsibility as the underlying factors that inspire his writing.

: 'Scott-Heron is such a fine writer . . . As readers and fans alike, we are left to mourn the passing of surely, the least likely pop star ever, one with a truly brilliant mind.', Rob Fitzpatrick, Sunday Times
: 'This memoir reads a bit like Langston Hughes filtered through the scratchy and electrified sensibilities of John Lee Hooker, Dick Gregory and Spike Lee . . . about his own music, he could not be more simple or elegant. "I was trying to get people who listened to me," he writes, "to realise that they were not alone."', Dwight Garner, New York Times
: 'Gil Scott-Heron is timeless.', New York Times
: 'For more than two decades, [Gil Scott-Heron] has been committed to examining those facts of the human condition that most of us would rather forget . . . he is an artist who has crafted witty but crucial insights for Black America.', Washington Post
: 'One of the great pioneers of late-twentieth-century music.', Independent

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The Last Holiday

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The Last Holiday

Synopsis

Gil Scott-Heron

Write Your Own Review

Gil Scott-Heron's Channel

Limited print and book offer

Now And Then

The Vulture

The Nigger Factory

The Last Holiday