Labi Siffre - "I Got The ..."
In support of National Pride Month, for the entire month of June I will only post artists who Identify as somewhere on the LGBTQI Spectrum. We are loud, we are proud, and we deserve to be heard.
Claudius Afolabi "Labi" Siffre (born 25 June 1945) is a British singer, songwriter, musician and poet. Siffre released six albums between 1970 and 1975, and four between 1988 and 1998. He has published essays, the stage and TV play Deathwrite and three volumes of poetry: Nigger, Blood On The Page and Monument.
Siffre played jazz guitar at Annie Ross's jazz club in Soho in the 1960s as part of a Hammond organ, guitar, drums house band.
He released six albums between 1970 and 1975. In the 1970s he released 16 singles,[citation needed] three of which became hits: "It Must Be Love" (No. 14, 1971) (later covered by and a No. 4 hit for Madness, for which Siffre himself appeared in the video); "Crying Laughing Loving Lying" (No. 11, 1972); and "Watch Me" (No. 29, 1972). In 1978, Siffre took part in the UK heats of the Eurovision Song Contest. He performed his own composition "Solid Love", which placed fifth of the twelve songs up for consideration at the A Song for Europe contest. Additionally, he co-wrote the song "We Got It Bad" performed by Bob James, which came tenth.
Siffre came out of self-imposed retirement from music in 1985, when he saw a television film from Apartheid South Africa showing a white soldier shooting at black children. He wrote "(Something Inside) So Strong" (No. 4, 1987) and released four more albums between 1988 and 1998.
The 1975 track "I Got The..." was released as a single in 2006, and was sampled in the Eminem track "My Name Is" in 1999. Which is ironic to think years later with all the controversy around Eminem and Homophobia.
Siffre met Peter John Carver Lloyd in July 1964. They remained together until Lloyd's death in 2013, having entered a civil partnership in 2005, as soon as this was possible in the UK. In 2014 Siffre appeared on the BBC Radio 4 series Great Lives, championing the life of British author Arthur Ransome. Siffre said that the Swallows and Amazons books had taught him responsibility for his own actions and also a morality that has influenced and shaped him throughout his life.
So, today with a little love and look to the future, I choose Labi Siffre's "I Got The.." as my, get it gurl, go on with your bad self, be just exactly who you are, song for a, tell me again, side eye smile, back off buster, Tuesday.