I am a huge fan of the 70's/80s/still-recording (and touring!) band Scritti Politti--and I can't believe I have yet to post their lyrics during National Poetry Month. Formed in 1977 in Leeds by singer-songwriter Green Gartside, the band first operated as a sort of post-punk vehicle for Green's societal and political views. I found them in the 80s when they released their second album domestically, a thrilling, dizzying miracle of synthesizers called "Cupid & Psyche 85." But more than anything, Green loved to play with language and words. After an 11 year hiatus, he came back with a fascinating hybrid of an album called "Anomie & Bonhomie" which mixed his signature Scritti sound with hip hop artists. But this song, "Brushed With Oil, Dusted With Powder" is a slower, more acoustic affair. Its enigmatic, atmospheric sense reads like a Sam Spade short story. Take a read and see what narrative unfolds for you.
Brushed With Oil, Dusted With Powder
by Green Gartside
Brushed with oil, dusted with powder
https://www.scritti.net/
Brushed With Oil, Dusted With Powder
by Green Gartside
Brushed with oil, dusted with powder
The day began to decline
A broken door, a hotel bedroom
The sun cut in through the blind (oh but I tell you)
The officer asked "How did it start?"
Oh sh*t, "You know, I wish I knew," I said
"On Highbury Fields, the Westside Highway
Or here in the Hollywood hills"
In a black and white, to Orange County
The sky was a beautiful blue
A pack of lights, some keys they found there
They wondered how much I knew (oh but I tell you)
The officer asked "How did it start?"
Oh sh*t, "You know, I wish I knew," I said
"On Highbury Fields, the Westside Highway
Or here in the Hollywood hills"
And yes, it's over
And yes, now the powerful have found me
It was beautiful to see
It was how we're meant to be
It was love, no matter what they say
It's wonderful to be here
Abraham, my father, had a girl he called his angel
I made my excuses and I like the way it feels
The officer asked "How did it start?"
Oh sh*t, "You know, I wish I knew," I said
"On Highbury Fields, the Westside Highway
Or here in the Hollywood hills"
And yes, it's over
Oh yes, now the powerful have found me
It was beautiful to see
It was how I'm meant to be
It was love, no matter what they say
It's wonderful to be here
A broken door, a hotel bedroom
The sun cut in through the blind (oh but I tell you)
The officer asked "How did it start?"
Oh sh*t, "You know, I wish I knew," I said
"On Highbury Fields, the Westside Highway
Or here in the Hollywood hills"
In a black and white, to Orange County
The sky was a beautiful blue
A pack of lights, some keys they found there
They wondered how much I knew (oh but I tell you)
The officer asked "How did it start?"
Oh sh*t, "You know, I wish I knew," I said
"On Highbury Fields, the Westside Highway
Or here in the Hollywood hills"
And yes, it's over
And yes, now the powerful have found me
It was beautiful to see
It was how we're meant to be
It was love, no matter what they say
It's wonderful to be here
Abraham, my father, had a girl he called his angel
I made my excuses and I like the way it feels
The officer asked "How did it start?"
Oh sh*t, "You know, I wish I knew," I said
"On Highbury Fields, the Westside Highway
Or here in the Hollywood hills"
And yes, it's over
Oh yes, now the powerful have found me
It was beautiful to see
It was how I'm meant to be
It was love, no matter what they say
It's wonderful to be here
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