Promotional Information

An oral history of 'Rock Against Racism', '2 Tone', and 'Red Wedge', consisting of interviews with over 150 contributors, from the acclaimed writer of Isle of Noises.

Table of Contents

Section - i: List of Illustrations Introduction - ii: Poison In The Machine Section - iii: Biographical Notes Unit - BOOK ONE:: ROCK AGAINST RACISM Chapter - 1: WHO SHOT THE SHERIFF? Section - •: MAKE WAY FOR THE HOMO SUPERIOR: Eric Clapton. Black Britain. David Bowie Section - •: WHATCHA GONNA DO ABOUT IT?: Princess Alice. Sex Pistols. Punk Section - •: BEAT THE WHITES WITH THE RED WEDGE: Socialist Workers Party. Temporary Hoarding. Roundhouse Section - •: BEAT THE WHITES WITH THE RED WEDGE: Socialist Workers Party. Temporary Hoarding. Roundhouse Section - •: NAZIS ARE NO FUN: Royal College of Art. Hackney Town Hall. Sham 69 Chapter - 2: INGLAN IS A BITCH Section - •: PUNKY REGGAE PARTY: Aswad. Steel Pulse. Clash. Bob Marley Section - •: WAR AMONGST THE REBELS: Linton Kwesi Johnson. Dennis Bovell. Rastafari Section - •: NOTHING TO BE GUILTY OF: Rock Against Sexism. Slits. Mo-dettes. Poly Styrene. Poison Girls. Au Pairs Section - •: DEDICATED FOLLOWER OF FASCISM: National Front. Lewisham Section - •: ONE DOWN, A MILLION TO GO: Anti-Nazi League Chapter - 3: OH BONDAGE! UP YOURS! Section - •: THIS AIN’T NO FUCKING WOODSTOCK: Carnival Against the Nazis Section - •: POWER IN THE DARKNESS: Tom Robinson Band. Stiff Little Fingers Section - •: CARRYING PICTURES OF CHAIRMAN MAO: Northern Carnival Section - •: KNOCK HARD. LIFE IS DEAF: Carnival 2. Militant Entertainment tour Section - •: REGGAE FI PEACH: Southall Kids Are Innocent Benefit Section - •: RENOUNCE ALL SIN AND VICE: Leeds. Birmingham Section - •: RINSE OUT THE BLUE SCUM: RAR’s Greatest Hits. Northern Carnival Against Racism. Legacy Unit - BOOK TWO: 2 TONE Section - •: BLACK SKIN BLUE EYED BOYS: Bluebeat. Skinhead. Coventry Section - •: THE KINGSTON AFFAIR: Specials out on parole. Gangsters vs the Selecter Section - •: NOBODY IS SPECIAL: First 2 Tone tour. Madness Section - •: STAND DOWN MARGARET: The Beat. UB40 Section - •: CALLING RUDE GIRLS: Bodysnatchers Section - •: DOESN'T MAKE IT ALRIGHT: Specials Section - •: CELEBRATE THE BULLET: Politics. Class. Seaside tour Section - •: ALL WI DOIN IS DEFENDIN: Linton Kwesi Johnson. 1981 riots. 2 Tone legacy Unit - BOOK THREE: RED WEDGE Chapter - 1: SHOUT TO THE TOP Section - •: LIFE IN THE EUROPEAN THEATRE: Thatcherism. CND. Paul Weller Section - •: PERVERTS SUPPORT THE PITS!: Billy Bragg. Miner's Strike Section - •: THE MILKMAN OF HUMAN KINDNESS: Live Aid. GLC. Jobs For Youth. Solid Bond Section - •: DON’T GET MAD. GET ORGANIZED: Red Wedge Chapter - 2: NOW THAT'S WHAT I CALL SOCIALISM! Section - •: IT'S THE PARTY I LOVE: Launch. First tour Section - •: NOW THAT'S WHAT I CALL SOCIALISM, VOLUME 3: Day Events Section - •: IT'S JUST A RUMOUR THAT WAS SPREAD AROUND TOWN: Militant Tendency. Newcastle Section - •: AIN'T NO STOPPIN' US NOW: Women's tour. Well Red. Gay Rights. Black Sections. Section - •: THE OSCAR WILDE SCHOOL OF SOCIALISM: Italy. Redskins. Move On Up tour. 1987 election Section - •: WAITING FOR THE GREAT LEAP FORWARD: Labour listens. 1987-90. Legacy Chapter - 3: FREE NELSON MANDELA Section - •: HATS OFF TO JERRY DAMMERS!: Artists Against Apartheid. 1992. Political pop Section - iv: Timeline Section - v: References Section - vi: Publishing Credits Index - vii: Index

About the Author

Daniel Rachel was born in Solihull in the summer before The Beatles announced their break-up. He wrote his first song when he was sixteen and was the lead-singer in Rachels Basement, which he formed in his early twenties. In 2001, he released his debut solo album, A Simple Twist Of Folk, on Dust Records, followed in 2006 by A Taste Of Money. Daniel is a specialist in Forum Theatre direction and lives in north London with his partner and three children.

Reviews

A triumphant oral history of Rock Against Racism, 2 Tone and Red Wedge . . . a tale of resistance: first, against a surge of racism and bigotry that an inspired group of activists and musicians played a key role in rolling back; and then against a government, as the same spirit of defiance quickly resurfaced in opposition to the social revolutions of Thatcherism . . . a vivid portrait
*Guardian*

Charts punk, 2 Tone and then Red Wedge's subsequent battle for a multicultural Britain in a brilliant account of the period
*Q Magazine*

By the Eighties rock had grown a conscience, and Walls Come Tumbling Down, charts how, in the late Seventies and Eighties, musicians became engaged in struggled surrounding race, gender, sexuality and class
*Choice*

This incredible oral history tells the movement's story plus the rise of 2 Tone and Red Wedge, through a phenomenal range of voices - Billy Bragg, Jerry Dammers, Rhoda Dakar, Pauline Black et all all provide great insight
*Mojo*

It's a testament both to the topic and to Daniel Rachel's organisation of the material that even at 640 pages Walls Come Tumbling Down feels like the opening volume of a much longer history. This majestic work at once confirms and opens up a familiar but often forgotten series of moments in the relationship between music and politics in the UK . . . as always, the delight is in the details, and, finally, the glory of something so amateurish yet passion-driven coming together to change hearts and minds
*Wire*