Pieces of a Man

A junkie walking through the twilight I'm on my way home I left three days ago, but no one seems to know I'm gone Home is where the hatred is Home is filled with pain and it, and it might not be such a bad idea if i never, never went home again.

Home is where I live inside my white powder dreams Home was once an empty vacuum that's filled now with my silent screams Home is where the needle marks try to heal my broken heart and it might not be such a bad idea if I never, if I never went home again.

In contrast to most of the songs' lyrical content and themes on "Pieces of a Man", "Save the Children" and "I Think I’ll Call It Morning" are both dedications to joy, happiness and freedom, and demonstrate Gil Scott-Heron's rare lyrical optimism on the album. The title track, described by journalist and music writer Vince Alleti as the album's best song, is a lyrically-cinematic account of a man's breakdown after losing his job as witnessed by his son. Scott-Heron's lyricism on the album has been widely acclaimed by critics, as the lyrics for "Pieces of a Man" received praise for its empathetic narration:

I saw my daddy greet the mailman And I heard the mailman say "Now don't you take this letter to heart now Jimmy Cause they've laid off nine others today" He didn't know what he was saying He could hardly understand That he was only talking to Pieces of a man I saw the thunder and heard the lightning And felt the burden of his shame And for some unknown reason He never turned my way

The album's opening track, "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised", is a proto-rap track with lyricism criticizing the United States government and mass media. Considered a classic in the rap genre, the song featured many political references, unadorned arrangements, pounding bass lines and stripped-down drumbeats.cite web |url=http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:wxfuxqu5ldfe |title=allmusic { Pieces of a Man > Overview } |publisher=All Media Guide, LLC. |accessdate=2008-07-15] The song's structure and musical formula would later influence the blueprint of modern hip hop. Because of the song's spoken word style and critical overtones, it has often been referred to as the birth of rap.

Reception

"Pieces of a Man" fared better commercially than Scott-Heron's previous album "Small Talk". Apparently, sales began to increase two years after its release, following Scott-Heron's split with Flying Dutchman Records, as it entered the Top Jazz Albums chart on June 2, 1973.cite web |url=http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/esearch/searchResult.jsp?keyword=pieces+of+a+man+gil+scott-heron&exposeNavigation=true&applicationName=bbcom&matchType=mode%2Bmatchallpartial&rangePropertyName=FORMATTED_DATE&rangeFilterType=BTWN |title=Billboard Music Charts - Search Results - Pieces of a Man Gil Scott-Heron |publisher=Nielsen Business Media, Inc. |accessdate=2008-07-15] The album peaked at #25 on the chart and remained on the chart for 6 weeks until July 7, 1973. "Home Is Where the Hatred Is" was released as a radio single with "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised" as the b-side. However, it did not chart. Upon initial release, "Pieces of a Man" received little critical attention, with the exception of the critical praise it received from "Rolling Stone" magazine. Later, however, the album gained much critical acclaim, as it was praised for Scott-Heron's lyrical artistry and political awareness, and for its influence on modern hip-hop. Despite little mainstream success or critical notice during the time of its release, music journalist Vince Aletti of "Rolling Stone" praised the album in a July 1972 article, as he wrote:

"Pieces of a Man" fared better with critics following its reissue. Music historian Piero Scaruffi was favorable of Jackson's and Scott-Heron's style of music, as he said, "The duo's Miles Davis-inspired fusion of jazz, funk and rock, and Scott-Heron's Phil Ochs-inspired agit-prop lyrics reached maturity on "Pieces of a Man"." [cite web |url=http://www.scaruffi.com/vol3/scotther.html |title=Scaruffi.com - The History of Rock Music. Gil Scott-Heron: biography |publisher=Piero Scaruffi |accessdate=2008-07-21] Adam Sweeting of "The Guardian" praised the album in an August 2004 article, calling it a "pioneering mix of politics, protest and proto-rap poetry, set to a musical jazz-funk hybrid." [cite web |url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2004/aug/06/popandrock14 |title=CD: Gil Scott-Heron, Pieces of a Man - Music - The Guardian |publisher=Guardian News and Media Limited |accessdate=2008-07-23] The album, however, has a remaining legacy based on containing the influential proto-rap song "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised". In a 1998 interview with the "Houston Press", Scott-Heron discussed how much of the album was overshadowed by the controversial song and the social-consciousness displayed:

In 1996, radio station WXPN ranked "Pieces of a Man" #100 on its list of The 100 Most Progressive Albums and, in 2005, it was included in "Blow Up"'s list of The 600 Essential Albums. [cite web |url=http://www.acclaimedmusic.net/Current/A2477.htm |title=acclaimedmusic.net - Pieces of a Man |publisher=Acclaimed Music |accessdate=2008-07-21]

Track listing

"All songs written by Gil Scott-Heron." [cite web |url=http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/discography/index.jsp?pid=102601&aid=41357#review |title=Billboard.com - Discography - Gil Scott-Heron - Pieces of a Man |publisher=Nielsen Business Media, Inc. |accessdate=2008-07-21]

ide one

# "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised" – 3:09
# "Save the Children" – 4:28
# "Lady Day and John Coltrane" – 3:37
# "Home Is Where the Hatred Is" – 3:22
# "When You Are Who You Are" – 3:23
# "I Think I'll Call It Morning" – 3:31

ide two

# "Pieces of a Man" – 4:55
# "A Sign of the Ages" – 4:03
# "Or Down You Fall" – 3:14
# "The Needle's Eye" – 4:51
# "The Prisoner" – 9:26

Chart history

Billboard Music Charts (North America) – "Pieces of a Man"
*1972: Top Jazz Albums – #25 (6 weeks)

Personnel

Musicians

*Gil Scott-Heron - vocals, piano, guitar
*Johnny Pate - conductor
*Brian Jackson - piano
*Ron Carter - bass
*Pretty Purdie - drums
*Burt Jones - electric guitar
*Hubert Laws - flute, saxophone

Additional personnel

*Bob Thiele - producer
*Bob Simpson - sound mixer
*Charles Stewart - cover photo

ample use

The information regarding sampling of songs from "Pieces of a Man" is adapted from TheBreaks.com [cite web |url=http://www.the-breaks.com/search.php?term=Pieces+of+a+Man&type=1 |title=Rap Sample FAQ Search: Pieces of a Man |work=The Breaks.com |accessdate=2008-10-01]
*"The Revolution Will Not Be Televised"
**Masta Ace – "Take a Look Around"
**Professor Griff – "Real African People 'Rap', Pt. 2"
**Queen Latifah – "The Evil That Men Do"
**Salt-N-Pepa – "Whatta Man Luvbug Remix 1"
*"Pieces of a Man"
**KMD – "What a Niggy Know?"
*"Home is Where The Hatred Is"
**Kanye West ft. Common – "My Way Home"

Notes

References

*cite book| author = Nick Johnstone|title = Melody Maker History of 20th Century Popular Music|others = |year = 1999|publisher = Bloomsbury, London, UK|isbn=0747541906
*cite book| author = Gary Graff, Josh Freedom du Lac, Jim McFarlin|title = Musichound R&B: The Essential Album Guide|others = forward by Huey Lewis, Kurtis Blow|year = 1998|publisher = Omnibus Press, London, UK|isbn=0825672554
*cite book| title = Pieces of a Man album liner notes by Gil Scott-Heron and Alex Dutilh | publisher = Sony Music Entertainment Inc.

External links

* [http://www.musthear.com/reviews/piecesofaman.html "Pieces of a Man" review at MustHear.com]
* [http://www.gilscottheron.com/dgpieces.htm Album page at Scott-Heron's unofficial website]