Anthony Joseph is a poet, novelist, academic and musician. He was born in T… Read Full Bio ↴Anthony Joseph is a poet, novelist, academic and musician. He was born in Trinidad, moving to the UK in 1989. He is the author of three collections of poetry and a novel, The African Origins of UFOs.

In 2004 Joseph was selected by renaissance one, Decibel and the Arts Council of England as one of fifty Black and Asian writers who have made major contributions to contemporary British literature, appearing in the historic Great Day photo. In 2005 he was selected as the British Council’s first Poet in residence at California State University, Los Angeles.

Joseph lectures in creative writing at Birkbeck College, University of London. He is a AHRC scholar and doctoral candidate at Goldsmiths College.

As a musician he has released three critically acclaimed albums with his band the Spasm band; all released to coincide with book publications. His debut album with the band, Leggo de Lion was released in 2007, and featured lyrics taken from his novel The African Origins of UFOs. Bird Head Son followed in 2009, with lyrics from the Bird Head Son collection. The band’s third album Rubber Orchestras was released in 2011, alongside a new collection of poems with the same title.

Joseph has also collaborated with several artists including Archie Shepp, Joseph Bowie, Laurent Garnier, Othello Molineaux, Malcolm Catto, Mop Mop, Robert Aaron, Roger Raspail, Keziah Jones and Jerry Dammers of the Specials as part of the Spatial AKA Orchestra.

CALLING ENGLAND HOME
Anthony Joseph Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Black and been here since 1949
West London jaw grind, ′Take it e-asy'
We saw him
You saw him
Walking along the canal last night
And what a joy to buck up upon him
At the carnival today
To hear him speak about

The dances and the bands
At the Paramount
The spots you couldn′t mix
With white in, or dance in
Remembering ... London.

How he been slapped so hard
With the lash
Sam Selvon say
And it take him 60 years
Before he could call England
'Home'

He musta come here in black and white, 1959
Time longer than twine
So long ago he don′t
Remember being a child,
Just a suit and steamer trunk
Upon a ship which took
A good six weeks to cross.

We sat at his kitchen table
And I filmed him on the fly
But he wasn′t saying much -
At least nothing I could put in a poem.
Instead he showed me
Photographs - with the dashiki and the fez,
With Michael X at the Ambience.

Outside the night came in
And he had moved so far away
From calling England
'Home ′

I've lived here longer than home, since 1989.
Remember Harlesden in the spring time.
I used to walk from Cricklewood
To Marylebone High Street
To cut up meat to punch out dough.
I was never asked to wait tables
Or to serve scones and coffee.
I worked in the basement
But I learned to tie my apron
In a way that retained some dignity
And in my first summer above the corner shop
I listened to rare groove on pirate radio.
I was flung so far from any notion of nation
How long do you have to live in a place

Before you can call it
′Home'?

Overall Meaning

"Calling England Home" is a deeply emotional and evocative song by Anthony Joseph, who talks about the experiences of black immigrants who have lived in England for a long time, yet still struggle with the notion of calling it their "home." The lyrics' theme ties into the broader issue of identity and belonging faced by many immigrants who struggle with reconciling their root identity with the new national identity they acquire through migration. In the opening lines, Joseph describes a black man who has been living in West London since 1949 and how they saw him walking along the canal. At the carnival, they meet and listen to him speak about the various dances and bands he enjoyed at the Paramount, highlighting the importance of music in shaping the community identity of black immigrants.

The second section of the song goes on to talk about the man's journey of coming to terms with calling England "home," drawing on Sam Selvon's (a Trinidadian author’s) experiences of migration. Joseph speaks of how the man must have come to England in black and white in 1959, emphasizing the long time he has been living in England without feeling like he belongs. There is an allusion to the pain he experienced stepping into this new country and the time it took him (60 long years) to call it "home." The story is an attempt to highlight how the feeling of belonging is complicated and not solely determined by the length of time one has been living in a place.

The final section of the song is Joseph's personal reflection on his own experiences of living in England, culminating in the same question—"how long do you have to live in a place before you can call it 'home.'" He describes his struggles to find work that allowed him dignity and respect, emphasizing that his experiences with making the country his home are distinct from the man whose story he shares in the first part of the song.

Line by Line Meaning

Black and been here since 1949
A person of African descent who has lived in England since 1949

West London jaw grind, ′Take it e-asy′
Recognizing the tough living conditions in West London but choosing to take things one step at a time

We saw him
The singer and the audience have seen the person before

You saw him
The artist is addressing the audience directly, acknowledging that they have also seen the person

Walking along the canal last night
The person was seen walking along a canal the previous night

And what a joy to buck up upon him
The singer is happy to have randomly stumbled upon the person

At the carnival today
The singer and the person were both at a carnival on the day of this encounter

To hear him speak about
The artist enjoyed listening to the person talk about

The dances and the bands
The person talked about his experiences with music and dancing

At the Paramount
An establishment where music and dancing occurred

The spots you couldn′t mix
There were locations where black people were not allowed to participate or dance

With white in, or dance in
Black people were excluded from certain places they couldn't dance with or near white people

Remembering ... London.
Reflecting on memories of living in London

How he been slapped so hard
The person had experienced discrimination and hardship in England

With the lash
The singer uses the metaphor of being 'slapped with the lash' to convey violence and abuse

Sam Selvon say
Referencing the work of Sam Selvon, a writer who explored the experiences of West Indian immigrants in England

And it take him 60 years
It took the person 60 years to feel like England was his home

Before he could call England
The person didn't feel comfortable calling England his home until a long time had passed

'Home'
The singer is using the word 'home' to imply a sense of belonging and comfort

He musta come here in black and white, 1959
The person likely arrived in England in 1959 as a Black immigrant

Time longer than twine
It has been a very long time since the person arrived in England

So long ago he don′t
The person has been in England for so long that he cannot remember being a child

Remember being a child,
The singer is referencing the difficulty of remembering a time before coming to England

Just a suit and steamer trunk
All the person brought with him to England was his clothing and a single piece of luggage

Upon a ship which took
The person came to England on a ship

A good six weeks to cross.
The voyage from his place of origin to England took six weeks

We sat at his kitchen table
The singer and the person sat at the person's kitchen table

And I filmed him on the fly
The artist recorded the person on video spontaneously

But he wasn′t saying much -
The person was not speaking much during the recording

At least nothing I could put in a poem.
The singer is acknowledging that not everything is translatable to poetic language

Instead he showed me
The person shared photographs with the singer instead of speaking

Photographs - with the dashiki and the fez,
The photographs depicted the person wearing traditional clothing like the dashiki and fez

With Michael X at the Ambience.
The photographs also showed the person with Michael X at the Ambience, a nightclub in Notting Hill

Outside the night came in
The daylight ended and it became night while the artist and the person were inside

And he had moved so far away
The person has changed and evolved since coming to England

From calling England
The artist is referencing the person's previous inability to consider England his home

'Home ′
The person has grown to feel a sense of belonging and comfort in England

I've lived here longer than home, since 1989.
The singer has lived in England for a longer time than they lived in their previous home since the year 1989

Remember Harlesden in the spring time.
The singer is reminiscing about Harlesden, an area in North-West London, during the springtime

I used to walk from Cricklewood
The artist would walk from Cricklewood, another area in North-West London

To Marylebone High Street
The artist would walk to Marylebone High Street, which is in a different area of London

To cut up meat to punch out dough.
The singer worked in a job where they prepared meat and dough

I was never asked to wait tables
The singer was never asked to work as a waiter

Or to serve scones and coffee.
The artist was not asked to work in a stereotypical service job

I worked in the basement
The artist had a job in the basement of an unknown location

But I learned to tie my apron
The artist learned to tie their apron while working

In a way that retained some dignity
The singer is acknowledging that, despite the job not being glamorous or respectable, they still maintained a sense of self-respect

And in my first summer above the corner shop
The artist lived above a shop during their first summer in England

I listened to rare groove on pirate radio.
The singer listened to rare grooves on pirate radio during that summer

I was flung so far from any notion of nation
The singer feels disconnected from their original country or nationality

How long do you have to live in a place
The singer is posing a rhetorical question

Before you can call it
The artist is addressing the audience directly

′Home'?
The artist is using the word 'home' to imply a sense of belonging and comfort

Writer(s): Anthony Derek Joseph, Thibaut Remy

Contributed by Benjamin T. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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