In 1977, Bragg formed the punk rock/pub rock band Riff Raff, and toured London's pubs and clubs. The band released a series of singles, which did not receive wide exposure. He also worked in Guy Norris Records in Barking. Bragg became disillusioned with his music career, and in May 1981 joined the British Army as a recruit destined for the Queen's Royal Irish Hussars of the Royal Armoured Corps. After three months, he bought his way out of the army for £175 and returned home, having attended basic training but having never served in a regiment as a soldier.
Bragg began performing frequent concerts and busking around London, playing solo with an electric guitar. His roadie at the time was Andy Kershaw, who became a BBC DJ (Bragg and Kershaw later, in 1989, appeared in an episode of the BBC TV programme, Great Journeys, in which they travelled the Silver Road from Potosí, Bolivia, to the Pacific coast at Arica, Chile). Bragg performing at South by Southwest in 2008.
Bragg's demo tape initially got no response from the record industry, but by pretending to be a television repair man, he got into the office of Charisma Records' A&R man Peter Jenner. Jenner liked the tape, but the company was near bankruptcy and had no budget to sign new artists. Bragg got an offer to record more demos for a music publisher, so Jenner agreed to release them as a record. Life's a Riot with Spy Vs. Spy was released in July 1983 by Charisma's new imprint, Utility. Hearing DJ John Peel mention on-air that he was hungry, Bragg rushed to the BBC with a mushroom biryani, so Peel played a song from Life's a Riot with Spy Vs. Spy although at the wrong speed (since the 12" LP was, unconventionally, cut to play at 45rpm). Peel insisted he would have played the song even without the biryani and later played it at the correct speed.
Within months, Charisma had been taken over by Virgin Records and Jenner, who had been laid off, became Bragg's manager. Stiff Records' press officer Andy Macdonald – who was setting up his own record label, Go! Discs – received a copy of Life's a Riot with Spy Vs. Spy. He made Virgin an offer and the album was re-released on Go! Discs in November 1983.[citation needed] In 1984, he released Brewing Up with Billy Bragg, a mixture of political songs (e.g., "It Says Here") and songs of unrequited love (e.g., "The Saturday Boy"). The following year he released Between the Wars, an EP of political songs that included a cover version of Leon Rosselson's "The World Turned Upside Down" – the EP made the top 20 of the UK Singles Chart and earned Bragg an appearance on Top of the Pops. Bragg later collaborated with Rosselson on the song, "Ballad of the Spycatcher". In 1985, his song "A New England", with an additional verse, became a Top 10 hit in the UK for Kirsty MacColl. After MacColl's early death, Bragg always sang the extra verse in her honour. In 1984–1985 he toured North America.
In 1986, Bragg released Talking with the Taxman about Poetry, which became his first Top 10 album. Its title is taken from a poem by Vladimir Mayakovsky and a translated version of the poem was printed on the record's inner sleeve. Back to Basics is a 1987 collection of his first three releases: Life's A Riot With Spy Vs. Spy, Brewing Up with Billy Bragg, and the Between The Wars EP. Bragg released his fourth album, Workers Playtime, in September 1988. With this album, Bragg added a backing band and accompaniment.
In May 1990, Bragg released the political mini-LP, The Internationale. The songs were, in part, a return to his solo guitar style, but some songs featured more complicated arrangements and included a brass band. The album paid tribute to one of Bragg's influences with the song, "I Dreamed I Saw Phil Ochs Last Night", which is an adapted version of Earl Robinson's song, "I Dreamed I Saw Joe Hill Last Night", itself an adaptation of a poem by Alfred Hayes.
The album Don't Try This at Home was released in September 1991, and included the song, "Sexuality", which reached the UK Singles Chart. Bragg had been persuaded by Go! Discs' Andy and Juliet Macdonald to sign a four-album deal with a million pound advance, and a promise to promote the album with singles and videos.[citation needed] This gamble was not rewarded with extra sales, and the situation put the company in financial difficulty. In exchange for ending the contract early and repaying a large amount of the advance, Bragg regained all rights to his back catalogue.[citation needed] Bragg continued to promote the album with his backing band, The Red Stars, which included his Riff Raff colleague and long-time roadie, Wiggy.
Bragg released the album William Bloke in 1996 after taking time off to help raise his son. Around that time, Nora Guthrie (daughter of American folk artist Woody Guthrie) asked Bragg to set some of her father's unrecorded lyrics to music. The result was a collaboration with the band Wilco and Natalie Merchant (with whom Bragg had worked previously). They released the album Mermaid Avenue in 1998, and Mermaid Avenue Vol. II in 2000. A rift with Wilco over mixing and sequencing the album led to Bragg recruiting his own band, The Blokes, to promote the album. The Blokes included keyboardist Ian McLagan, who had been a member of Bragg's boyhood heroes The Faces. The documentary film Man in the Sand depicts the roles of Nora Guthrie, Bragg, and Wilco in the creation of the Mermaid Avenue albums.
In 2004, Bragg joined Florida ska-punk band Less Than Jake to perform a version of 'The Brightest Bulb Has Burned Out' for the Rock Against Bush compilation.
At the 2005 Beautiful Days Festival in Devon, Bragg teamed up with the Levellers to perform a short set of songs by or associated with The Clash in celebration of Joe Strummer's birthday. Bragg performed guitar and lead vocals on "Police and Thieves", and performed guitar and backing vocals on "English Civil War", and "Police on my Back".
In 2007, Bragg moved closer to his English folk music roots by joining the WOMAD-inspired collective The Imagined Village, who recorded an album of updated versions of traditional English songs and dances and toured through that autumn. Bragg released his album Mr. Love & Justice in March 2008. This was the second Bragg album to be named after a book by Colin MacInnes. In 2008, during the NME Awards ceremony, Bragg sang a duet with British solo act Kate Nash. They mixed up their two greatest hits, Nash playing "Foundations", and Bragg redoing his "A New England". Bragg also collaborated with the poet and playwright, Patrick Jones, who supported Bragg's Tour.
In 2008, Bragg played a small role in Stuart Bamforth's film "A13: Road Movie". Bragg is featured alongside union reps, vicars, burger van chefs and Members of Parliament in a film that explored "the overlooked, the hidden and the disregarded."
He was involved in the play Pressure Drop at the Wellcome Collection in London in April and May 2010. The production, written by Mick Gorden, and billed as "part play, part gig, part installation", featured new songs by Bragg. He performed during the play with his band, and acted as compere.
Bragg curated the Leftfield stage at Glastonbury Festival 2010.
He took part in the Bush Theatre's 2011 project Sixty Six where he has written a piece based upon a chapter of the King James Bible.
Bragg performed a set of the Guthrie songs that he had set to music for Mermaid Avenue during the Hay Literary Festival in June 2012. Mermaid Avenue Vol. III and Mermaid Avenue: The Complete Sessions were also released in early 2012.
On 18 March 2013, Bragg released his latest studio album, five years since Mr. Love & Justice, titled Tooth And Nail. It featured 11 original songs, including one written for the Bush Theatre, and a Woody Guthrie cover. Stylistically, it continues to explore genres of Americana (music) and Alternative country, both of which he has said he has been playing and writing regularly since Mermaid Avenue (1998).
In November 2017, he released all six tracks from the mini-album Bridges Not Walls as downloads and CD through the Billy Bragg website and other sellers, followed by the single Full English Brexit through Cooking Vinyl.
NPWA
Billy Bragg Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And I worked real hard ''til that company closed down
They gave my job to another man
On half my wages in some foreign land
And when I asked how could this be
Any good for our economy?
I was told nobody cares
So long as they make money when they sell their shares
Can you hear us? Are you listening?
No power without accountability!
I lost my job, my car and my house
When ten thousand miles away some guy clicked on a mouse
He didn't know me, we never spoke,
He didn't ask my opinion or canvass for my vote
I guess its true, nobody cares
'Til those petrol bombs come spinning through the air
Gotta find a way to hold them to account
Before they find a away to snuff our voices out
Can you hear us? Are you listening?
No power without accountability!
The ballot box is no guarantee that we achieve democracy
Our leaders claim their victory when only half the people have spoken
We have no job security in this global economy,
Our borders closed to refugees but our markets forced open
The World Bank says to Mexico,
We'll cut you off if you don't keep your taxes low
But they have no right to wield that sword
'Cos they take their orders from the chairman of the board
I-M-F, W-T-O,
I hear these words just every place I go
Who are these people? Who elected them?
And how do I replace them with some of my friends?
Can you hear us? Are you listening?
No power without accountability!
The lyrics of Billy Bragg's "NPWA" speak to the disillusionment that many workers in the global economy feel. Bragg's upbringing in a company town informs his perspective on this issue. He worked hard and dedicated himself to his job, only to be let go when the company decided to outsource labor to a foreign country. In this context, Bragg questions the logic of such a move. How can it be good for the economy if workers are being paid half of what they used to be paid, and jobs are being taken away? He realizes that the companies and investors profit from this type of decision, but it hurts workers and their families.
Bragg also takes issue with the lack of accountability surrounding these decisions. No one seems to care how these moves hurt workers or the economy, as long as companies make money from selling their shares. The lack of accountability extends to the world stage, with organizations like the IMF, WTO, and the World Bank making decisions that affect the lives of people around the world. Bragg questions who elected these people and how they can be replaced with our friends. He realizes that we need to find a way to hold these organizations accountable before they completely silence the voices of people affected by their decisions.
Line by Line Meaning
I grew up in a company town
I spent my childhood in a town where everyone was employed by the same company
And I worked real hard 'til that company closed down
I was a hard worker, but lost my job when the company closed
They gave my job to another man
Someone else got my job
On half my wages in some foreign land
He got paid much less than I did, in a different country
And when I asked how could this be
I wanted to know why this happened
Any good for our economy?
I wondered if this was good for our country's economy
I was told nobody cares
People in power don't care about how it affects me
So long as they make money when they sell their shares
All they want is to make a profit from selling stocks
Can you hear us? Are you listening?
We want to be heard and acknowledged
No power without accountability!
People in power should be held accountable for their actions
I lost my job, my car and my house
I lost everything I had worked for
When ten thousand miles away some guy clicked on a mouse
Someone far away made a decision that affected my life
He didn't know me, we never spoke,
The person who made the decision didn't even know who I was
He didn't ask my opinion or canvass for my vote
No one asked for my input before making decisions
I guess its true, nobody cares
It seems like no one cares about how this affects me
'Til those petrol bombs come spinning through the air
Until violence erupts, people in power won't pay attention
Gotta find a way to hold them to account
We need to find a way to make those in power responsible
Before they find a away to snuff our voices out
Before they take away our ability to speak up
The ballot box is no guarantee that we achieve democracy
Voting alone does not ensure a democratic system
Our leaders claim their victory when only half the people have spoken
Elected officials claim to represent everyone, but only half of the population voted
We have no job security in this global economy,
Jobs are not secure in a global economy
Our borders closed to refugees but our markets forced open
We are closed to helping refugees, but open to foreign markets
The World Bank says to Mexico,
The World Bank tells Mexico
We'll cut you off if you don't keep your taxes low
We will stop giving you money if you don't lower taxes
But they have no right to wield that sword
They don't have the right to use their power that way
'Cos they take their orders from the chairman of the board
Because they follow the direction of the leader of the company
I-M-F, W-T-O,
The International Monetary Fund and the World Trade Organization
I hear these words just every place I go
I keep hearing about these organizations everywhere I go
Who are these people? Who elected them?
Who are they and what right do they have to make decisions?
And how do I replace them with some of my friends?
How can we change the system so that regular people have more power?
Can you hear us? Are you listening?
We want to be heard and acknowledged
No power without accountability!
Those in power should be held accountable for their actions
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: BILLY BRAGG, SIMON EDWARDS, MARTYN BAKER, IAN MC LAGAN, BENJAMIN NORMAN MANDELSON, LOUIS EDMONDS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind