Labour & Pop: Electric Avenue

This week’s installment in Labour & Pop Culture features “Electric Avenue” by Eddy Grant. The song refers to rioting in April of 1981 in the Brixton area of London. The local community (predominantly of African or Caribbean descent) faced significant economic troubles and racism. Rioting broke out in April and left hundreds (mostly cops) injured as well as significant property damage.

The song talks about the terrible conditions and frustrations faced by the residents of Brixton:

Workin' so hard like a soldier
Can't afford a thing on TV
Deep in my heart I'm a warrior
Can't get food for them kid, good God

The chorus promises to “Rock down to Electric Avenue/And then we’ll take it higher”. Electric Avenue was the first place with electric street lights in Brixton (although not a site of significant rioting). Taking it higher refers to the need for the poor to protest in the neighbourhoods of the rich, rather than trashing their own communities.

I first heard this song in 1984. We used to make a summer trek from northeastern BC to the homeland (Saskatchewan) each year. Often my mother would buy a new cassette tape for the van for the trip. She ran into Zellers to get a copy of Eddie Rabbit’s new tape (he was a folk singer) but got confused and bought Electric Avenue. Several hundred kilometers later, hilarity ensued.



Boy
Boy

Down in the street there is violence
And a lots of work to be done
No place to hang out our washing
And I can't blame all on the sun, oh no

We gonna rock down to Electric Avenue
And then we'll take it higher
Oh we gonna rock down to Electric Avenue
And then we'll take it higher

Workin' so hard like a soldier
Can't afford a thing on TV
Deep in my heart I'm a warrior
Can't get food for them kid, good God

We gonna rock down to Electric Avenue
And then we'll take it higher
Oh we gonna rock down to Electric Avenue
And then we'll take it higher

Oh no
Oh no
Oh no
Oh no

Who is to blame in one country
Never can get to the one
Dealin' in multiplication
And they still can't feed everyone, oh no

We gonna rock down to Electric Avenue
And then we'll take it higher
Oh we gonna rock down to Electric Avenue
And then we'll take it higher

Out in the street
Out in the street
Out in the daytime
Out in the night

We gonna rock down to Electric Avenue
And then we'll take it higher
Oh we gonna rock down to Electric Avenue
And then we'll take it higher

Out in the street
Out in the street
Out in the playground
In the dark side of town

We gonna rock down to Electric Avenue
And then we'll take it higher
Oh we gonna rock down to Electric Avenue
And then we'll take it higher

We gonna rock down to Electric Avenue
And then we'll take it higher, Electric Avenue
We gonna rock down to Electric Avenue
And then we'll take it higher, Electric Avenue

-- Bob Barnetson