Labo(u)r Day With Billy Bragg

Billy Bragg is an English musician and political activist. Since his first hits in the early 80s, Bragg’s sparse, punk- and folk-inflected guitar work and honest, witty lyrics have given listeners a window into working-class life in the London suburbs. Bragg’s close connection with his roots have also motivated his life-long involvement in politics, primarily on the left. He can pivot from singing about romance, to kitchen-table dramas, to strikes and rebellions seemingly without effort, and address them all with the same soul and depth of feeling. It’s that skill that we think makes him a good addition to your Labo(u)r Day playlist, so here are a few of our favorite tracks by the man from Barking:

Greetings to the New Brunette
In one of Bragg’s first hits, a young man who’s so apolitical that he thinks of “England” more as a soccer team than a socio-cultural construct reflects on a relationship with a much savvier woman. an early example of the blending of the personal and political in Bragg’s music

A New England
Again taking the perspective of a directionless young man, Bragg paints a picture of someone worried more about the lack of romance in his life than wars, strikes or Maggie Thatcher. It’s both funny and bleak, and perfectly captures the restlessness of being a young man in troubled times.

Between the Wars
Even Bragg’s most nakedly political songwriting is built from his understanding of the daily struggles of average people. Creating any song this heartfelt and expressive is an achievement, not to mention one that touches upon war profiteering and the politics of the interwar period.

Way Over Yonder in a Minor Key
Bragg’s perhaps best known in the States for his work in collaboration with Wilco to give life to the unfinished songs of the legendary Woody Guthrie. The parallels between the two singers are obvious, and the resulting album, “Mermaid Avenue” manages to sound in equal measure uniquely like Bragg, and undeniably like Woody.

Accident Waiting to Happen
This is familiar ground for Bragg — a bitter farewell to a failed romance laced with political overtones. What’s notable is the slightly more conventional sound, with less of the angry young man’s growl that made his early work stand out so starkly.

Help Save the Youth of America
One of Bragg’s most rollicking numbers puts his punk and rockabilly influences on display. As an American, the mix of infatuation and wariness with which many foreigners view our country never ceases to fascinate. Supposedly, Bragg isn’t completely comfortable playing this song in the States, but American audiences never fail to request it.

St. Swithin's Day
A song so beautiful and soulful that you might miss one of popular music’s most artful masturbation references

Never Buy The Sun
“Scousers never buy The Sun,” may need some translation for Americans, but Bragg’s recent send-up of Rupert Murdoch’s media empire proves that he’s as capable of churning out biting, topical commentary as ever. This older, more seasoned incarnation of the singer tends to be more melodious, and to work with a backing band, but as much as he’s grown and changed as an artist, he’s undeniably still just Billy Bragg from Barking.