White Riot lyrics

[Marky Dread]

Were these the original lyrics?

"All the power is the hands/ Of people rich enough to buy it/ While we walk the streets/ Too chicken to even try it/ And everybody does what they're told to/ And everybody eats supermarket soul-food/ White Riot, I wanna riot/ White riot – a riot of my own!"

[Chuck Mangione]

I think so....

[Marky Dread]

I think so....

I don't hear them on any of the early boots.

[Heston]

They were quoted in the first Clash book I bought, "The Clash" by Miles. Can't say I've heard them being sang.

[Marky Dread]

They were quoted in the first Clash book I bought, "The Clash" by Miles. Can't say I've heard them being sang.

I first read them here I think. I can't check though as someone borrowed that book from me a long time ago and never returned it.

[Heston]

They were quoted in the first Clash book I bought, "The Clash" by Miles. Can't say I've heard them being sang.

I first read them here I think. I can't check though as someone borrowed that book from me a long time ago and never returned it.

I had that book too, it was riddled with mistakes.

[Marky Dread]

They were quoted in the first Clash book I bought, "The Clash" by Miles. Can't say I've heard them being sang.

I first read them here I think. I can't check though as someone borrowed that book from me a long time ago and never returned it.

I had that book too, it was riddled with mistakes.

Not surprisingly the band had a huge hand in that one.

[biopunk]

Were these the original lyrics?

"All the power is the hands/ Of people rich enough to buy it/ While we walk the streets/ Too chicken to even try it/ And everybody does what they're told to/ And everybody eats supermarket soul-food/ White Riot, I wanna riot/ White riot – a riot of my own!"

I've never heard that before.

Giving them a quick listen:

The 100 Club Punk Festival (1976/9/20) "Everybody's telling me, what you can do, Everybody's telling me, what do you say?

Royal College of Art gig (1976/11/05) "All the youth, staying/lying at home, Nobody wants to go outside"

Fulham (1976/10/29) is "Nobody wants to go outside, Nobody wants to go to jail"

Harlesdon Colliseum (1977/3/11) "And everybody's gonna do what you're told to, and what it was? Go to jail!"

Palais des Glaces (1977/4/27) seems to solidify it with: "And everybody does what they're told to, Nobody wants to go to jail"

[101Walterton]

Were these the original lyrics?

"All the power is the hands/ Of people rich enough to buy it/ While we walk the streets/ Too chicken to even try it/ And everybody does what they're told to/ And everybody eats supermarket soul-food/ White Riot, I wanna riot/ White riot – a riot of my own!"

I thought this was a joke???

[biopunk]

I think this is where it comes from:

The Clash: Down And Out And Proud
Caroline Coon, Melody Maker, 13 November 1976

THREE WEEKS AGO at London's ICA, Jane and Shane, regulars on the new-wave punk rock scene, were sprawled at the edge of the stage. Blood covered Shane's face. Jane, very drunk, had kissed, bitten and, with broken glass, cut him in a calm, but no less macabre, love rite.

The Clash were not pleased. "All of you who think violence is tough – why don't you go home and collect stamps? That's much tougher," roared Joe Strummer. Then he slammed into the band's anthem 'White Riot'.

All the power is the hands
Of people rich enough to buy it,
While we walk the streets
Too chicken to even try it
And everybody does what they're told to,
And everybody eats supermarket soul-food.
White Riot, I wanna riot
White riot – a riot of my own!"

The song, played with the force of an acetylene torch, is no less politically uncompromising than the other numbers in the band's repertoire – numbers like 'Denigh', 'Protex Blues', 'Career Opportunities' and '1977'. To hammer home their impact, the Clash play with enough committed force to bring down the walls of Babylon, Jericho, Heaven and Hell if necessary. And their audiences go wild.

H/T bmc

[Marky Dread]

Were these the original lyrics?

"All the power is the hands/ Of people rich enough to buy it/ While we walk the streets/ Too chicken to even try it/ And everybody does what they're told to/ And everybody eats supermarket soul-food/ White Riot, I wanna riot/ White riot – a riot of my own!"

I thought this was a joke???

I initially thought the same thing.

[Marky Dread]

I think this is where it comes from:

The Clash: Down And Out And Proud
Caroline Coon, Melody Maker, 13 November 1976

THREE WEEKS AGO at London's ICA, Jane and Shane, regulars on the new-wave punk rock scene, were sprawled at the edge of the stage. Blood covered Shane's face. Jane, very drunk, had kissed, bitten and, with broken glass, cut him in a calm, but no less macabre, love rite.

The Clash were not pleased. "All of you who think violence is tough – why don't you go home and collect stamps? That's much tougher," roared Joe Strummer. Then he slammed into the band's anthem 'White Riot'.

All the power is the hands
Of people rich enough to buy it,
While we walk the streets
Too chicken to even try it
And everybody does what they're told to,
And everybody eats supermarket soul-food.
White Riot, I wanna riot
White riot – a riot of my own!"

The song, played with the force of an acetylene torch, is no less politically uncompromising than the other numbers in the band's repertoire – numbers like 'Denigh', 'Protex Blues', 'Career Opportunities' and '1977'. To hammer home their impact, the Clash play with enough committed force to bring down the walls of Babylon, Jericho, Heaven and Hell if necessary. And their audiences go wild.

H/T bmc

The ICA gig was way before the book came out. I wonder if The Clash gave Coon the lyrics or she just misheard the lyrics and they then printed them because they thought it funny.

[biopunk]

The ICA gig was way before the book came out. I wonder if The Clash gave Coon the lyrics or she just misheard the lyrics and they then printed them because they thought it funny.

I'm sure they'll both "Denigh" it.

[101Walterton]

Were these the original lyrics?

"All the power is the hands/ Of people rich enough to buy it/ While we walk the streets/ Too chicken to even try it/ And everybody does what they're told to/ And everybody eats supermarket soul-food/ White Riot, I wanna riot/ White riot – a riot of my own!"

I thought this was a joke???

I initially thought the same thing.

No way was that written by Joe in 1976

[Marky Dread]

The ICA gig was way before the book came out. I wonder if The Clash gave Coon the lyrics or she just misheard the lyrics and they then printed them because they thought it funny.

I'm sure they'll both "Denigh" it.