Where are the Barricades? - 2016
Tuesday, 19 January 2016 20:44
 Leon Rosselson has been at the forefront of songwriting in Britain for over 5 decades. His latest collection (and final recording) features some of his finest songs, ranging from the humorous to the poignant and from the lyrical to the satirical. Stories for our times, musically varied and not a word out of place Track List: 1. FULL MARKS FOR CHARLIE 2. WHERE ARE THE BARRICADES? 3. LOOTERS 4. BENEFITS 5. SIXTY QUID A WEEK 6. I'M GOING WHERE THE SUITS WILL SHINE MY SHOES 7. LET'S GIVE THANKS 9. REJOICE 8. MARITAL DIARIES 10. FAIR'S FAIR 11. ACTIVE AGEING 12. PARIS IN THE RAIN 13. THE BALLAD OF RIVKA & MOHAMMED 14. FOUR DEGREES CELSIUS 15. AT DAWN With Roy Bailey, Robb Johnson, John Kirkpatrick, Liz Mansfield, Janet Russell and Fiz Shapur. Price: £12 Postage to the UK included in the price. Send a cheque as per Mail Order instructions here or click the Buy Now button below. In the U.S.A. & Canada, this CD can be bought via the PM Press website
"Every selection's a sparkling example of definitively literate wordsmithery, right-on social, political and philosophical commentary, polemic and invective, waspish wit, humour and irony, passion and compassion in equal measure." - fRoots
"Heartily recommended listening - and packaged with care and with extensive explanatory notes, this is a classic on every level." - Living Tradition
No Masters No Gods - Live in Concert - 2014
Monday, 10 March 2014 09:00
2 DVD Live Set Now Available!
Leon Rosselson and Robb Johnson
In this glorious 2 DVD set, Britain’s finest living songwriters are captured
live (on tour in Berkeley, CA), presenting two nights of their original songs,
words, and inimitable performance.
Turning Silence into Song (Disc One) showcases a pair of career-spanning
“greatest hits,” with a suitable sprinkling of new and previously unreleased
material. All introduced and contextualized with a large helping of trade-
mark wit and dry irony.
The Liberty Tree (Disc Two) tells the story of Tom Paine’s extraordinary life,
interweaving Paine’s own words, from his letters and the pamphlets which
made him one of the most influential and dangerous writers of his age, with
extracts from newspaper reports, diaries, letters, and other documents of
the times. The songs of Robb Johnson and Leon Rosselson add another di-
mension to the story, reflecting Paine’s radical ideas and evaluating them
in the context of the 21st century. This unique blend of words and music
challenges received opinion in the same way Paine’s writings did.
Together, herein you’ll find over four hours of the finest contemporary songs,
stories, humor, and observation from the greatest practitioners of the craft. Price: £15 Postage to the UK included in the price. Send a cheque as per Mail Order instructions here or click the Buy Now button below.
In the U.S.A. & Canada, this CD can be bought via the PM Press website
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Celebrating Subversion - 2012
Sunday, 02 October 2011 09:44
 FUSE RECORDS CFCD 099 Twenty nine songs and one visionary poem on 2 CDs from singers & songwriters Frankie Armstrong, Roy Bailey, Robb Johnson, Reem Kelani, Sandra Kerr, Grace Petrie, Leon Rosselson, Janet Russell, Peggy Seeger, Jim Woodland and socialist magician Ian Saville. Eleven different voices with one aim - to challenge the narrative that says, There is no alternative.
Sorry, this CD is no longer available to purchase.
The World Turned Upside Down - 2011
Sunday, 02 October 2011 09:44
 FUSE RECORDS CFCD 077 The 4 CDs in this box set contain 72 songs, covering 5 decades of songwriting, from the sparky sixties to the curdled present, and encompass a wide variety of song subjects and song forms. They have been written out of hope, anger, love, scorn, laughter and despair. And because they have something to say about the times in which they were written, there is an 80 page booklet containing copious notes on the political and personal environments that formed them, along with some pointed observations on the craft of songwriting.
Frankie Armstrong, Roy Bailey, Mark Bassey, Steve Berry, Billy Bragg, Martin Carthy, Howard Evans, Clare Lintott, Chris Foster, Sue Harris, Paul Jayasinha, John Kirkpatrick, Elizabeth Mansfield, Janet Russell, Ruth Rosselson, Fiz Shapur, Dave Swarbrick, Miranda Sykes, Roger Williams, The 3 City 4, The Oyster Band, and The Sheffield Socialist Choir all contribute.
Released on 3rd October 2011. Distributed by Proper Music Distribution. Price: £30 Postage to the UK included in the price. Send a cheque as per Mail Order instructions here or click the Buy Now button below. In the USA, you can purchase it from PM Press. "It's the life work of of one of Britain's finest contemporary writers - not just songwriters but writers in any form.... The World Turned Upside Down concludes with 'The Power of Song', to which this magnificent retrospective is a living testament." - review in Songlines January 2012 "Sitting here with a four-CD boxed set, including an extensive booklet offering valuable insights into the whys and wherefores of it all.... you not only get the full benefit of his stinging satire , you get a sharp sense of the times for which they were written. This is a remarkable achievement for any songwriter, whether it's the 17th century stories recounted in The World Turned Upside Down and Abiezer Coppe - sung so powerfully by Roy Bailey - to the modern follies depicted by the likes of They're Going to Build a Motorway, Ballad of a Spycatcher and The Wall that Stands Between. ...a well-rounded picture of a remarkable artist who's never taken his eyes off the ball even - or especially - when that ball is bouncing in a determinedly anti-popular direction." - fRoots May 2012
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The Liberty Tree: A Celebration Of The Life and Writings Of Thomas Paine
Wednesday, 10 March 2010 09:00
 PM PRESS PMA 013-2 - DOUBLE CD RELEASED IN THE STATES NOW AVAILABLE IN THE UK "When the rich plunder the poor of his rights, it becomes an example to the poor to plunder the rich of his property." --Thomas Paine The Liberty Tree tells the story of Tom Paine's extraordinary life, interweaving Paine's own words, from his letters and the pamphlets which made him one of the most influential and dangerous writers of his age, with extracts from newspaper reports, diaries, letters and other documents of the times. The songs of Robb Johnson and Leon Rosselson add another dimension to the story, reflecting Paine's radical ideas and evaluating them in the context of the 21st century. This unique blend of words and music challenges received opinion in the same way Paine's writings did. "I do not believe in the creed professed by the Jewish Church, by the Roman Church, by the Greek Church, by the Turkish Church, by the Protestant Church, nor by any Church that I know of. MY OWN MIND IS MY OWN CHURCH." Price: £12 Postage to the UK included in the price. Send a cheque as per Mail Order instructions here or click the Buy Now button below.
In the U.S.A. & Canada, this CD can be bought via the PM Press website
Smoke & Dust / The Three City Four - 2010
Wednesday, 10 March 2010 09:00
 CFCD 068. Straight from vinyl heaven, a set of sparkling songs from the folk and protest boom of the early 60s; powerful performances from a group featuring Martin Carthy, Roy Bailey & Leon Rosselson, compiled from The Three City Four (Decca 1965) and Smoke & Dust (CBS 1967). Distributed by Proper Music Distribution. Price: £12 Postage to the UK included in the price. Send a cheque as per Mail Order instructions here or click the Buy Now button below.
The Last Chance - 2010
Wednesday, 10 March 2010 08:51
 CFCD 008 Unapologetically challenging and provocative, The Last Chance weaves eight finely-crafted human stories around one of the burning issues of our times: the Israel/Palestine conflict. Songs to move the mind and the heart. The Song of Martin Fontasch Song of the Olive Tree (sung by Janet Russell) The Last Chance They Said... Yafa! (lyrics by Mahmoud Salim al-Hout, music by Reem Kelani, sung by Reem Kelani) My Father's Jewish World The 3rd Intifada Loyal Soldiers. Distributed by Proper Music Distribution but it may be too controversial for most record shops. All profits from the sale of this CD go to Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP). Price: £12 Postage to the UK included in the price. Send a cheque as per Mail Order instructions here or click the Buy Now button below.

A Proper State - 2008
Thursday, 11 June 2009 23:47
 FUSE RECORDS CFCD024 Tracks: Conversation on a Mobile The Ghost of Georges Brassens Barney's Epic Homer Barney's Got a Job Now A Proper State When They Ask Me The Third Intifada See Life's Road Before You Like Love Faslane 365 The Power of Song "This new album is predictably angry but at times startlingly original and sophisticated. It starts with a well-performed, bitter story about mobile phones, which veers between cabaret and a thoughtful observation on non-communication in a communication-obsessed world. Then comes a song about the great French songwriter Georges Brassens, and a series of political and social comment songs that deal with everything from fame and the consumer society through to death, the Middle East and nuclear disarmament, using an elaborate mixture of stories and musical ideas." - GUARDIAN (See the full article at the guardian.co.uk) "Another triumph of the craft of wordsmithery and full of typically nifty and barbed wordplay... Another splendid set" - fROOTS "He's had a long career but this is one of his best." - MOJO "The songs on A Proper State, like those throughout his half century of singing and writing, obstinately defy category... The title track excoriates the bread and circus world of celebrity obsession, fashion-fetishism and the 'heart-shaped emptiness' of liposuction and botoxification.... When They Ask Me casts a lyrical-satirical eye on death, whose complete antithesis, Like Love, is one of the sweetest simile sequences imaginable for that indefinable, yet often over-defined, human condition." - SOCIALIST LAWYER "Rosselson is on great form here and has lost none of those qualities which have made him for so long such a fascinating and uplifting presence: a wonderful ear for melody, a poet's skill with words, a subtle and highly intelligent humour and a brilliant ability to make his theme poignant by concealment." - THE PENNILESS PRESS "No composer of songs in our native tongue, it seems to me, gets close to his level of eloquence." - COLIN RANDALL SALUT LIVE Price: £12 Postage to the UK included in the price. Send a cheque as per Mail Order instructions here or click the Buy Now button below.
And They All Sang RosselSongs - 2008
Friday, 12 June 2009 00:01
 FUSE RECORDS CFCD 012 A stunning new release featuring 15 of Britains finest acoustic music performers singing 15 Rosselson classics. STILL IS THE MEMORY Nancy Kerr & James Fagan WHOEVER INVENTED THE FISHFINGER John Kirkpatrick DON'T GET MARRIED GIRLS Elizabeth Mansfield INVISIBLE MARRIED BREAKFAST BLUES Barb Jungr WHO REAPS THE PROFITS? WHO PAYS THE PRICE? Chris Foster STAND UP FOR JUDAS David Campbell SONG OF THE OLIVE TREE Janet Russell THE WALL THAT STANDS BETWEEN Martin Carthy LET YOUR HAIR HANG DOWN Daniela Rosselson MY DAUGHTER MY SON Sandra Kerr WILLIAM Roy Bailey THE MAN WHO PUFFS THE BIG CIGAR Eliza Carthy JACKBOOT DEMOCRATS Des de Moor THE WORLD TURNED UPSIDE DOWN Robb Johnson All songs by Leon Rosselson 'He has the passion of Brel, the commitment of Brecht and the wit of Lehrer.' SONGLI NES 'This is an important album of songs written by England's greatest living songwriter.' THE LIVING TRADITION 'The man is a songwriting colossus' fROOTS Price: £12 Postage to the UK included in the price. Send a cheque as per Mail Order instructions here or click the Buy Now button below.
Turning Silence Into Song - 2005
Saturday, 13 June 2009 13:34
FUSE RECORDS CFCD 009 14 Rosselsongs ranging over 40 years from around 1963 to 2004: Jumbo the Elephant Song of the Free Press The Wall That Stands Between Remembrance Day General Lockjaw Briefs the Troops Monsters Dead Men Never Die The Enemy's Poised to Attack I Don't Want Your Red, Red Roses Strange the Things We don't Remember Brass Band Music Song of the Olive Tree They Said... My Father's Jewish World. With Frankie Armstrong, Bill Amatneek, Martin Carthy, Robb Johnson, Elizabeth Mansfield, Camilla Saunders, Fiz Shapur, Jody Stecher & Miranda Sykes. '... lyrics of genuine wit and poetic value' - DAILY TELEGRAPH, 24 July 2004 'Buy this album and ruin a dinner party with a heated political debate. Not many people can do that.' fROOTS - Aug/Sept 2004 'Rosselson defines the power, musical eloquence and history of politicised song' - RECORD COLLECTOR Nov 2004
'... he holds the attention through sharp writing that deploys anger, irony and wit in appropriate measures' - THE LIVING TRADITION Sept/Oct 2004 Price: £11 Postage to the UK included in the price. Send a cheque as per Mail Order instructions here or click the Buy Now button below.
The Greatest Drummer in the World - 2004
Thursday, 11 August 2016 23:18
 This is a recording of the show for children - 4 to 10 year olds - which toured in 2004. A story with songs by Leon Rosselson performed by Anna Mudeka, Elizabeth Mansfield & Leon Rosselson.
'A magical performance piece' - The Stage
'She is the greatest drummer in the world/ they didn't think that she could/ when she said that she would/ put the giant to flight/ but all his power & might/ could not overcome/ the girl with a drum.' Price: £6 Postage to the UK included in the price. Send a cheque as per Mail Order instructions here or click the Buy Now button below.

Harry's Gone Fishing - 1999
Saturday, 13 June 2009 22:48
 FUSE RECORDS CFCD 007 - 1. It's just the song - 2. Harry's gone fishing - 3. Mercenaries - 4. She came from out of nowhere - 5. Postcards from Cuba - 6. Money matters - 7. Bad driver - 8. Child killers - 9. Sun - 10. You noble diggers all - 11. Encore
LEON ROSSELSON With Roy Bailey, Mark Bassey, Martin Carthy, Paul Jayasinha, Robb Johnson, Claire Lintott, Liz Mansfield, Ruth Rosselson and Fiz Shapur 'His songs unquestionably reveal the sharpest of minds, a wicked sense of fun and, whatever you make of the politics, thought-provoking assumptions and assertions.' - DAILY TELEGRAPH 19 February 2000 'He speaks the unspeakable, articulates the unthinkable, observes the tiny, absurd details that denote a darker, deeper picture. It's brilliant.' - fROOTS November 1999 '...a typically excellent work of wit, wisdom and songcraft.' - TIME OUT October 1999 Price: £11 Postage to the UK included in the price. Send a cheque as per Mail Order instructions here or click the Buy Now button below.
Perspectives - 1997
Saturday, 13 June 2009 22:48
 FUSE RECORDS CD CFCD 006 18 of Rosselson's finest and most ambitious songs - 1. The Ant & the Grasshopper - 2. Perspectives - 3. They're Going to Build a Motorway ... - 4. Plan - 5. The Man Who Puffs the Big Cigar - 6. Garden of Stone - 7. History Lesson - 8. Ballad of a Spycatcher - 9. Song of the Moderate Man - 10. Consider the Majority - 11. The Saint - 12. No Cause for Alarm - 13. Experts - 14. In the Park - 15. The Last Chance - 16. The Rules of the Game - 17. Somebody's Stolen the End of my Dream - 18. Topside Down Party '..Rosselson's songs here savagely lampoon over two decades of governmental crassness & corporate stupidity with an acerbic lyricism that has become his exclusive domain' - FOLK ROOTS June 1997 '..arguably the best collection of old material Rosselson has put together yet' - TAPLAS May 1997 '..these re-recordings and originals track back more than 25 years to confirm the reputation of one of the most incisive of British writers and performers. One moment savagely political, the next tellingly funny...' - SHEFFIELD TELEGRAPH 28 February 1997 Price: £11 Postage to the UK included in the price. Send a cheque as per Mail Order instructions here or click the Buy Now button below.
Intruders - 1995
Saturday, 13 June 2009 22:49
 FUSE RECORDS CFCD 005 - 1. The Heartening Tale of John Pratt - 2. Soldiering On - 3. Monologue - 4. A Very Busy Man - 5. The Word Market - 6. They Took It Out - 7. It Goes On - Intruders - 8. The Song of Martin Fontasch - 9. Just Like Animals - 10. All That is Different is Part of the Dance LEON ROSSELSON with Martin Carthy, Liz Mansfield, Fiz Shapur, Chris Foster and Sianed Jones '... a set of riveting songs. Leon Rosselson's integration of words and music is as immaculate as ever and the performances of the supporting cast are superb.' - FOLK ROOTS Jan/Feb 1996 '... a master of barbed eloquence' - DAILY TELEGRAPH 11 Nov 1995 'The most spine-chilling effective cut, The Song of Martin Fontasch, is an emotional roller-coaster of sadness, fear and hope.' - ROCK 'n' REEL Spring 1996 Price: £11 Postage to the UK included in the price. Send a cheque as per Mail Order instructions here or click the Buy Now button below.
Questions - 1995 - Now On CD
Saturday, 13 June 2009 22:49
FUSE RECORDS CFCD004 Songs and Stories for Children - 1. Skin - 2. Flying High Flying Free - 3. My Heterodontosaurus - 4. Why Does It Have To Be Me? - 5. Free to Roam - 6. Questions - 7. The Vitamin Dance - 8. One Two Three - 9. Air - 10. Don't Put a Banana in Your Ear - 11. Bear Story - 12. Kangaroos Like To Hop - 13. Song of the Clock - 14. Ella's Bedtime Story LEON ROSSELSON with grown-ups Chris Foster, Liz Mansfield, Ruth Rosselson and Fiz Shapur and children Amy Dawson, Yolanda Rosselson, Alphonse Ryan, Ella Ryan and John-Jo Ryan. 'Fun songs, sing-along songs and a couple of good stories ensure that this cassette is popular with both children and adults.' - TAPLAS June 1995 'This is a cheerful compilation for children throughout the primary school' - JUNIOR EDUCATION April 1995 'Make no mistake these songs really do work for kids as my victims at Braithwaite and Eastwood schools will testify.' - TYKES NEWS Summer 1995 Price: £11 Postage to the UK included in the price. Send a cheque as per Mail Order instructions here or click the Buy Now button below.
Guess What They're Selling at the Happiness Counter - 1992
Saturday, 13 June 2009 22:50
 FUSE RECORDS CFCD004
- 1. Hugga Mugga * - 2. Story Line - 3. Barney's Epic Homer - 4. Boys Will Be Boys* - 5. My Daughter My Son - 6. Do You Remember?* - 7. Abiezer Coppe - 8. On Her Silver Jubilee - 9. The Ugly Ones * - 10. Susie - 11. Invisible Married Breakfast Blues* - 12. The Years Grow Tall - 13. The Invisible Man* - 14. Pills - 15. Across the Hills* - 16. Battle Hymn of the New Socialist Party* - 17. The World's Police - 18. Voices - 19. The Voice That Lives Inside You
* Re-recording LEON ROSSELSON with Frankie Armstrong, Roy Bailey, Martin Carthy, Howard Evans, Sue Harris, Sandra Kerr, Steve King, John Kirkpatrick, Liz Mansfield, Fiz Shapur and Roger Williams 'Proof that the art of songwriting is not dead. Occasionally acid flows from his pen but always the end product is thoughtful, witty and provocative.' - SHEFFIELD TELEGRAPH March 1993 'Another nineteen weighty tracks full of barbed verbiage and challenging assaults on society's preconceptions ... the cuts included here tend to be slightly deeper and harder, exploring rather more imaginative and ambitious degrees of arrangement' - FOLK ROOTS Jan/Feb 1993 'A collection of some of the great moments of vinyl history as recorded by Britain's most witty, funny, poignant and biting lyricist.' Price: £11 Postage to the UK included in the price. Send a cheque as per Mail Order instructions here or click the Buy Now button below.
WO SIND DIE ELEFANTEN? - 1991
Saturday, 13 June 2009 22:50
 FUSE RECORDS CFCD 002 - 1. The Neighbour's Cat - 2. The Poet The Wife and The Monkey - 3. Wo Sind Die Elefanten? - 4. The Juggler - 5. Whatever Happened to Nannerl? - 6. Song of the Old Communist - 7. Where's The Enemy - 8. General Lockjaw Briefs The British Media - 9. Out of The Fire and Smoke of History LEON ROSSELSON with Martin Carthy, Liz Mansfield, Fiz Shapur and Dave Swarbrick 'Mary Black and Capercaillie came close but my album of 1991 is Wo Sind Die Elefanten?. As Incisively anti-establishment as ever, Rosselson's eloquent word-play overcomes quarrels with the politics.' - DAILY TELEGRAPH 7 December 1991 '... a challenging songwriter whose work radiates acumen and wit' - Q MAGAZINE December 1991 'On a good day, one of the warmest and wittiest writers in the land with a humour that other acknowledged political writers like Costello and Bragg rarely emulate. And this, I reckon, is a pretty good day.' FOLK ROOTS January 1992 Price: £11 Postage to the UK included in the price. Send a cheque as per Mail Order instructions here or click the Buy Now button below.
RosselSonGs - 1990
Saturday, 13 June 2009 22:51
 FUSE RECORDS CFCD 001 - 1. Tim McGuire - 2. Penny for the Guy - 3. Palaces of Gold* - 4. We Sell Everything - 5. Stand Up for Judas - 6. Sing a Song to Please Us - 7. She Was Crazy He Was Mad - 8. Not Quite But Nearly - 9. Let Your Hair Hang Down - 10. Don't Get Married Girls - 11. I Didn't Mean it - 12. No-One Is Responsible - 13. Still Is the Memory* - 14. Whoever Invented the Fishfinger - 15. Who Reaps the Profits? - 16. It Wasn't Me I Didn't Do It - 17. Bringing the News From Nowhere - 18. The World Turned Upside Down*
* Re-recording LEON ROSSELSON with Frankie Armstrong, Roy Bailey, Steve Barry, Martin Carthy, Howard Evans, Sue Harris, Rory McLeod, Simon Nicol, Fiz Shapur and Roger Williams 'Rosselsongs was a revelation, an album I that I could not only listen to but one which was amusing, thought-provoking, well-produced and relevant' - ENGLISH DANCE AND SONG Christmas 1990 'Pretty much every track on this compilation is a winner, demonstrating not only the famous vicious edge of his songs, but also the funny, the sad and the quirky' - FOLK ROOTS March 1990 'An excellent selection from seven different albums by one of the most able songwriters of our times' - TAPLAS April 1990 Price: £11 Postage to the UK included in the price. Send a cheque as per Mail Order instructions here or click the Buy Now button below.

Early Vinyl Recordings
Wednesday, 10 August 2016 00:00
Leon's early vinyl recordings listed below, are now available as downloads on all major digital retail outlets, including iTunes, Amazon, Google Play and Napster.
SONGS FOR CITY SQUARES TOP 77 Topic Records ep 1962 VOTE FOR US (with assorted actors & musicians) TRA 120 Transatlantic Records LP 1964
SONGS FOR SCEPTICAL CIRCLES BY 6029 Elektra Records LP 1966
A LAUGH A SONG & A HANDGRENADE (with Adrian Mitchell) TRA 171 Transatlantic Records LP 1968
THE WORD IS HUGGA MUGGA.... (with Martin Carthy guitar) LER 3015 Trailer Records LP 1971
PALACES OF GOLD CF 249 Acorn Records LP 1975
THAT’S NOT THE WAY IT’S GOT TO BE (with Roy Bailey) CF 251 Acorn Records LP 1975
LOVE LONELINESS LAUNDRY (with Roy Bailey) CF 271 Acorn Records LP 1977 IF I KNEW WHO THE ENEMY WAS (with Roy Bailey) CF 284 Fuse Records LP 1979
FOR THE GOOD OF THE NATION CF 381 Fuse Records LP 1981
NUCLEAR POWER NO THANKS (with Frankie Armstrong, Roy Bailey, Martin Carthy, Chris Foster, Sandra Kerr...) Inter-Action LP 1981
TEMPORARY LOSS OF VISION CF 384 Fuse Records LP 1983
BRINGING THE NEWS FROM NOWHERE CF 390 Fuse Records LP 1986
I DIDN’T MEAN IT CF 392 Fuse Records LP 1988
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