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. Available in good record shops or by mail order: Send a cheque for £30 to Fuse Records, 28 Park Chase, Wembley, Middlesex HA9 8EH. In the USA, you can purchase it from PM Press.
The Liberty Tree: A Celebration Of The Life and Writings Of Thomas Paine
Wednesday, 10 March 2010 09:00
 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." Purchase
Available mail order from Fuse Records, 28 Park Chase, Wembley, Middx. HA9 8EH.
Send cheque for £12 (inc p & p) made out to Fuse Records.
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. Release date March 15th but available now by mail order. Send a cheque for £12 to Fuse Records, 28 Park Chase, Wembley, Middlesex HA9 8EH.
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.
Official release date is in April but available now by mail order. Send a cheque for £12 made out to Fuse Records to 28 Park Chase, Wembley, Middlesex HA9 8EH.
All profits from the sale of this CD go to Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP).
A Proper State - 2008
Thursday, 11 June 2009 23:47
 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 "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
And They All Sang RosselSongs - 2008
Friday, 12 June 2009 00:01
 AND THEY ALL SANG ROSSELSONGS 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 Release date 5 September 2005 Fuse CFCD 012 Distributed by Proper Music Distribution Ltd and available from all good record shops or by mail order from Fuse Records.
28 Park Chase, Wembley Park, Middlesex HA9 8EH CD (including P&P) £12 Cheque (made out to Fuse Records) with order please
Turning Silence Into Song - 2005
Saturday, 13 June 2009 13:34
 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 Records for £11 (inc p & p)
Harry's Gone Fishing - 1999
Saturday, 13 June 2009 22:48
 CD CFCD 007 £ 11.00
Cassette CFC 007 £ 7.00 - 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
Perspectives - 1997
Saturday, 13 June 2009 22:48
 CD CFCD 006 £ 11.00
Cassette CFC 006 £ 7.00 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
Intruders - 1995
Saturday, 13 June 2009 22:49
 CD CFCD 005 £ 11.00
Cassette CFC 005 £ 7.00 - 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
Questions - 1995 - Now On CD
Saturday, 13 June 2009 22:49
CD CFCD 003
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
Guess What They're Selling at the Happiness Counter - 1992
Saturday, 13 June 2009 22:50
 CD CFCD 003 £ 11.00
Cassette CFC 003 £ 7.00 - 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.' BLUE JUICE Spring 1993
WO SIND DIE ELEFANTEN? - 1991
Saturday, 13 June 2009 22:50
 CD CFCD 002 £ 11.00
Cassette CFC 002 £ 7.00 - 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
RosselSonGs - 1990
Saturday, 13 June 2009 22:51
 CD CFCD 001 £ 11.00
Cassette CFC 001 £ 7.00 - 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
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