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Check Your Stereo

by Steve White

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1.
Thin Part 2 04:11
Stress makes you fat It's as simple as that A little cortisol is good for you Too much and you'll start to put on a few It's the thing that they want to keep quiet It ain't just about your diet What kind of a world do we live in Where poor people are fat and rich people are thin? What kind of a world do we live in Where poor people are fat and rich people are thin? It's like the world is turned upside down It's time to turn it the right way around What kind of a world do we live in Where poor people are fat and rich people are thin? Compare the banker to the man in the street It ain't just about what they eat Cos one of 'em's got money The other one's got worry And when your wages go down That's when you put on the pounds The correlation's too good to ignore Between the gap between the rich and the poor And the incidence of obesity It's about inequality Read the Spirit Level then you'll know Which way we gotta go It's not genetic Or the next generation would be the same It's not behavioural That's just your bosses mind game It's a chemical reaction that happens in your body Based on your position in the social hierarchy An equal society Has less obesity So walk hand in hand with me Straight out of the KFC And we'll stand up to inequality Make the world a better place For you and me
2.
There's a picket line in St James Park There's a picket line in Kensington Gardens There's a picket line, now it's in The Harp There's a picket line, but there'll be no Royal Pardon 'Cos Mrs Windsor’s geraniums are late (going in this year) Mrs Windsor’s geraniums can wait (and our terms are clear) Mrs Windsor’s geraniums are late (pay us properly) Or Mrs Windsor's geraniums can wait Mow that lawn with military precision Make those flowers stand like guardsmen tall And still the boss can make the daft decision To take two weeks wages off you all So Mrs Windsor’s geraniums are late (going in this year) Mrs Windsor’s geraniums can wait (and our terms are clear) Mrs Windsor’s geraniums are late (pay us properly) Or Mrs Windsor's geraniums can wait There'll be no Horticulture, no litter picking No sweeping, cleansing or roadway gritting No playground inspection, refuse collection Landscape maintenance or grave digging And I must confess it'll be a mess For the State Opening of Parliament no less These are terms with which you just can't tamper And where's my bloody Christmas hamper? That's why Mrs Windsor’s geraniums are late (going in this year) Mrs Windsor’s geraniums can wait (and our terms are clear) Mrs Windsor’s geraniums are late (pay us properly) Or Mrs Windsor's geraniums can wait
3.
USA Part 2 03:02
The signs don't say Walk and Don't Walk any more And there's no CPGB's, it's a men's clothing store And they're knocking down Freddie's Bar and Backroom 'Cos Ratner thinks there'll be a housing boom Eminent domain is something the rich can ignore But you can still ride the Cyclone, give yourselves a thrill Or get a beer at Ruby's Bar and Grill You can still see Elvis in a Vegas show It might be the real one you never know 'Cos I won't believe he's dead until I see him on a dollar bill And you say USA And you shout USA And you yell USA While the Brits just clap politely, we'll be on our way The Brits just clap politely and say “that was OK” So tell us Steve, what's so great in the UK? You mean like fish and chips and cricket and St George’s Day? Well it's the only place to get a decent cup of tea It's got Funky Lol Ross and The Protest Family And in the 18th Century, we had the USA And you say USA And you shout USA And you yell USA While the Brits just clap politely, we'll be on our way The Brits just clap politely and say “that was OK” Well the oil in the gulf, I guess you wanna blame me But there's nothing very British about BP There's no sound on earth like an English punk band But it seems the election's just as hard to understand So we're the same after all Well, except for the tea And you say USA And you shout USA And you yell USA While the Brits just clap politely, we'll be on our way The Brits just clap politely and say “that was OK”
4.
Chris Grayling doesn't want you to learn to play guitar Chris Grayling doesn't care how dirty your pants are Chris Grayling says he wants 'a more spartan regime' And Cameron says 'like public school? I know just what you mean' You can send a book to a prisoner in Guantanamo Bay But not to one in Pentonville, or Holloway Chris Grayling doesn't understand rehabilitation He'll just get you ready for your next incarceration Chris Grayling says that you can go to the prison library Once in every six weeks, if you are lucky Chris Grayling doesn't care that you're studying for a degree Or that you're just learning to read properly You can send a book to a prisoner in Guantanamo Bay But not to one in Pentonville, or Holloway Chris Grayling doesn't understand rehabilitation He'll just get you ready for your next incarceration You can't send a prisoner a pair of nice clean drawers And Billy Bragg has had to stop his Jail Guitar Doors Chris Grayling doesn't care that you're more likely to transgress More prisoners means more money for his mates at G4S You can send a book to a prisoner in Guantanamo Bay But not to one in Pentonville, or Holloway Chris Grayling doesn't understand rehabilitation He'll just get you ready for your next incarceration
5.
Rain 02:42
I warned you, said David Silvester God will punish you, oh yes he will He'll send you nasty weather For the same-sex marriage bill It's not raining 'cos of climate change it's not raining just because it rains It's raining, and it's rained for days David Silvester says, because of the gays Retribution, says David Silvester Yes, that what he said He said it's written in the scripture You can't let same-sex couples wed It's not raining 'cos of climate change it's not raining just because it rains It's raining, and it's rained for days David Silvester says, because of the gays He's a fruitcake, David Silvester A dangerous one at that That's why you should never vote UKIP kids Cos you'll be voting in a twat
6.
S.W.A.B. 04:24
That's not a car it's a fetish Not a Ferrari but it's fire engine reddish A mid-life crisis fat man wish Your average consumer capitalist But socialism will arrive by bike Socialism will arrive by bike Socialism will arrive by bike Jeremy Corbyn knows that's right Socialism will arrive by bike It's not a lorry it's a killing machine It'll kill you dirty or it'll kill you clean Eight this year, know what I mean Last year it was bloody fourteen But socialism will arrive by bike Socialism will arrive by bike Socialism will arrive by bike Even bloody Boris knows that's right Socialism will arrive by bike Death, damnation and convenience More experience than expedience Conformity and obedience Pledge your Top Gear allegiance But socialism will arrive by bike Socialism will arrive by bike Socialism will arrive by bike Attila The Stockbroker knows that's right Socialism will arrive by bike That's not a taxi, it's a money box Quick off the block, the man's on the clock Mind out the way if you're in the drops It's a close pass but he never stops But socialism will arrive by bike Socialism will arrive by bike Socialism will arrive by bike David Cameron's stopped riding his Socialism will arrive by bike Death, damnation and convenience More experience than expedience Conformity and obedience Pledge your Top Gear allegiance But socialism will arrive by bike Socialism will arrive by bike Socialism will arrive by bike Jeremy Corbyn knows that's right Full on carbon racer or an old man's trike Support the National Gallery all-out strike Socialism will arrive by bike That's not a tanker
7.
f you're pushing a pram you're gonna struggle To open those heavy swing doors And the East wind don't half whistle Down the access corridors But we've got good neighbours In an East End kinda way And you milk doesn't go missing Even if you leave it out all day And it's condescending I'll accept That I don't like their curtains But the flats are well kept And I say this without malce We're better off here than we would be In Buckingham Palace It's Mr Golfinger's Balfron Tower 27 storeys and they're all ours It's Brutalism's finest hour It's Mr Goldfinger's Balfron Tower These flats have an advantage Said Erno, cos he understood The tenants are all families With roots in the local neighbourhood They're off the Brownfield, they're off Rowlett Street We're gonna house neighbours side-by-side A pavement on every floor An East End street 300 feet high And if you knock on the door of 130 There's the only celebrities that you'll find 'Cos that's where Erno And Ursula Goldfinger reside It's Mr Golfinger's Balfron Tower 27 storeys and they're all ours It's Brutalism's finest hour It's Mr Goldfinger's Balfron Tower Yeah, it's not for everyone Living up in the sky People got lonely, people got frightened When Ronan Point blew sky high And it suffered for maintenance Suffered with vandals Stuff got left that needed someone to mend As the GLC gave way to Tower Hamlets Council And there was never quite enough money to spend But it was still solid houses for local people It was still a community The caretaker still knew all the kids Even if it was on CCTV And it's in 28 Days Later Here's where Danny Boyle did his filming Goldfinger's homes for local folk Became a grade two listed building It's Mr Golfinger's Balfron Tower 27 storeys and they're all ours It's Brutalism's finest hour It's Mr Goldfinger's Balfron Tower In 2006 there was a consultation Sold Balfron Tower to a private firm HARCA's a regeneration initiative But will we ever learn? They promised new bathrooms, promised new kitchens Promised a whole range of repairs All the stuff that the council couldn't afford Just now privately owned, so why should we care? Then they started moving people out Started selling their flats Moved the gentrifiers in, changed the rules If you were out, then you're not coming back Moved in an art installation Moved in a Shakespeare play Started making the place look interesting 'Til the last locals went away Now they're on the open market With views of The Wharf and views of The Dome Empty flats owned by investors That East End families used to call home It's Mr Golfinger's Balfron Tower 27 storeys that were all ours It's brutal in it's darkest hour It's Mr Goldfinger's Balfron Tower
8.
Row upon row of dead Staffordshire Bull Terriers They don't know they're dead yet but that's where they're going People tire of their pets as quick as they tire of their own children's crying Never mind Another can of Stella will ease the pain While your landlord rubs his hands, and adds another ton to the rent. Meanwhile Liz Kendall kicks over the rotting corpse of what used to be the Labour Party Somewhere under there is a Facebook hero, but he's sixty-six and he's not saving anyone See also: Owen Jones See also: The fucking Green Party Sometimes I think The Sleaford Mods have got it right; it's just bleak, no fight, just bleat Does the left need another messiah? See also: Tony Blair Russian oligarchs buying up the city, piece by piece, off-plan Did we know what an oligarch was ten years ago? They didn't teach it in school Whose school? What school? Free school Anyway it's an academy now Pass Teacher a valium It's not the kids that are doing her head in, it's the bloke from Ofsted Him and the fella with the face like a slapped arse, you know the one The one on crutches My mate's gone back to work for the bank, and who can blame him? He's done that “put my family first” thing that works so well for the Tories That's where the money is Not their money, poor people's money Ask anyone in Greece Sold out by the revolutionaries No wonder the bloke in the motorcycle jacket rode off into the sunset Like a Marxist Tom Cruise Does the left need another messiah? See also: Russell Brand Row upon row of dead Staffordshire Bull Terriers As we consume living things like tabloid newspapers, celebrity panel shows and Christmas jumpers The bloke selling puppies from a cardboard box Reckons he's a vegetarian Somebody ought to have a word.
9.
There's a woman in a crown talking on the telly A woman in a crown talking 'bout austerity A woman in a crown, some sorta ceremony A woman in a crown, and she's tellin' me That she lives in the biggest council house I've ever seen She lives a life of luxury that you might call obscene She lives in the biggest council house I've ever seen A lifetime on benefits, God Save The Queen There's a woman on the telly in a million pound hat She's talking on the telly 'bout a welfare cap Not sure the civil list's included in that And she can still afford to buy a Right To Buy flat Though she lives in the biggest council house I've ever seen She lives a life of luxury that you might call obscene She lives in the biggest council house I've ever seen A lifetime on benefits, God Save The Queen There's a woman on the telly talkin' 'bout the Tories  A woman on the telly tellin' aspiration stories She waves a royal finger to show Europe where the door is While we pay for her family and food for her corgis 'Cos she lives in the biggest council house I've ever seen She lives a life of luxury that you might call obscene She lives in the biggest council house I've ever seen A lifetime on benefits, God Save The Queen The woman in the crown don't like you gettin' high The woman in the crown don't like your human rights The woman in the crown kissed your privacy goodbye The woman in the crown don't like your right to strike And she lives in the biggest council house I've ever seen She lives a life of luxury that you might call obscene She lives in the biggest council house I've ever seen A lifetime on benefits, God Save The Queen

about

Nine failed folk songs recorded at my house between the 16th and 19th August 2015.

You know the drill. These are the ones that never made it as Protest Family songs for one reason or another,usually because we didn't find the time to learn and arrange them before something more immediate came along.

I bet a couple of them end up in the band's set anyway, just look at somethingweirdgoingoninmyhead.

Steve.

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released August 20, 2015

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Steve White & The Protest Family UK

"[They] remind me of The Clash" - Basil Gabbidon (Steel Pulse)

"I love this band. Punk minstrels who chronicle our times with humour, passion and immense talent." - Bob Oram, Morning Star

"Everybody please visit: Steve White & The Protest Family" - Tom Robinson

"Constructive political music" - Joe Solo
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