"The Revolution Will Not Be Televised" | ||||||||
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Single by Gil Scott-Heron | ||||||||
from the album Pieces of a Man | ||||||||
A-side | "Home Is Where the Hatred Is" | |||||||
Released | 1971 | |||||||
Format | 7-inch single | |||||||
Recorded |
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Genre | ||||||||
Length | 3:07 | |||||||
Label | Flying Dutchman | |||||||
Writer(s) | Gil Scott-Heron | |||||||
Producer(s) | Bob Thiele | |||||||
Gil Scott-Heron singles chronology | ||||||||
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"The Revolution Will Not Be Televised" is a poem and song by Gil Scott-Heron. Scott-Heron first recorded it for his 1970 album Small Talk at 125th and Lenox, on which he recited the lyrics, accompanied by congas and bongo drums. A re-recorded version, with a full band, was the B-side to Scott-Heron's first single, "Home Is Where the Hatred Is", from his album Pieces of a Man (1971). It was also included on his compilation album, The Revolution Will Not Be Televised (1974). All these releases were issued on the Flying Dutchman Productions record label.
The song's title was originally a popular slogan among the 1960s Black Power movements in the United States. Its lyrics either mention or allude to several television series, advertising slogans and icons of entertainment and news coverage that serve as examples of what "the revolution will not" be or do.