IT’S VERY DEPRESSING THAT SO LITTLE HAS CHANGED SINCE 1986

Beneath the old iron bridges, across the Victorian parks
And all the frightened people running home before dark
Past the Saturday morning cinema that lies crumbling to the ground
And the piss stinking shopping center in the new side of town
I’ve come to smell the seasons change and watch the city
As the sun goes down again

Here comes another winter of long shadows and high hopes
Here comes another winter waitin’ for utopia
Waitin’ for hell to freeze over

This is the land where nothing changes
The land of red buses and blue blooded babies
This is the place, where pensioners are raped
And the hearts are being cut from the welfare state
Let the poor drink the milk while the rich eat the honey
Let the bums count their blessings while they count the money

So many people can’t express what’s on their minds
Nobody knows them and nobody ever will
Until their backs are broken and their dreams are stolen
And they can’t get what they want then they’re gonna get angry

Well it ain’t written in the papers, but it’s written on the walls
The way this country is divided to fall
So the cranes are moving on the skyline
Trying to knock down this town

But the stains on the heartland, can never be removed
From this country that’s sick, sad, and confused

Here comes another winter of long shadows and high hopes
Here comes another winter waitin’ for utopia
Waitin’ for hell to freeze over

The ammunition’s being passed and the lords been praised
But the wars on the televisions will never be explained
All the bankers gettin’ sweaty beneath their white collars
As the pound in our pocket turns into a dollar

This is the 51st state of the U.S.A.
This is the 51st state of the U.S.A.
This is the 51st state of the U.S.A.

And in the next few months, as we steer towards the madness of Brexit, it is only going to get worse.

Heartland was one of the biggest hits enjoyed by The The, reaching #29 in August 1986.

mp3 : The The – Heartland

The 12″ version had two formats, both featured this short instrumental/spoken word which was a reminder of how vile and racist the South African regime was in that apartheid-governed era.

mp3 : The The – Born In The New S.A.

One format had a track that was very reminiscent of the songs which had made Soul Mining such an essential listen a few years previously:-

mp3 : The The – Flesh and Bones

The other format had what was at the time a new track but which would appear in a shorter version, and with a different mix, on the LP Infected:–

mp3 : The The – Sweet Bird Of Truth

I’m off to see The The tonight. It’s one of my most anticipated gigs in many a year.

JC