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Leon Rosselson – Bio, discography, gigs and blogs from singer-songwriter Leon RosselsonSkip to content
Leon Rosselson is an acclaimed singer and songwriter with more than 50 years of performing under his belt and the author of 17 children’s books. Here you can find more information, a complete bibliography and musicography of Leon’s works as well as an up to date list of upcoming gigs.
You can also get in touch if you’d like more information or to purchase a book or record.
Leon’s autobiography, WO SIND DIE ELEFANTEN? (Where Are the Elephants?) is now available to order from PM Press.
Leon Rosselson has spent a lifetime chronicling the times in song and envisioning the birth of a world after capitalism.
His book is an absorbing account of his journey from a childhood during the 2nd World War to lockdown during the pandemic, with lyrics from his songs to light up the way.
This is a gem of a book from Leon Rosselson, singer, composer, writer of children’s stories and angry, beautiful song lyrics, class warrior and merciless critic of Israel and Zionism
Leon Rosselson’s eminently readable memoir … deserves to be read by more than those familiar with Rosselson’s unprecedented oeuvre. It’s absurd to see Leon Rosselson as anything other than as a national treasure.
I remember, I remember when my world was hardly grown And the daughter of a dead dull king ascended to the throne And though I was just a lad at school, I saw it all with scorn The solemn, sacred emptiness, the monumental yawn And the slime exuding daily from the sycophantic slugs And the Coronation ash trays and the Coronation mugs And the rows of ermined mummies with their maggot-eaten brains All the swarms of bloated blowflies the majestic turd sustains. Droves of decorated duchesses like newly painted slums Kneeling flunkeys, praying monkeys, loyal holes for royal crumbs And the well-heeled sharks discreetly selling tickets for the show Park Lane balconies with champagne at a thousand quid a throw. Come and cheer the golden fairy Queen, forget your daily cares For she radiates a glory that a grateful nation shares And the pageantry, the panoply, the sanctified decay – But I knew the hour was coming that would sweep it all away. Now time has me in a corner and I’m moth-eared from the fray But Her Majesty is reigning still today.
With a glass cage around her and an absence in her eyes And though regiments surround her, they can’t take her by surprise She’s as poised as a picture, she’s a sight for all to see With a glass cage around her on her Silver Jubilee with a glass cage around her she feels free.
I remember 1956, division East and West British paratroops in Suez, Russian tanks in Budapest And the peaceful marchers singing for the dream that must come true Of a world freed from the nightmare we’ve since grown accustomed to And the Cuban missile crisis with the rumours flying round That the Queen was in her secret bomb-proof palace underground And the violence exploding when anger made a stand For a peasant people burning in a torn and tortured land. And the Monarch walked her corgis behind the palace wall Never once betraying what she felt or if she felt at all. While her husband shot his mouth off like a walking blunderbuss She gave birth to royal children with the minimum of fuss Maintained her waxwork dignity as she trod the royal dance Fulfilled her royal functions in a kind of royal trance Balmoral, Ascot, Sandringham, the ship launching routine, Palace banquets, garden parties ever smiling and serene Unique symbol, model woman, never seeing, always seen so we watched her as she played at being Queen.
With a glass cage around her etc.
She seems so commonplace a woman in her fuddy-duddy hats But she doesn’t stand in bus queues or live in high-rise flats And she doesn’t ride the rush hour or cycle down the Strand And she doesn’t play maraccas in the Ivy Benson band. And she doesn’t shop for bargains, she’s never on the dole And if she does the football pools she doesn’t tell a soul. And she never used to bother with the Inland Revenue Though she’s royally rewarded for the things she doesn’t do With palaces and properties and to keep her in good cheer A working wage of 36.7 million pounds a year A royal train, a royal plane, a costly royal yacht And lucrative investments in only God knows what. Oh the magic of the monarchy, the mystery sublime Growing gracefully and effortlessly richer all the time. She’s the rock of hope and glory in the quicksand of despair For although the pound may tumble, although panic fills the air Although governments may crumble and the cupboard’s nearly bare Though the stairs begin to rattle and the rats begin to stare She enfolds in mystic unity her subjects everywhere And we know we’re safe from harm while Nanny’s there.
“Turning Silence Into Song” – Leon Rosselson has been doing that for six decades, creating a sound track for unsung heroes and unspeakable scoundrels. Revisit his classics or be introduced to one you never heard before. Invite someone who never heard of Leon – it’s about time!
This live Zoom concert, sponsored by The People’s Music Network, featured an international lineup of musical luminaries celebrating the life and work of Leon Rosselson.
There’s lots to comment on in these turbulent times so Leon has launched a new blog on Medium.com. There you’ll find provocative musings on songwriting, politics and life’s little ironies. Leon’s first musing asks if Zionism is inherently antisemitic and comes after the suspension of Ken Livingstone and the furore over supposed antisemitism in the Labour Party.
My local Labour controlled council has just voted, like other councils, as well as universities and the UK government, to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of antisemitism. This consists of a rather loose basic definition, followed by a rambling discourse around the subject that twice mentions Israel and then 11 examples, 7 of which refer to the state of Israel. Anyone with a functioning brain might suspect that this definition has less to do with protecting Jews from antisemitism than with shielding Israel from criticism.
When the European Parliament were due to vote on whether to adopt this definition, I wrote to my MEPs urging them to reject it. Two replied in identical terms, pointing out that the definition makes it clear that ‘criticism ofIsrael cannot be regarded as antisemitic’. Except that it doesn’t. They lied. Why would they do that? What it actually says is that ‘criticism of Israel similar to that levelled against any other country cannot be regarded as antisemitic’.
The italicised phrase changes everything. Why is it there? Obviously to muddy the waters. Who is to decide whether criticism of Israel goes beyond that levelled against any other country? In any case, Israel is not like any other country. It is a settler colonial state, founded on massacres and ethnic cleansing. It is, by any definition, a criminal state. Transferring Israeli settlers into the occupied territory is illegal, as is transferring Palestinian prisoners into Israeli jails. The Wall, built largely on Palestinian land was judged illegal by the International Court of Justice in 2004. The collective punishment inflicted on the people of Gaza is a war crime under the Fourth Geneva Convention. Israel itself is a racist state where ‘Arabs’ are viewed as a demographic threat. Unlike other countries (Myanmar is an exception), it is not a state for all its citizens but for all the Jews in the world, who are given the ‘Right of Return’, a right denied to the indigenous people.
Leon Rosselson’s early vinyl recordings are now available as downloads on all major digital retail outlets, including iTunes, Amazon, Google Play and Napster.
Now available from Five Leaves Bookshop Occasional Papers
Singer-songwriter Leon Rosselson questions what it means to be Jewish.
“For my parents and grandparents, Jewish identity, in religion, culture and language, was a given. Not so for me. I’m not religious, not a Zionist, so in what consists my Jewishness? Is a love of chopped liver and a belief that chicken soup cures all ills enough? And does it matter? This is the story of my search for answers. It is an argument with myself, with song lyrics to embellish the argument.”
28 pages £4.00
ISBN 978-1-910170-33-5
Order from Five Leaves (UK P&P free)
Send your name, address and a cheque for £4
payable to Five Leaves, 14a Long Row,
Nottingham NG1 2DH or call 0115 837 3097, 10–5 Mon–Sat, with
your address and credit card details or pay via PayPal to [email protected]
This essay was originally presented as the 2015 Yerushah Lecture at the Faculty of Divinity, University of Cambridge at the invitation of Dr Daniel Weiss
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
One day before his 80th birthday, Leon joined forces with Owen Jones, Russell Brand and fifty thousand people to protest against austerity at a rally organised by the People’s Assembly
We spotted this video of Leon in action on the web.
Credit: Garlic Toothpaste on YouTube
Visit the People’s Assembly website to find an event near you and keep an eye on our Gigs page for Leon’s next performance!
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.
On the 10th November, Leon will join forces with the London Lucumi Choir, which counts his daughter Daniela Rosselson amongst its singers, for a performance at Jamboree.
Lullaby for Naila is a collection of lullabies & children’s songs put together for Naila, Leon’s granddaughter, by his daughter Daniela Rosselson. The collection is made up of songs from countries with which Naila has a connection and features the London Lucumi Choir, Juwon Ogungbe & Reem Kelani.
For some gigs, such as the Anti-Capitalist Roadshow concert in Oxford, you can now purchase tickets in advance from this website. Payment is securely handled by PayPal and tickets will be waiting for you under your name at the door.
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.