Grenfell, by The Four Fathers (original) (raw)

Produced by the acclaimed musician and producer Charlie Hart, who also plays accordion on it, 'Grenfell' is lead singer Andy Worthington's response to the Grenfell Tower fire on June 14, 2017, in which 72 people died.

ALL PROCEEDS FROM SALES OF THIS TRACK WILL GO TO THE GRENFELL FOUNDATION.
A charitable organisation, it was set up this year "at the direct request of bereaved and survivors from Grenfell Tower" to "provide independent support to the former residents of Grenfell Tower, their families, dependents, and the local community."
See: grenfellfoundation.org.uk

A reggae lament, issued to mark 500 days since the fire (on October 26, 2018), 'Grenfell' remembers those who died, and calls for those responsible to be held accountable — from central government to Kensington and Chelsea Council, the Kensington and Chelsea Tenant Management Organisation (KCTMO), and the various contractors who, collectively, were involved in a system in which cost-cutting and profiteering were prioritised over tenants' safety, and no one seemed to care that highly flammable cladding was used to refurbish the tower (and hundreds of others around the country).

For a video of 'Grenfell', performed by Andy, Richard and Mark with beatboxer The Wiz-RD, recorded by a German TV crew in October 2017, see: youtu.be/BLehKWOhMyY
For Andy's article about Grenfell immediately after the fire, see: www.andyworthington.co.uk/2017/06/16/deaths-foretold-at-grenfell-tower-let-this-be-the-moment-we-the-people-say-no-more-to-the-greed-that-killed-residents/

Grenfell (Andy Worthington)

In Kensington and Chelsea
Where the richest people live
Over seventy of the poorer souls
Were abandoned to their death

They warned that Grenfell was a deathtrap
In words as strong as they could give
But the council and the management
Ignored them with complete contempt

Chorus

Grenfell who is gonna pay?
Grenfell it didn’t have to be that way
Grenfell all those lives needlessly lost
By those who only count the profit not the human cost

The tragedy of Grenfell
Where all the warnings were ignored
Is that our neo-liberal leaders
Dispensed with safety needs

And so the tower was refurbished
But in a way so deeply flawed
That they created an inferno
In the crucible of their greed

Chorus (repeat)

In the aftermath of Grenfell
The authorities pretend
That they care about the victims
But their actions show otherwise

They only care about social cleansing
And how little money they can spend
So when we’re faced with social murder
We the people need to organise

Chorus (repeat)

Line-up:

Andy Worthington (lead vocals, guitar)
Richard Clare (guitar, backing vocals)
Bren Horstead (drums and percussion)
Mark Quiney (bass)
Charlie Hart (accordion)

released October 26, 2018
Written by Andy Worthington.
Recorded at Equator Studios with Charlie Hart, July and September 2018.

Reviews

"Accordion-powered social justice reggae!"
Phil Murphy, former firefighter