8. Linton Kwesi JohnsonMore Time
You’ve had an enormously long and fruitful working relationship with Linton, why did you choose this particular album?
Because I think its message is so important, both when it came out but also now. That’s the thing with Linton, he’s a poet of the present but also a prophet of the future. I think we all need More Time to realise our full potential. We shouldn’t have to work seven days a week for eight hours a day. If we just worked half that time our productivity in all kinds of ways would increase. What about four hours a day?! We’re all slaves to these jobs! Linton just has one of those voices that are commanding and authoritative. I recently had the pleasure of doing some remix work with Arcade Fire. I always thought ‘Flashbulb Eyes’ and in fact a lot of the Reflektor album was very close to reggae. The remix I did with Linton’s vocal on it was the only remix I’ve ever done where band approval came through simultaneously and immediately – normally I wait for staggered messages, it takes time for approval but with that remix all twelve members of the band immediately just said they loved it. And it’s because of Linton. That’s what drives me to work with him. A chord for every word. We’ve built up this relationship over the years where all kinds of different music have come into our work, and that will only continue.
