Stormzy, UB40 and Boney M feature in Windrush 75 Top 20
Stormzy, Craig David and Boney M are among music legends featured in a new Windrush Top 20 to celebrate this year’s 75th anniversary of the Windrush first arriving in Britain.
They feature alongside acts ranging from UB40 and Beverley Knight to ‘king of calypso’ Lord Kitchener and 50s pianist Winifred Atwell, the first black woman with a UK number 1, on the newly-released Windrush 75 Network playlist, available on Spotify.
The Top 20 playlist has been compiled by the Windrush 75 Network, which brings organisations together to celebrate the anniversary on 22 June.
And it showcases the huge contribution made to UK music by the Windrush generation, their descendants and those who followed from across the Commonwealth over the past 75 years, helping shape British popular culture.
The chronological list includes tracks from 1948 to 2021, starting with Lord Kitchener, who performed a specially-written song – London Is the Place for Me – live on a report for Pathé News as he stepped off the HMT Empire Windrush at Tilbury Docks in 1948.
The Top 20 concludes with Islington-born rapper and Ivor Novello Awards-winner Little Simz, singing Woman.
The playlist was overseen by Mykaell Riley, director of the Black Music Research Unit and PI for Bass Culture Research at the University of Westminster.
Riley was a founder member of British 70s reggae band Steel Pulse – the first non-Jamaican act to win a Grammy for Best Reggae Album.
He said: ‘It’s a great list which scratches the surface of a hugely important cultural contribution. In many ways, it's a teaser to what lies beyond the beats, melodies and songs that have found their way into so many lives.’
Liz Mitchell, original lead singer of Boney M, who have sold more than 100million records, said: ‘It’s a thrill to feature in such a fabulous playlist of music and memories. Boney M was a three-quarters black British group yet that was never fully recognised at the time, even when we were getting to No.1 and performing on Top of the Pops every week.’
Mitchell, who was flown over alone from Jamaica as an 11-year-old schoolgirl for an emotional reunion with her parents at Waterloo station in 1964 before starting a new life in Harlesden, London, added: ‘The 75th anniversary of Windrush is the perfect moment to look back and celebrate the Black British contribution to this country and migration from across the Commonwealth that helped create our brilliantly diverse society today.’
The HMT Empire Windrush first arrived at Tilbury Docks in Essex on 22 June 1948, bringing around 1,000 passengers from the Caribbean.
The Windrush 75 Network was set up to bring together organisations committed to marking the 75th anniversary as a major national moment.
Working with charity British Future – experts on integration, immigration, race and identity – the initiative will also help explain why Windrush 75 matters in the context of modern Britain.
The network is supported by names from sport, culture, politics, faith and business, including actor Lenny Henry, politician David Lammy MP, historian David Olusoga and Rose Hudson-Wilkin, Bishop of Dover.
Windrush 75 network convenor Patrick Vernon said: ‘The Windrush generation and those who followed have made a massive contribution to so many aspects of British life, from sport and culture to business, public services and faith.
‘Our popular culture and music in particular is immensely richer because of this Black British influence. We’re celebrating that with the Windrush Top 20 and it’s something we want everyone to celebrate across the UK as we mark the 75th anniversary of Windrush this year.’
Many organisations are planning Windrush 75 activities, with a major programme at Tilbury Docks, the Radiate Windrush festival in London’s Burgess Park, commemorative stamps and coins, a new one-man show from Lenny Henry and a special programme at the V&A.
The Windrush 75 Network Top 20:
1. Lord Kitchener: London Is the Place For Me (1948)
2. Winifred Atwell: Let's Have Another Party (1954)
3. The Southlanders: The Mole in a Hole (1958)
4. Millie Small: My Boy Lollipop (1964)
5. The Equals: Baby Come Back (1968)
6. Cymande: Brothers on the Slide (1974)
7. Billy Ocean: Love Really Hurts Without You (1976)
8. Boney M: Sunny (1976)
9. Janet Kay: Silly Games (1979)
10. The Selecter: Three Minute Hero (1980)
11. UB40: One in Ten (1981)
12. Loose Ends: Hangin' on a String (Contemplating) (1985)
13. Soul II Soul: Keep on Movin’ (1989)
14. Massive Attack: Unfinished Sympathy (1991)
15. Goldie: Inner City Life (1994)
16. Craig David: Rewind (1999)
17. Beverley Knight: Shoulda Woulda Coulda (2002)
18. Wretch 32: Don’t Go (2011)
19. Stormzy: Blinded By Your Grace, Pt.2 (2017)
20. Little Simz: Woman (2021)
Pauline Black, lead singer of The Selecter, added: ‘Several members of The Selecter began life in the Caribbean and immigrated to Britain with their parents. The music they brought with them infused the culture of the late 70s, producing a true synthesis between black and white music to form the 2 tone movement in 1979.
‘We were young musicians who understood the meaning of multiculturalism long before the nation did. Three Minute Hero speaks to the aspirations of all young musicians in those days - everybody wanted a three-minute long single out on vinyl that was going to played on the radio. I’m eternally grateful to our audiences that The Selecter were given that opportunity.’
Trevor Nelson will present a night of music at the Royal Albert Hall on Friday 9 June to mark the 75th anniversary of Windrush and celebrate the impact of Caribbean culture on British life. The concert will feature a multi-generational line-up focussing on British talent with Caribbean heritage, including Craig David and others to be announced, accompanied by the Chineke! Orchestra conducted by Chris Cameron.
The Windrush 75 Top 20 is available on Spotify.