Gil Scott-Heron - Moving Target [Red]

Gil Scott-Heron's Moving Target returns on red vinyl, a 1982 record where the poet and singer points his pen at a nation in flux and still keeps the groove front and centre.

Years after "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised" made him a voice of conscience, Scott-Heron was still releasing music at a steady clip, and this album finds him folding protest into warm, sophisticated soul-jazz. The politics are sharp but never sour, delivered in that unhurried baritone that could make a sermon feel like a late-night conversation between friends.

"Fast Lane" opens the set with a slinky, rolling pulse, while "Washington D.C." takes a sardonic stroll through the capital and finds plenty to raise an eyebrow at. "Blue Collar" tips its hat to working people with real tenderness, the rhythm section locked into a steady, easy pocket that lets every word land.

The closing "Black History / The World" is the heart of the record, a sweeping piece that braids spoken word and music into a lesson delivered with patience and fire. At only seven tracks, Moving Target never wastes a minute of anyone's time.

Pressed in red, this is a handsome way to revisit one of the more overlooked chapters in a remarkable catalogue, and proof that Scott-Heron's words still land with uncomfortable accuracy.