England, Half-English

England, Half-English
Studio album by
Billy Bragg and the Blokes
Released4 March 2002[1]
RecordedJune 2001
StudioMonnow Valley Studio, Rockfield, Wales; Street Level, London; Roundhouse Studios, London
GenreRock
Length42:58
Label
ProducerGrant Showbiz
Billy Bragg and the Blokes chronology
Mermaid Avenue Vol. II
(2000) 		England, Half-English
(2002) 		Must I Paint You a Picture? The Essential Billy Bragg
(2003)
Singles from England, Half-English
  1. "England, Half English" / "St. Monday"
    Released: 18 February 2002[2]
  2. "Take Down the Union Jack"
    Released: 20 May 2002[3]
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic(64/100)[4]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[5]
The Austin Chronicle[6]
Entertainment WeeklyB−[7]
Los Angeles Times[8]
Neumu.net[9]
NME(5/10)[10]
Playlouder[11]
Robert Christgau(choice cut)[12]
Rolling Stone[13]
Spin(7/10)[4]
Stylus MagazineF[14]
Uncut[4]
Yahoo! Music UK[15]

England, Half-English is a 2002 album by English political singer-songwriter Billy Bragg and the Blokes.

The title track is about racism in England and the anti-immigration feelings and racist abuse of asylum seekers fuelled by the tabloid press, particularly the Daily Mail. The song uses examples such as the lions on the English football team's shirts, Britannia and the English patron saint, St. George (from Lebanon), the hyphen in Anglo-Saxon and the nation's favourite dish (curry) to convey his message that everything about English culture is shaped and influenced by the waves of immigration that have taken place in the past.

The title is taken from England, Half English, a 1961 collection of essays and articles by Colin MacInnes, which includes a 1957 article called "Young England, Half English" about the influence of American pop music on English teenagers.

The album peaked at number 51 on the UK Albums Chart in March 2002. Its first single, the double A-side "England, Half English" / "St. Monday", reached number 98 on the UK singles chart the same month. "Take Down the Union Jack", a song from the album that protests against the monarchy, Queen Elizabeth's Golden Jubilee and argues for English and Scottish independence, reached number 22 in the UK Singles Chart in May 2002.[16]

  1. ^ "Albums – England, Half-English". billybragg.co.uk. Retrieved 12 September 2023.
  2. ^ "Singles – England, Half English". billybragg.co.uk. Retrieved 12 September 2023.
  3. ^ "Singles – Take Down the Union Jack". billybragg.co.uk. Retrieved 12 September 2023.
  4. ^ a b c Critic reviews at Metacritic
  5. ^ AllMusic review
  6. ^ The Austin Chronicle review
  7. ^ "Entertainment Weekly". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on 29 June 2013.
  8. ^ "Norah Jones Weaves a Haunting Allure; Super Furry Animals Study Anthropology". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 12 November 2013. Retrieved 28 June 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  9. ^ Neumu.net review
  10. ^ NME review
  11. ^ "Playlouder review". Archived from the original on 12 June 2002. Retrieved 4 June 2013.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  12. ^ Robert Christgau Consumer Guide
  13. ^ "Rolling Stone review". Archived from the original on 14 May 2008. Retrieved 4 June 2013.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  14. ^ Stylus Magazine review Archived 10 May 2012 at the Wayback Machine
  15. ^ "Yahoo! Music UK review". Archived from the original on 25 August 2004. Retrieved 4 June 2013.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  16. ^ "Billy Bragg and the Blokes full Official Chart History". Official Charts. Retrieved 12 September 2023.