Danger! High Voltage! - "Electric Avenue"

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As it turns out, there actually is an “Electric Avenue.” It’s located in the London district of Brixton, and was the first market street to be lit by electricity. In the early 1980’s Eddy Grant was living there, writing songs and acting at the Black Theatre of Brixton. In 1981, Brixton became infamous for the Brixton Riot, a two-day clash between the police and Brixton youths, who had become increasingly upset over racial profiling and racism in general. According to reports, up to 5000 people were involved. Vehicles and buildings were destroyed, and 82 people were arrested. Eddy Grant was horrified, wrote a song, and split to take up residence in Barbados. The songs Grant had been working on were lost in transit. Once settled, he wrote “Electric Avenue” to make up for the lost material. The song became an international hit, charting in 14 countries, and pushed Grant’s album, Killer on the Rampage, to similar international success. Eddy Grant was not the only artist influenced by the Brixton Riot. The Clash, Black Uhuru, Steel Pulse, and Rancid all recorded tunes based upon the events. There’s a riot goin’ on, indeed. Link is to the official promotional video: