Best Spoken Word
"The Revolution Will Not Be Televised" is a spoken-word piece by American poet and musician Gil Scott-Heron, first recorded for his 1970 debut album *Small Talk at 125th and Lenox*. Over a conga-driven backdrop, Scott-Heron delivers a political critique of American media culture and racial politics....
"The Waste Land" is a 434-line modernist poem by T.S. Eliot, first published in 1922. It is renowned for its fragmented structure, shifting perspectives, and extensive allusions to classic literature, religious texts, and popular culture, reflecting post-World War I disillusionment. The poem is divi...
George Carlin set the standard for politically charged, highly intelligent stand-up comedy. His genius lay in deconstructing language itselfanalyzing the absurdity of common phrases and societal norms. His routines were less about punchlines and more about philosophical takedowns of human pretense....
Four Quartets is a poetic cycle consisting of four interconnected poems written by T.S. Eliot and published together in 1943. The work explores profound themes of time, spirituality, and the nature of existence, drawing heavily on Christian theology and the philosophy of time. The four poems are "Bu...
"The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" is a modernist poem written by American-British poet T.S. Eliot, first published in 1915. The work takes the form of a dramatic monologue, utilizing stream of consciousness to convey the inner anxieties of its insecure protagonist, Prufrock. It is widely regarde...
"When the Revolution Comes" is a spoken word performance by The Last Poets, featured on their self-titled debut album released in 1970. The group, formed in Harlem, combined politically charged poetry with percussion. This track exemplifies their militant style, addressing racial injustice and revol...
Laurie Anderson's 'United States' is a four-part multimedia project released in 1984, featuring spoken word performances, electronic music, and visual elements. This avant-garde work exemplifies Anderson's experimental approach to storytelling, utilizing synthesizers, tape loops, and innovative voca...
"Fern Hill" is a poem by the Welsh writer Dylan Thomas, first published in his 1946 collection Deaths and Entrances. The piece utilizes rich, pastoral imagery to narrate the loss of childhood innocence and the inevitable progression of time. This specific item is a spoken-word recording of Thomas re...
Ants from Up There is the second studio album by the British art-rock and post-punk band Black Country, New Road, released in February 2022. The album is notable for featuring lead vocals by Isaac Wood, who departed the band shortly before the record's release, making it his final project with the g...
"Inglan is a Bitch" appears on Linton Kwesi Johnson's 1980 album "Bass Culture" and represents a powerful example of his dub poetry style that combines spoken word with reggae-influenced musical backing. Johnson, who pioneered the dub poetry genre in Britain during the 1970s, addresses the racial di...
Fiona Shaw is an Irish actress (born 1958) known for her extensive work in theatre and film, who has performed T.S. Eliot's 1922 modernist poem 'The Waste Land' as a solo stage recitation. Her performance interprets the poem's multiple voices and fragmented structure through dramatic vocal variation...
*Rant in E-Minor* is a posthumous album by American stand-up comedian Bill Hicks, released in 1997 on Rykodisc, three years after his death from pancreatic cancer at age 32. Compiled from performances recorded in 1992 and 1993, the material presents Hicks's sustained critiques of American politics,...
Brand New Ancients is a narrative spoken-word poem written and performed by the English poet and rapper Kate Tempest. The work interweaves the lives of several working-class families in contemporary South London, treating their everyday struggles, triumphs, and tragedies with the reverence of classi...
"For the First Time" is the debut studio album by the British experimental rock band Black Country, New Road, released in February 2021. The record was recorded largely live in the studio to capture the group's raw, theatrical energy and relies on an expansive instrumentation of saxophone, violin, a...
An American Prayer is a posthumous studio album released in 1978 featuring the music of the American rock band The Doors and the recorded poetry of frontman Jim Morrison. After Morrison's death, the surviving band members composed and recorded new musical backing to accompany the vocalist's spoken-w...
"Alien Dreamtime" is a 1993 spoken word recording featuring lectures by ethnobotanist Terence McKenna on psychedelic shamanism and human evolution. McKenna, known for his exploration of consciousness-altering plants, presents theories about the role of psychedelics in human cognitive development. Th...
Shemekia Copeland is a powerhouse vocalist and dynamic performer who seamlessly blends blues, soul, and R&B influences. Her powerful voice, sharp wit, and insightful lyrics address themes of social justice, personal struggles, and everyday life. Copelands music is characterized by its energy, authen...
Who Is Jill Scott? Words and Sounds Vol. 1 is the debut studio album by Philadelphia singer-songwriter Jill Scott, released on Hidden Beach Recordings in 2000. It blends soul, jazz, hip-hop, and spoken word. The album features the singles "Gettin' in the Way" and "A Long Walk," both of which reached...
"Get in the Van" is a spoken word audiobook by musician and writer Henry Rollins, released in 1994. The recording chronicles his intense experiences as the frontman for the hardcore punk band Black Flag between 1981 and 1986. Rollins details the grueling physical conditions, internal band conflicts,...
"To This Day" is a spoken word poem by Canadian poet Shane Koyczan that addresses the experience and lasting effects of childhood bullying. In 2013, Koyczan released a crowd-sourced animated video of the poem, produced with contributions from numerous volunteer animators, which garnered millions of...
"The Laughing Heart" is a poem by the German-American author Charles Bukowski, who is known for his gritty, prolific writing detailing the struggles of everyday American life. The poem focuses on themes of survival, personal agency, and taking ownership of one's destiny despite bleak circumstances....
"If I Should Have a Daughter" is a spoken-word poem written and performed by American poet Sarah Kay. The piece gained significant public attention following her live presentation at the TED conference in Long Beach, California, in March 2011. In the performance, Kay addresses themes of motherhood,...
"Repetition" is a spoken word poem written and performed by American poet Phil Kaye. In the performance, Kaye explores how language loses and regains meaning through mechanical repetition, using the concept to reflect on his family history and his parents' separation. Kaye is a co-founder of Project...
Divide and Exit is a 2014 album by the English post-punk duo Sleaford Mods, consisting of vocalist Jason Williamson and musician Andrew Fearn. The record is distinguished by Fearn's minimalist electronic loops and Williamson's politically charged, working-class spoken-word vocal delivery. It served...
Dry Cleaning has carved a unique niche in the alternative rock scene with Florence Shaw's deadpan spoken-word vocals delivered over Nick Buxton and Tom Hackneys sparse, hypnotic post-punk instrumentation. Their debut album, 'New Long Leg,' established their signature sound, and their subsequent rele...
"The Joyous Cosmology: Adventures in the Chemistry of Consciousness" is a 1962 book by British philosopher Alan Watts. The text explores human consciousness through the lens of psychedelic experiences, drawing on the author's own observations with substances like LSD and mescaline. It combines exper...
Rudy Francisco is an American spoken word poet and author known for his dynamic slam poetry performances. "Scars" is one of his prominent spoken word pieces that explores themes of personal vulnerability, emotional trauma, and the lasting impact of past experiences. Often performed with intense emot...
"New Long Leg" is the debut studio album by the English post-punk band Dry Cleaning, released on the 4AD label in 2021. Recorded with producer John Parish, the record features the band's signature sound, which pairs angular guitar work with the spoken-word vocal delivery of frontwoman Florence Shaw....
I'll Fly Away is a 2020 poetry collection by American spoken-word poet Rudy Francisco. The collection blends personal narrative with social commentary, addressing themes including race, identity, relationships, and the experience of growing up Black in America. Francisco, based in San Diego, is a pr...
