Ripoff is a punchy rocker with a powerful riff. The song was about frustration as Hunter has the perspective from American after having lived in the US for a long time. Ian takes aim at British politics and although the song may seem critical his lyrics often seem to regret England's failings rather than appearing bitter against his homeland. After living in America for some time he has a detached yet nostalgic attachment to his native land. In Sweepstakes Ian has stated that England is about care, vocation, air play, and tradition. If anything, Ian is angry at the ruling English elite and what they have done especially Tony Blair. Hunter didn't care for Thatcher or Heath and Wilson was socialism through the roof. In many ways he is stating the obvious and what others should recognize as well.
The target is obvious in Ripoff: "I really don't know why England's such a ripoff" he relates, "Some day you might win the lottery/Some day you might win the pools/But that's all you've got to live for" which for an awful lot of people isn't too far from the truth.
Hunter contrasts the glory that was England with its declining state of affairs. The song includes the famous phrase, "green and pleasant land," from Jerusalem which is England’s unofficial national anthem, like “God Bless America” is in the United States. The song was first performed in 1916, during World War I, as patriotic fight song by Sir Hubert Parry, a famous composer, lyrically arising from the English poet William Blake in the early 19th Century. Ironically, the Englishman Hunter now describes himself an "alien" in contradiction from his stance in All American Alien Boy. Ian is explaining how he would love to live in England though he had not for many years since he embraced America years earlier. He asks rhetorically where are you going to go if the green and pleasant land has degenerated. America is built on making money and opportunity: life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
Ian Hunter On Track for Sonicbond Publishing, TheDoctorOfDigital@pm.me
Ripoff
(Ian Hunter)
I don't wanna be no traitor to the cause
But England is a luxury - not many can afford
There's people going under - it's getting out of hand
Whatever happened to our - our green and pleasant land?
It turned into a wilderness; it turned into a third world country
Most people ain't getting what they pay for
Some people gettin' more than they should be
I know, I know - I'm an alien - but what are you gonna do
I wanna live in England - but it gets to you
It gets to you, it gets to you, it gets to you
I really don't know why - England's such a ripoff
It's crazy, but it's true
I really don't know why - England wants to rip off you
England wants to rip off you, England wants to rip off you
What do you do when you find out?
Where do you go if you leave?
There's no place like home - that's what they say
And that's what you always believed
Someday you might win the Lottery
Someday you might win the Pools
But that's all you've got - that's all you've got - to live for, to live for
That's all you've got - that's all you've got - to live for, to live for (yeah)
To be or not to be - that's the question
Oh what's it gonna be?
I'd love to live in England - but it gets to me
it gets to me, it gets to me, yeah it gets to me
I really don't know why - England's such a ripoff
It's crazy, but it's true
I really don't know why - England wants to rip off you
England wants to rip off you, England wants to rip off you
I really don't know why - England's such a ripoff
It's crazy, but it's true
Oh I really don't know why - England wants to rip off England wants to rip off , England wants to rip off Ian Hunter CD: "Rant"
Sleeve and track listing
Fuel2000/True North TND 235.
- Still Love Rock 'n' Roll (4:34)
- Wash Us Away (3:57)
- Death of a Nation (5:35)
- Morons (5:32)
- Purgatory (4:46)
- American Spy (4:30)
- Dead Man Walkin' (Eastenders) (6:20)
- Good Samaritan (4:07)
- Soap & Water (5:18)
- Ripoff (4:50)
- Knees Of My Heart (3:35)
- No One (3:37)
Running time: 56m 47s
Sleeve variations
UK sleeve
Review
Ian's first studio album since The Artful Dodger finds him in a determined mood with a lot to say. Always at his best when he feels he has something to say, Ian is on the warpath with this one, his most politically charged in over 25 years. And boy has he delivered, an album that will stand the test of time mixing belting rockers with poingant ballads.
Opening track Still Love Rock 'n' Roll is a nod to the music that inspired Ian in the first place, a great mid-tempo rocker, Chuck Berry meets Little Richard covering all points in between but with a fresh perspective. I can see this being in the live set for years to come. Wash Us Away is a great slower number that grows on you, you'll soon find yourself humming the tune when you're busy doing something else.
Death Of A Nation is next, some of you may remember it from last year's tour. Almost folkish in places with acoustic guitar, Ian laments the decline of the England that (WW2 leader) Churchill would have known, and has a message for the politicians responsible for it all: "But you've been getting away with it for far too long/Your promises ain't worth the paper they're written on". In terms of pace and delivery it is reminiscent of God (Take 1), I can see it becoming another live favourite.
Morons is an up-tempo rocker, with plenty of piano, reminiscent musically of Marionette and lyrically Crash Street Kidds where Ian positively spits venom at the politicians and media for treating people like... well, morons: "Read moron newspapers, watch moron television... Etonians, Harovians think they're the chosen ones", and later "Look at those morons! They do nothing but whine and they're slow all the time... We can leave 'em behind, while we're dumbing them down we'll be robbing them blind!"
The subject of the high cost of living in England crops up again later, like in American Spy where Ian notes "Always in the red, never in the black/You make a bit of money and they take it all back/This ain't no way to spend the rest of my life" and in the more obvious Ripoff: "I really don't know why England's such a ripoff" and, he notes, "Some day you might win the lottery/Some day you might win the pools/But that's all you've got to live for" which for an awful lot of people isn't to far from the truth.
But it isn't all political, as Ian shows time and again he can write beautiful ballads that hit the emotional nail right on the head, such as Knees Of My Heart ("Slipped the ring on your finger/It's still there to this day" and "Honest and faithful, loyal and true/Where would I be if it were not for you".
Soap 'n' Water is direct and to the point, being directed at someone else entirely: "I can't believe what you did, you know how to hurt/All you do is drag old memories through the dirt".
This is a CD that takes a couple of plays to hit you (Ian never makes it easy for his fans!). But believe me, there is quality and depth here that will reward repeated playing. The (US) CD comes with an insert that folds out to reveal full lyrics and musician credits - I can only assume the UK CD will do likewise. All in all, highly recommended.
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