Mark Stewart And the Mafia – ONU Sound Records – 1982

Jerusalem / High Ideals And Crazy Dreams

Liberty City

A three pronged attack for St Georges Day this year as opposed to the slightly one dimensional 4 Skins post from last year!

Firstly William Blake’s popular singalong ‘Jerusalem’ dubbed up by Mark Stewart And The Mafia, and squeezed out the speakers via the hand of Adrian Sherwood for ONU Sound Records way back in 1982. Obviously uploaded the other two tracks on this 12″ also because they are magnificent.

Secondly an informative piece on the actual saint himself; St George without whom…I would not have a post to upload today. Thank you to him then…

Thirdly all the chatter going on about Spitfires, Biggin Hill and giving the german luftwaffe a bloody nose in 1940 via the comments on another post, lead me to upload a couple of great photos of a mark V Spitfire that was funded by the gentle folk of Southgate, London N14, just up the road from me as I write this.

Put these photos up for my late father who also served for a while in the RAF as an engineer  (mechanic) back in the 1950’s. And to a late uncle that lived in Biggin Hill and was visited by me many times when I was very young, who told me stories of the North African campaign from WW2 as he was there!

George, a Captain in the Roman Army, tore up in defiance an edict of Emperor Diocletian ordering the persecution of Christians. He battled the devil, symbolized by the dragon, and saved the Holy Church, symbolized by the king’s daughter shown in a number of icons. He rides a white horse that indicates God’s grace carrying him to the heroism of martyrdom. Constantine the Great built a great church over his tomb in Lyda of Palestine. The name George means ‘Tiller of the Earth.’

St. George was born in Cappadocia, an ancient Roman Empire province located in modern east central Turkey. St. George’s father was most probably a Syrian who was martyred for his Christian faith. On the death of his mother, St. George inherited the large family estate in Palestine. At the age of twenty George became a professional soldier in the Emperor Diocletian’s Army. The young man’s noble birth, loyalty, and unusual intellect brought St. George to the notice of the Emperor. In time St. George became a trusted member of the royal court and was promoted to the level of tribune in the army. He might have become a leading officer had not Diocletian (245 – 313 AD) started a persecution of the Christian community.

St. George refused to conduct war on his Christian brothers and would not honor the imperial edicts which outlawed the faith. Instead he quit his exalted positions, left his distinguished military career, and gave a way his massive estates to the poor. When the imperial edicts were officially posted in the eastern capitol of Nicomedia, St. George tore them down and demanded that the Emperor rescind his unjust persecution. For his defense of the true faith, St. George was tortured and condemned to death.

On the first day of his imprisonment St. George was stabbed with lances, but the spears broke like straws. The Lord would not allow his skin to be penetrated. Next he was tied to the ground and a crushing weight was placed upon his chest. When Diocletian returned on the following day. St. George was alive and proclaiming the protection of Jesus Christ. The Emperor next had the saint strapped to a wheel studded with knives and sword blades. Diocletian thought this would surely kill any man, but George lay perfectly still conversing with an angel. At the end of the day, totally unharmed, St. George was removed. For the next five days the glorious martyr suffered tortures beyond description. He was submerged in quicklime, had his limbs beaten, was forced to run in red-hot iron shoes, was scourged, and was made to drink two cups of poison, No matter what was done to him, St. George survived to praise the Lord. Many witnesses to these miracles concerted to Christianity.

On the seventh day of his imprisonment, Our Lord visited St. George in a dream. Jesus laid a golden crown on the martyr’s head and told him to prepare for Paradise. On awaking, St. George called his servant. After recording his memoirs, St. George asked the servant to have his body taken to his beloved Palestine for burial.

On the eighth day St. George was again dragged before the Emperor and once again was asked to deny his faith. St. George refused. Instead he demonstrated his faith by exorcising devils from the statues which lined the Emperor’s court. From the statue of Apollo, St. George drew out a demon who was forced to admit that he was a fallen angel. Then, of their own accord, all the statuary in the great room smashed to the floor. The Empress Alexandra, seeing the many miracles, converted to Christianity on the spot, as did her servants Isaac and Croates. Enraged, the Emperor had his wife and the servants immediately killed. St. George was thrown back into the dungeon, where he died two days later on April 23, 303 AD.

The tale of St. George and the dragon is more symbolic than historical. The legend that he saved a Libyan princess by killing a dragon arose in the 12th century. ”George and the Dragon” may have arisen from the myth of Perseus who slew a sea monster near the site of George’s supposed martyrdom. The Perseus myth has origins in traditional sixth century North African folktales.

The dragon, traditionally, was a symbol of evil passions and paganism. Though these beasts are often depicted as fire breathing monsters, they always dwelt in low wetlands, caves, or wells. When the evil passions were disturbed, the monster devoured mankind, usually in the guise of a drought or a dry windstorm. According to the folk tales a fierce dragon lived in a marshy lair outside of Selena, Libya. The great beast ravaged the countryside and could only be placated by regular sacrifices. Every day the villagers were forced to offer the dragon two sheep. When the animals no longer satisfied the monster, a human sacrifice was offered. The land’s fairest young maidens were selected by means of a lottery. One day the King’s own daughter was chosen to sate the beast’s hunger.

St. George, so the folk tale goes, happened across the princess as she prepared for death. On hearing the maiden’s story, St. George made the Sign of the Cross and went to do battle with the monster. Several powerful blows of George’s broad sword rendered the beast helpless. St. George then led the dragon in chains to the heart of the village. The townspeople marveled at the saint’s faith and the power of his God. All of the community accepted baptism and converted to the true faith. The grateful King promised half of his lands to the savior of the town, but St. George declined the offer of earthly rewards. Instead he told the monarch to do honor to the true Savior by safekeeping God’s churches, honoring the clergy, and having pity on the poor.

In addition to his close relationship with the peoples of Lebanon and Syria, St. George is the patron of England, Portugal, Aragon, Catalonia, and Lithuania.

Another presentation Spitfire photographed freshly off the factory. AA963, Spitfire Mk. VC ‘Borough of Southgate’ was funded by the people of the North London suburb of Southgate.

Interestingly, at the time when the photographs were taken the aircraft did not carry cannon armament.

AA963 went to the US in early 1942 for evaluation at Wright Field. It is known to be repainted in USAAF colours of Olive Drab with Medium Green patches around the edges of the wings and horizontal tail surfaces, and Neutral Grey underneath. Then the aircraft briefly disappeared after being displayed in Chicago, and then again at Lincoln AFB Nebraska in 1943. Then the trail went cold.

 

6 comments
  1. Just Insane
    Just Insane
    April 24, 2009 at 6:26 pm

    Yet another superb upload. I love most of the On-U sounds, especially Gary Clail’s End of the 20th Centruy Party. This upload got me into that scene – THANKS!

    Sant Jordi (Sanit George) is really important here in Catalonia & is actually a lovely day, celebrated by giving your lady a rose or your fella a book. 5 million roses get change hands on one day & the streets are festooned with Roses & books – a wonderful tradition, well worth imitating.

  2. dan i
    dan i
    April 25, 2009 at 9:44 am

    Saint George is patron saint of all sorts of places – Poland, Moscow, England, and I see, Catalonia. Clearly an important guy who was prepared to swim against the tide, an early Rage Against The Machine kind of hero maybe? “F*** you, I wont do what you tell me, etc etc.”

    Mark Stewart’s Jerusalem and Liberty City 12″ – Fan blooming tastic Pengy. Just the ticket.

  3. dan i
    dan i
    April 25, 2009 at 9:47 am

    Liberty City is such a scary tune

  4. dan i
    dan i
    April 25, 2009 at 5:05 pm

    Posted by John Eden elsewhere:

    Film:
    On/ Off – Mark Stewart from the Pop Group to the Maffia (World Premiere)

    The screening will be followed by a Q&A with Mark Stewart and Toni Schifer conducted by Mark Fisher, (K-Punk, The Wire).

    Tues 28th April, 7.30pm
    Genesis Cinema, 93-95 Mile End road, E1 4UJ, LONDON
    http://www.genesiscinema.co.uk/
    http://www.eastendfilmfestival.com/index.php?/programme/C16/#onoff

    Gig:
    Following the screening Mark Stewart will host a live gig at the Rhythm Factory featuring The Bug (Kevin Martin, ex-God, once Ashwin Street squatters), who for over 10 years has lead the way with his groundbreaking mix of dubstep, industrial beats and hip hop, plus On-U Sound pioneer DJ Adrian Sherwood, and experimental electronica artiste Russell Haswell and special guests.

    Tickets cost £10, but you can buy a joint ticket for both events for £15. People who have attended the screning, or have these tickets, are given priority to go to the party.
    _________________
    Woofah #3 out now! Twilight Circus, Bellevue, History of UK Dub, Flowdan, much more.

    http://www.woofahmag.com

  5. Mike
    Mike
    June 9, 2011 at 5:14 pm

    A Punky Reggae Tribute to ARI UP of THE SLITS! Bristol 30th July 2011 ft The Slits, Adrian Sherwood, Mark Stewart and Viv Albertine! http://www.bristolticketshop.co.uk for tickets!

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