I read about the last years of his life..the addiction. I was driving a long way and played this in my car and cried. He was expressing his pain. He, musically, came into my life along time ago...I love this guy, x

This man has carried me thru my teens, as a young man, as a father, as a grandfather, as a middle age man, and now approaching what society calls a senior(bullshit!). I love Gil! Have heard all his music, seen him live, but this trilogy, "The Other Side 1,2,3 is his greatest, cause he's bearing his soul and exposing his demons. All of us who love Gil, gets it 100.

I first heard Winter in America in 1976, I was 20 years old and an English guy. It explained Vietnam and all I had witnessed on British TV. I’m still listening to Gil in 2023 and finding nuances in his songwriting after so many years. Peace Brother, you are and always were the man.

A voice of reason, curiosity, social consciousness, pride, economic, environmental concerns. A voice that spoke to power through awesome music at a great personal cost. We need him TODAY!!. I miss him terribly I am big big fan of his. His music was part of my formative years as a young man and I still listen to him to this very day. In the political and social climate of today it is unfortunate that we do not have his voice. I am truly saddened that he is not hear but I have the music and his writings. Gil Scott Heron still lives! I love you Gil! Rest in Power my brother.

_Gil has always been deep.._ _But the "pain" I hear in this man is so much deeper.._ _God Bless You, they're listening now.._

I heard this version before the original 'home is where the hatred is' . This album 'Spirits' was the first album I ever heard by him. I cried. There is no other song about addiction better than this. He captured it in the original, but that was an early phase in the battle. As time limps by the addictions got stronger, and so did his desire to express this saga. He wanted to be understood. I think this song is for the only people he knew would understand it. Addicts, former addicts. Casual users can listen to the fucking radio. I can be found in a constant state of awe and wonder, while I listen to this... look up his daughter Gia Scott Heron. She is a fantastic poet and a beautiful person. RIP Gill.... the best damned writer we were lucky enough to love and apprectiate

mama could change it (crack cocaine) daddy could fix it (heroin). goin home hellofva metaphor for getting high. went from addict to counselor at VA. been Gil fan since I was a young revolutionary 70's serving in the army. favorite artist of all time!!!

Doesn't just apply to addiction. You can apply this song to any part of dealing with depression of any sort. It is uplifting. It is self empowering, if you let it. It is that power within, speaking out loud!

This song has gotten me through some tough times. Thank you Gil

Love Gil. Been Listeniing since the 1970''s. I'm 71yrs old.Lost my son to addictions 2yrs ago.

I have wrote so many stories for books just listening to this one track. He is/was a true gift.

I admit , blaming myself, that I'm listening for the first time, at 56, this masterpiece. Beauty, pure beauty.

A shame only 13,000 views. Some of the greatest nights of my life were watching Gil and his band. Like this song, his gigs were a non-stop roller coaster ride that would leave me buzzing for days afterwards. A genuine one off. He may have wasted a lot, but he gave the world so much.

This is incredibly powerful music. A testament to the man's genius.

I grew up listening to old school Gil, but when I first found this album I played this set end to end for 2 days solid. I've never even touched drugs yet somehow I feel I understand everything this puts across, as weird as that sounds..the yearning for something 'more', the first rush of the high and the blissful delusions and denial, interspersed with brief moments of biting lucidity coupled with the realization that things aren't as they should be, all mixed up with the rejection by the people around you who can't/don't know how to deal with it, you not knowing where to turn, all the time slowly being consumed by the addiction in a self perpetuating cycle. Hang onto your Rosary beads Close your Eyes And Watch me Die Gil, the world is a worse place without you. In your own way you were a visionary and a giant among men, you may not have realized it but your written and spoken word of your own struggles will touch many other people for generations to come. R.I.P.

I was so blessed to see this man in concert (London) right before he died. Despite being a big fan of his, the first time I heard this song was when he sang it on stage, and it just completely blew me away. Gil was a true gentleman, very humble, funny, entertaining…. And you could feel the love and warmth emanating from his spirit. Blessed.

This is as closest as someone can come to experiencing what it is like to be a drug addict without actually being one. Most powerful piece of music I have ever heard. Thank you so much for posting

This man is beautiful, I'm white, late 50's and only ever really knew 'Revolution' & 'Whitey's on the Moon' until recently. What a mistake that was I never looked sooner, This Man has a voice, a vision, a charm & great songs, everyone should hear it and know it. The depth of his musical prescence is amazing, these were the days when you were defined by the 'genre' you listened to and he encompassed so many into his own style. He just made my world richer and bigger and heightened the colours I sense. 2020

My man, this is the most intensely feeling kick-ass ballzy intonation on this *disease* of addiction I've ever heard. Tears rolling down my cheeks. Who is that on guitar, Carlos Santana?? Dude, Gil Scott Heron, you are my hero, I love you.

I ain't tears in a long long time. Thanks for this post.

Definitely a troubled soul but his realism is unmatched, I appreciated Gil

Masta Wordsmith , key to so many genere's . Professor of bluesoligy . Soul man . Blues man . One off . 🙏

I'm 25 years old. And the first song I ever heard from this guy was home is where the hatred is. man that song was deep and personal. I heard it while playing grand theft auto iv. man that song even had alot to do with the main character in the game. love his songs because there is no lying in his song. is pure, is real

His soul's final message to us is the song, Spirits, and this is his siren song to himself. Never forget experiencing his live performance at the Jazz Café in London. I was in a line that went around the corner with folks from all over the world. These two dudes in front of me from Pakistan knew every song he ever recorded and took me to school about his published poetry. Love him

As time goes on..in terms of purity, he may be the greatest artist ever

that is an absolute Hall of Fame album the other side one two and three!Rip.

Listening to this reminds me of Marvin Gaye's FLYING HIGH IN THE FRIENDLY SKIESI Always wished that Gil & Marvin did a track or two together. I remember when Marvin did Inner City Blues & then years later Gil did it & put his spin on it with his poetic flair. The Revolution is still live. Long live our brother in the struggle GIL SCOTT HERON!!!

This man was deeply connected at another level. A spiritual musical messenger. This track is a masterpiece and the guitar solo just takes it beyond here.

GREAT choice!!!! Saw him at Blues Alley Twice, and they did this exactly in this form. It was just as good as this- all the instruments. Amazing This isn't a song- it's a treatise

Absolutely Love GIL SCOTT-HERON Teacher, Poet, Singer, Songwriter, Rapper, Musician & a GENIUS.... BLESS.... BIG RESPECT TO BROTHER GIL SCOTT-HERON MISS YOU TOO MUCH BROTHER... REST IN PARADISE BROTHER GIL, AS YOU WALK AND TALK WITH GOD IN PARADISE.... One Love, Rajesh Semrete Selassie Aggarwal FRSA

"Mama don't need to see me this way. Love me his way. Know me this way. Touch me this way. Can't go home."

This is one of my all time favor group of songs that Gil recorded . I really hate to say favored because their are so so many of them that I love . So i'm going to say R.I.P. Gil Scott-Heron, I'M just gooing to keep on listening to all of your songs , just like I have been doing before and after you past. I know the last time I seen you was at Blue's Alley in Washington. D.C. and it was great as all you shows were. R.I.P. my brother rest .

Sometimes I feel like I’m just wasting time Looking for another side Sometime I feel like I’m losing my mind ‘cause there ain’t No other side Sometimes I’m just spinning my wheels, ain’t no big deal Morning, there’s another side Sometimes I feel like I’m just standing in place, ain’t no real race Ain’t no other side Life is like a circle and you end up where you started If you end up where you started ain’t no other side Yeah, but if life is like a curtain that I’m 90% certain that I’m looking through at something Yes, I’m almost touching something on the other side Yeah, the opposite of new is old The opposite of young is old Seems like everything has got another side Yeah, but young ones want to be old ones Old ones know what they would do if they was young ones People ain’t never really satisfied People ain’t never satisfied If life is like a mirror then the nearer you get clearer You can see it so much clearer Feel like you know about the other side My friends all swear that they know What I should do with my life How I should run my life What should be happening with my life They’re on the other side They’re on the outside I’m on the inside Things always look so much better on the other side Four O’clock in the morning They don’t know All the things I been needing They don’t know Breaking out in a sweat And they don’t know Feeling down And they don’t know They don’t know the other side I need to go home Momma could change it Daddy could help me Yes, I could go home Yeah, Momma don’t need to see me this way Know me this way Touch me this way Love me this way Find me this way I can’t go home I’m saying I don’t want to call him I don’t want to know him I don’t want to need him I don’t want to feel it I don’t want to know But I know, know know Hey, home So I say tomorrow Tomorrow [repeat] I’m going home Tomorrow ain’t coming Tomorrow will always where it was Tomorrow [repeat] I need to go home Maybe I could start all over at home Without the whispers Hanging on me Pulling on me, rolling with me Pulling on me Yes, I’d like to go home Without the whispers

This Is So Deep And Spiritual, Emotional

After all this time it’s great to see the love for Gil. I grew up with him. He was like no other.

The pathos that Gil expresses in this long version of "Home Is Where the Hatred is" "breaks my heart. I loved him and I knew he was sick, but of course, all I could do was pray. Being sick and alone made him more depressed, I know, plus being addicted. I wish I could have told him that the things he created and did where so important and lasting. He was our political voice in music . RIP , Souljah !

I was blessed to hear Gill live with The Amnesia Express in Nottingham England at the Marcus Harvey Centre in the mid nineties. It was a Sunday evening and a few of my House music buddies were there, still 'up' from Saturday. It was utterly magical. Gil was a true poet and an inspiration for many a young black artist... rappers and musicians alike... for me his lyrics and poetry were reminders that human beings need each other and will continue to need each other in these dark oppressive times... the power of unity and the celebration of life in music. Sounds cheesy, but sometimes when the world is truly insane, the chance hearing of a tune on a late-night station when you are a million miles from home can turn around the darkest nights as you wait for a brand new day...

you are still missed and loved , we need you now! you left us too soon I hope you found the life you were looking for . your Spirit is still here with us .see next time .you were the Greatest .

This live track off the brilliant album "Spirits" shows just how great a band the Amenisia Express was- coming after the Midnight Band. When GSH recorded the original version of "Home Is Where The Hatered Is" on his 2nd classic album, he sung it as an observer of watching some of the everyday struggles in Harlem USA. This version comes after that decade of the Reagan 80s where things started to go left for this griot. The great Pee Wee Ellis told the story of Esther Phillips after she first heard the song back in 71(which she could relate to the lyrics since her early teens...) betting him that the writer of that great piece of music has got to be an addict to describe everything so vividly. Pee Wee took the bet & told her no he's just a young poet/musician and he would introduce her to him right now. So off to the basketball court he took Esther as GSH was playing in a pickup game. Upon Ms. Phillips viewing up & down the tall/healthy looking young man, she turned to Pee Wee and said: "Shit, I lose". GSH was a all around great songwriter/vocalist who was singing about Apartheid, Nuclear waste, etc.......YEARS before anyone caught up. His still underrated lyrical range was on constant display as well on great gems like "A Very Precious Time" , "I Think I'll Give Her A Call", "When You Are Who You Are", etc...........The music as always lives on & casual music listeners would do themselves a great service by treating their ears to GSH's 13 albums from 1970-2010. RIP GSH.

"Home is where the needle marks try to mend my broken heart."

I hope this man is remembered as one of the founding fathers to all that is the best of the modern hip hop movement.

The closest you would ever know about being addicted , without ever being addicted.There always the The Other Side to every thing in life.

Truly unsung

_We're losing all our "Brilliant".._ _Can't seem to find the "light" anymore.._

THIS DUDE WAS THE REAL DEAL.YOU MAY CERTAINLY DISAGREE WITH ME ON THIS,BUT OUR MUSIC AND YES I MEAN OUR BLACK MUSIC HAS LOST IT'S BLACKNESS AND IT'S SOUL.AT NEARLY 60 NOW,I AM QUALIFIED TO SAY THAT.R,I,P. BROTHER GIL.

Sometimes sadly, only someone who is walking the walk can talk the talk! But we love you GSH! And are so grateful to you for Sharing your knowledge and wisdom ❤

Wow, I've been a fan since Gil made LPs and Singles, but I've never heard this back to back like this. Thank you... a gem on the internet.

Thank you, Gil Scott-Heron, for all the music and ideas. What a legacy. We'll keep you up there. There's a long way to go yet and we still need your wisdom ...

....someone said here on KZfaq, thanking Gil for his amazing contributions said"...I stand on your shoulders..." he remarked. I, for one, do not. I don't deserve to. I've done nothing that entitles me to.. Instead, I stand in your shadow Gil.... In awe.

I have Gil's rhymes, metaphors, & concepts. But this man's voice, keys, n just flat out musical aptitude. Elite level. Love this man.

I've been into Gil's music from a young kid. There is a lot of his songs and music is like a Prophecy as it seems He was far ahead of his own time. I Love this Brothers music forever. RIP MY BROTHER,"

I cry each time I hear this....Gil singing as a dope addict "Mama don't need to see me this way....touch me this way...know me this way....love me this way." Oh God.....

the piano by kim jordan was put in after the live performance. Ed brady was live on guitar rest in peace my brother I miss you so much, you were amazing on this track, Brian Jackson amazing, also RIP Gil my sweetheart, miss you as always, RIP don mcgriggs, When gil performed this song on his Australian tour '95 promoting spirits album, he cried and tried not to when he sang this (melbourne) . This song should be mandatory in rehab/prisons/middle + high schools.

One of America’s greatest and feared poets taken from us by forces many of us can’t and will never understand. But you’re still with us Gil, never to be forgotten.

If you knew where he was in his life when he recorded this you would understand ' he was pleading for help' ( previous contributors have alluded to this ) I had a 250 mile drive home one night last year and listening to this( as I had many times before but ) as I drove home this time I REALLY heard and felt his pain. A man that had brought me so much happiness in the past. Friends and family know me for the love of this man.I am proud of that.

One of America's greatest poets, living or dead.

Gil Scott Heron, is my musically inclined older Brother. I miss him dearly a great musician. Gil kept it real with the Truth with everything else going on in Life, keep seeking Truth, Walk in Truth at all costs. Shalom shalom.

I love you Gil. I have a few heroes and Gils at the top. Heard him at the jazz Cafe every time he came to London. Miss him so much. All the greats are gone. Richie, Terrry and John. RIP

Tremendous Guitar from 07:48 - 10:28 - that's 3 mins & 40 seconds of raw inspiration - discovered Gil in Birmingham in 84 & started with Moving Target & the World & then moved out from there, eventually saw him in concert in Manhattan in 88 - still listening in awe in 2023 - its fresh, raw, eternal and nourishing to the soul - now he's home

Thank you so much for sharing. When you feel the soul of another reach into yours and wrench your heart.....

Superior upload REVOLUTION REVEALS ......well done

Love this guy and the message he tried to bring to the people!!! We need it more than evre! RIP Gil!! Sad that most of the people have forgotten that music is an instrument of revolution and can bring a message to the people...now its just "driving my benz, spending my money on hoes" type of BS!!! Wake up, people!!! I'm a 53 year old white guy who grew up loving R&B, Blues, Jazz, Hip-Hop(not today's) and any music with a message! Gil was much too complex, intelligent and talented to put his music into any genre...just good SHIT!!!!

THIS IS SOME POWERFUL SHIT

So glad this is available on KZfaq. Wish I could find my cd.

Love this man.R.I.P to a true legend and icon of real soul revoultion music.Peace#25

I had got this for my 21st birthday and me and my dad played this until I memorized the whole c.d.

Perfectly describes manic depression for me...

I Loved Gil! I met him once. Wonderful Poet.

In the 70's my uncle would just let it play on the record player over and over again ALL his albums

This is musical theatre.....x

Been listening to this urban troubadour, ever since he first burst onto the music scene back in the early 70s. Gil's message is indelibly etched on the socio-political conscience of an otherwise unconscientious America. Although his physical presence among us ceased prematurely, the spirituality of his music, spoken verse, and scripting of an Afro-Centric cultural awareness for everyone to embrace, will define his life and his body of work for generations to come. Rest in peace my brother...the drums still beat.🪘🪘

first heard Gil in the mid 70's; my small mind said that ' he's telling what's going on in the big cities' ... now I realize that he was talking to us folks in these small southern towns as well, like the one I grew up in, here in south Florida. SInce then, I try to see through the fog of ignorance...

OG of the spoken word, blues and rap.

I lived this song for many years. I was fortunate enough to "quit it" with the help of a Higher Power. You hear his pain in this suite; and I cry that he never was able to quit it.. RIP Gil.

Not sure where to begin except at the bottom line : I have always loved Gil Scott; both from a far as a fan of his and up close when I not just saw him in a very intimate venue but met him and talked with him at length like two brothers talkin’ like old friends catching up. I had featured his music on my WYBC radio shows and in my writings. His metaphors and insights profound: “winter in America; “ the revolution will not be televised, it will be live; the bottle; and so many more. Originally I was part of a few Blacks at Yale ( when we were so few we all knew one another) who came together and changed Yale and grew through the struggles and the joy ( as Frankie Beverly and MAZE called li - life and love “Joy and Pain…like Sunshine and Rain) and was back on the Yale campus what felt like a life time later and there at TOAD’s Place - South Africa’s LadySmith Black Mbazo ( who has traveled with Paul Simon who had introduced them to the world and simultaneously revived his career) and Gil Scott. I was pleasantly shocked to see this - and yet gratified that this was a part of our unspoken legacy when we brought Nina Simone, BB King, Donny Hathaway (concerts I emceed ) including Sly and the Family Stone, and so many others. Yet I also felt that the audience on this particular night did not fully realize and appreciate who LadySmith and Gil Scott were. Another sad commentary that we often overlook the great ones among us - until they no longer are. We move through life seeing through the rear view mirror missing what is around us in the present and before and in front of us - except when some events or remarkable people we admire or finally hear: look not at just where you have been - look where you are now and where you are going. Keep your eyes on the (prize) road - which is the journey of your life even if the road is sometimes bumpy. As two wise ones put it: “ we will not cease in our explorations, as we come to that place where we began and see it (know it) for the first time. TS Elliot- The Four Quartets. “ The Moving hand (finger) writes and having Writ moves on, and neither all your piety nor all your writ, shall lure it back to change a single line, or a word of it”. The Rubuyat of Omar Khyyam. And if a man (person has any greatness in him, it comes not to light in just one flamboyant hour, but is to be found in the daily ledger of his life.” Beryl Markam West with the Night. I quote from memory these gems from my ‘road less traveled. And in the wee wee hours of the this morni I am here typing with my thumbs this no doubt grammatically flawed stream of consciousness triggered by Gil Scott As Nina Simone so eloquently put it: Nuff Said! A seasoned traveler comes to know that every road has bumps ( which can become lessons or baggage) o

Wish I could've saw him perform this song live in concert.

Been listening to this song since 95. It still hits like a lightning bolt. God bless you Gil.

The Man. The Poet of our times. Jah bless,

I never been on drugs but after listening to his words and him going so deep with this, I see how I'm out the outside looking in... in the other side and trying them to kick it and quit it... it's a lot tougher than that. kinda like someone trying to tell u to leave someone u love.

I bet everyone who reads this, can remember the first time they heard Gil Scot Heron.

Mama don't need to see me this way, touch me this way, know me this way, love me this way......

Gil was the MAN!

LEGEND! R.I.P.!!!!!

Thank you Gil I love everything you did for my soul, my spirit now I know what my big brother was fighting with I can tell you without you making it so clear its no way I could have ever understand the things that he was trying to overcome Big Terry RIP and Big Gil RIP they dont make them like you or your music it is really music for the soul. I am sorry you came here before your time but your visit was well worth it.

A master at his craft.....

I only understood my mother’s and uncle’s addiction 😢after listening to this song it goes on a roller coaster of emotion from the addicts perspective not just the outside looking in .. rest in peace King

Gill Scott Herron Lives! I’ve loved this beautiful Man since 1979.

A... THE masterpiece !!! ...un chef d'œuvre quoi, une merveille absolue ;-)

What an ARTIST. Jesus, I am so blessed to hear his words. He got me to the other side, we've all been through pain but raising up when everyone thought you couldn't do it. I am still here and I am the other side. Thank you Sir for helping me. My life is better for your lyrics. I went home, got better, now stronger than ever.❤❤❤❤

Can't question the genius that was Gil, RIP brother man.

Since high school 74 I listened to his entire collection thanks to my brother home from Vietnam .💚 & Missing both. Yes it was really nice to still have Gil in my heart.

This is "genius-quality" work for All involved in this song. Gil might be surprised at how deeply affected we all are by the searing honesty he's expressed ; yes, the tears rolled from my eyes too. I will miss my contemporary for the rest of my days on "this side !" I love you Gil. (Patti Peoples).

one of the extreme honest and deeply touching pieces of music ever made . sad he never got the attention he deserved more then others. i love you gil. thank you for everything. you are such an musician of pure inspiration

Gil Scott Heron..your vision, poetry, Genius is sorely missed 😢

Solo Guitar Amazing !!!!!

Try smoking a spliff/blunt and listen to this masterpiece of a broken (pieces of a) man... meet him once in 2000

"And to my hero Heron, Gil Scott." -Lupe Fiasco

✝️😢✝️ the people still love your music. I think of my family.

When I first got clean 20 years ago I was really struggling and I heard Home Again and it was everything I needed. Here was a man who could put my life into words and I fell in love. I stayed clean and when I saw him perform at SOB’s in NYC it broke my heart to see him still sick and suffering. At least he’s in peace now.

He was ahead of his time, so powerful in his time and until the end. He called the Revolution years ago to the point that the government was startled. wait 4 it! RIP