Penny Capitalists

Lyrics

The careless purveyors of high culture are presented with clear alternatives. One of them is finally to be fixed as the harmless class, the dangerous harmless class, the social and historical scum; for the most part, the bribed flunkey (tool) of reactionary intrigue, the worst of all possible allies, absolutely venal and absolutely cunning, a wholly indefinite disintegrated mass thrown here and there, rich and poor, offal, organ-grinders, rag-pickers, mountebanks… The helpless dregs who turn in circles between suicide and a tedious madness, incapable of the uncritical violence which is their true heritage, a plague zone which can’t be cleansed by the plague.

Or they can realise that they are incapable of 'governing' themselves, struggle to reach, and restore to themselves a social and historical base, recognise that they can seldom find their way about the countryside, recognise that they are a non-working, not-working class — penny capitalists — and ask themselves what that means: become people in process.

Chronology

• Corrected Slogans
  • vocal: Mel Ramsden

Interpretations

File:Support-School-poster.webp

"Support School" poster, 1976

• The vocal track was done by Mel Ramsden. It was the only contribution from Art & Language New York on Corrected Slogans
• The text was also used on a poster for Philip Pilkington and David Rushton's School magazine project in 1976