Lovers Rock soundtrack: Which songs are featured in Steve McQueen’s Small Axe film?
From ‘Kung Fu Fighting’ to ‘Silly Games’
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Lovers Rock, the second instalment of Steve McQueen's Small Axe BBC series, has stunned viewers with its soundtrack.
The 70-minute film, which was introduced alongside a wish from the director himself ("turn the volume up loud") depicts a west London "blues party" in the 1980s, and takes place across the course of one evening.
These parties became popular in black communities due to the racism experienced while on the streets and out clubbing.
One scene in Lovers Rock highlights this: it sees Amarah-Jae St Aubyn's lead character racially harassed by a group of white men while she looks for her friend, who has strayed from the party, further up the road.
The film gets its title from a style of reggae music featuring romantic sound and content. Its through this that Lovers Rock finds its beating heart: one of the year's best soundtracks, which will undoubtedly see usage in Shazam and Spotify surge.
Among the highlights are Carl Douglas’ “Kung Fu fighting”, an extended a cappella rendition of Janet Kay’s “Silly Games” and The Revolutionaries “Kunta Kinte Dub”, which – at one stage – is rewound and played again.
If you're wondering what songs you heard in the film, look no further: The Independent has compiled the soundtrack for you below.
McQueen's Small Axe series continues on 29 November at 9pm on BBC One.
Mangrove and Lovers Rock are available to stream on BBC iPlayer now.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments