"You better believe I be dreaming of a Black Christmas."

If you're in the US you might have heard Typical American on MTV, where they famously forgot to play the censored version. Did they receive a promo tape with both versions and forget to rewind it to the right one? Did a disgruntled employee sympathise with their political views and decide it was their time to strike? Did the record label themselves forget to edit the clip and send it out that way?

The Goats got no airtime in the UK, you stumbled on this LP, like me, or someone played it you after they stumbled on it. It really became a cult classic by word of mouth.

Some of the context of the politically charged songs has probably been lost to time, but maybe not the messages it contains. "Making erasers out of toddlers, soldiers out of bums. Put that wad in front of Congress and see who cums," still works. The racially mixed trio turned up their anger toward hypocrisy and government on track after track. In case you still managed to miss their point, The Goats peppered the album with short skits like “The Georgie Bush Kids,” a pointed parody of the Lollipop Gang from The Wizard of Oz. The Philly trio were not long for this world, their strident political stance and consistent use of profanity made radio edits difficult and without building a cult following like Public Enemy, the anti-authoritarian anti-establishment raps of The Goats never really gained traction after this first initial LP.

Stand outs for me Typical American, Whatcha Got is What Yer Gettin, Cummin in Your Ear, Got Kinda High, Wrong Pot to Piss In, TV Cops.

Tricks of the shade!