Topic

Taxation

How a state pays for itself, and who is asked.

2: in music
9:14: average
18 min: in total
14: across the network

Taxation across the network →

All briefs2

9:27

The Slider

T. Rex · 1972

The Slider is T. Rex’s 1972 album, written and demoed during their UK tour in fall and winter 1971. It was recorded across Rosenberg Studios (Copenhagen), Trident Studios (London), and Strawberry Studios in Château d'Hérouville — the latter chosen to avoid British taxing laws. Tony Visconti produced throughout. Marc Bolan’s drinking and cocaine use affected his personality during sessions, but recordings progressed quickly and efficiently. Musically, it features layered electric guitars, phasing, reverb, backwards guitars, string arrangements by Visconti, and androgynous backing vocals — though Visconti later claimed Flo & Eddie sang on only three tracks. Its lyrical themes include vulnerability, godhead imagery, and emotional states like sadness expressed in the title track’s refrain 'and when I'm sad, I slide'.

9:00

Get Up Offa That Thing

James Brown · 1976

A live-in-studio funk single that lands like a command. Recorded in two takes. No overdubs. No pause. No mercy. It is urgent, lean, and tax-avoidant.

More from music

All briefs →

8:58

Glassworks

Philip Glass · 1982

Glassworks is a six-movement chamber work Philip Glass wrote for the recording studio after his large concert and stage pieces, released by CBS in 1982 on LP and on cassette, each with its own mix. It was meant to bring his music to a wider audience, and it did: the album sold well and made his name widely known.

2:00

20 Golden Greats

Buddy Holly, The Crickets · 1978

20 Golden Greats was first issued in Britain in 1978, collecting recordings associated with Buddy Holly and the Crickets from 1956–58. It also circulated as Buddy Holly Lives. The release date belongs to the retrospective, not to a newly assembled performing group.

2:05

808s & Heartbreak

Kanye West · 2008

Released in 2008, 808s & Heartbreak followed the death of Kanye West's mother and the end of his engagement. His fourth studio album shifts much of its emphasis from rapping to singing. That change makes the handling of the voice the central question of the record.

2:10

A Nod Is As Good As a Wink... to a Blind Horse

Faces · 1971

Faces' third album was their second release of 1971. Glyn Johns shared production duties, helping shape a programme shorter and more concentrated than its predecessors. Rod Stewart's growing solo profile is part of the context, but Ronnie Lane's three lead vocals make the group's broader identity essential.