Gallowaywi'ya!!! - 5 of the Best Scandalous Songs

I absolutely cannot believe that the people of Bradford West voted in George Galloway - him of Celebrity Big Brother fame who pretended to be a cat - in last night's by-election. My disgust is such that I see this as, in fact, a bloody scandal! With this in mind here's 5otB scandalous songs for you (and don't even think Mis Teeq are included).

Eminem - Kim: When I was a lad Eminem was just about the only interesting mainstream pop star (don't even think Mis Teeq would be included here either!) and this song, with its honour killing theme (Galloway probably loved it), caused quite a stir when it appeared on The Marshall Mathers LP. Not just scandalous, but downright outrageous.


Eminem - Kim

Sex Pistols - God Save the Queen: It's hard to think of a song that has caused more of a stir and backlash in the history of popular music and anything that gets up the nose of Royalists is good for me.

Dead Kennedys - Kill the Poor: This caused a reaction, but only because people mis-interpreted it. Kill the Poor is actually a protest song, not a manifesto on how to eradicate the less-wealthy members of society. It's also a fantastic, energising cult-punk classic.


Dead Kennedys - Kill the Poor

2Pac feat. Nate Dogg, Snoop Dogg and YDG - All About You: "Is you sick from the dick or is it the flu?" - just one of many foul, filthy lyrics which litter this gangsta rap dream of a scandal. Really, much of 2Pac, Snoop or Nate's output could be up here, especially Nate's I Need a Bitch.

Mis Teeq - Scandalous: Just kidding!

Blue Collar Pop - and How it Keeps You Down

Anybody who knows me well will know that I'm a big John Lennon fan. Indeed, Lennon, for me, is as good as anyone who's ever committed to songwriting. A natural melodist with sharp lyrics (though his early-Beatles stuff may not have realised this as well as his later work with the fabs or his solo stuff), Lennon was the conscience of popular music in many ways.

Working Class Hero, perhaps Lennon's greatest lyric, highlights exactly what I'm saying. Working with a simple harmonic movement (Am, G throughout), Lennon adds in the hammer-on on the d string for a melodic touch and the vocal melody to the track is very engaging. Besides this though, as has been said, the lyric is its most engaging feature. As a polemic which actually holds its audience (the working class) to account and tells them that they are their own worst enemy by allowing themselves to be "doped with religion, sex and TV" and thinking they're "so clever and classless and free", Lennon's song tells them exactly why their plight is so.

Lennon

Lennon never shied away from anything - war, love, hate, cold turkey - but by pointing out the problem instead of just venerating a lifestyle which keeps the working classes down he pulled something off which many do not: he gave his subjects a solution i.e. stop being doped by these identity forces and react.

Many other lyricists, whom when depicting the plight of the working class, miss out on this. For instance (and as much as I love his music and lyrics), Bruce Springsteen's poor, polemicist posturing gives many working class Americans a hero and a champion, but he is often somebody who champions their way of life by just saying he is a blue collar guy. Springsteen, however, does "stick it to the man" in many ways and therefore is merely the tip of the iceberg and far less of a problem than others.


This one both contradicts and backs-up my point - just listen! It's a great tune too.

The real problem comes from bands and artists such as Oasis, The Streets and The Enemy whom all promote a working class ideal and aesthetic in their song lyrics without ever pointing out that monetary hierarchy is succinctly unfair and that forces beyond them are keeping them down (like millionaire pop stars giving them identifiable working class heroes, for example). O.K. then, "day-by-day there's a man in a suit who's gonna' make you pay" in Oasis could be argued to go some way, but it still misses the point really. The Streets and their "total result of a holiday" and The Enemy's resignation that "we'll live and die in these towns" absolutely vindicate my point. Through promoting the blue collar hardships as something to be proud of, these artists manage to, in fact, keep the working class down.

The Streets' Mike Skinner

Maybe as good a place as any to look is Morrissey and, subsequently (given that Moz may be his biggest fan), some of the poetry of John Betjeman. Along with Lennon's Working Class Hero, Morrissey's scorn in the line " a double bed and a stalwart lover for sure, these are the riches of the poor" and Betjeman's downright indictment, particularly in Slough, one of his most famous poems, provide a chance for introspection within the working class. Sadly, the "jumped-up pantry boy, who never knew his place" may never realise this, because while it was being explained to him he merely said "shut up, Dry Your Eyes Mate's on".

Some Stuff What I've Enjoyed Recently

QPR: The Four Year Plan - Really cool BBC documentary about the finest football team the world has ever seen. It highlights the disparity between the seemingly off-hand, clumsy and harsh Briatore administration and any manager forced to work for it. The ending also brought back some great memories from last summer's promotion.

The Artist - Though essentially a throwback, The Artist breathes some new life into silent film. It's an interesting story, well-conveyed and acted out with a breathtaking soundtrack. Not sure about the Oscar though, just because I enjoyed it, it doesn't make it better than other noteworthy contenders.

The Artist

Freakonomics - I'm late to this one, I know. Huge when it first came out in 2005, this book so brilliantly explains the answers to quirky questions in an economic (pun intended) way. Lucidly-written with well-thought-out content it is a must if you haven't read it already!

Blonde on Blonde - One of Dylan's best albums, I've really been getting back into this recently. I've always loved You Go Your Way (and I'll Go Mine), but my eyes have been re-opened to the magic of Visions of Johanna and I Want You once more. Stunning album.

Blonde on Blonde

Cut Off

I meant to write this post last week, but I didn't. The problem was I only had local access to the internet for a couple of days for some reason. Anyway, the problem's been resolved. You could say I was cut off. Just like poor old Adele.

Well, it was terrible wasn't it? No? No, it wasn't. I'd rather listen to Blur than a girl who, though a lovely singer, when speaking sounds like an extra from TOWIE. It's not just the tone either, the content was moronic. "Ar'm sow praaad to bay British" said the Brit School's most successful alumnus. She went on to talk about "flyin' the flag" and other such Nationalist nonsense and quite frankly, I've never been so happy to see James Corden's otherwise slappable mush appear to cut her off.

Adele, in far more sombre-looking mood

After her snooker hall philosophy had so insightfully enlightened us and Corden had stopped her in her tracks, she gave the finger to some Brits execs (or whoever they were) and 'bowled-it' off, so as to complete the full-on stereotypical East-End barfly image.

What was I then greeted with? Ray Winstone's presentation for Blur's Oustanding Contribution Award. What next? Phil Daniels and Damon Albarn 'bowling-it' down the stage to Parklife arm-in-arm. Oh.

Couldn't they have played more of the Pavement-inspired later stuff? Never mind, Blur deserved that award. Adele, dare I say it, deserved hers. Maybe she should just say thanks and smile next time... Maybe not, though. It wouldn't be Adele would it?


Lovely version of a great song

Anyway, 21 is now a bigger-selling album in this country than Jacko's Bad, so that should console her in her anguish. If not, why not go to the cashpoint and press 'balance' Adele?

Firehorse

New York’s Firehorse present an interesting mix of radio-consciousness and, in fact, commercial savvy withslightly leftfield sonic leanings. Like an amalgamation of the Yeah Yeah Yeahsand Kate Bush, theirs is a sound which fizzles with uber-cool pretensions, but a melodic sensibility that suggests a pop leaning and a love of well craftedcounterpoints.

Lead singer Leah Siegel has thealluring visual aesthetic that could break the band with a mainstream audience(one which, these days, is seemingly obsessed with those that look ‘cool’). Thevideo for new single Our Hearts projectswhat could well be a new ‘star’ in full force as she dances around, glancingeffortlessly with no shortage of sexual appeal at the camera. Her voice sinkswith breathiness at points and swaggers with knowing confidence at others,providing the listener with an interesting mix of part-emotional vulnerability,part-showgirl idiosyncrasies.

Leah Siegel

The deftness of their approach isreally highlighted in the weepy If YouDon’t Want to be Alone, which accompanies an advert for the TopsyFoundation’s advert on reversing the effect of Aids on human lives. This songin particular, with its sparse, reverberated rhythm guitar and call to poignantrationalising could well break the band.

What we seemingly have, then, isa captivating front-woman leading a band with thought-arousing sonic leaningsagainst songs catchy enough for airplay. It seems as if the World really couldbe Firehorse’s oyster.

Our Hearts

Pledge Music

If you don't know, then get to know about Pledge Music. It's a fantastic site where you, yes you, can pledge money for music projects you deem worthy of your hard-earned. The idea is simple, a trailer or pitch-style video or a bit of blurb explaining what they want to do is uploaded by a Pledge member onto the site and you can buy into it to help fund recording costs etc.

It's not limited to music per se, in fact there are some wonderful trailers for documentaries and the like on the site.

For fees which, in fairness are really not that high, you can own mementos and the like from the projects and the money is used for anything from travel and expenses for the artists, to recording costs.

It's a really great way to cut out the necessity of a major record label and by pledging you can be a part of something that will in turn exist for many years to come; a finished product.

The link for Pledge Music's site is here http://www.pledgemusic.com/ and to follow on Twitter click here https://twitter.com/#!/pledgemusic and obviously click 'follow' on the page.

What Happened to Oranges at Half-Time?

So, I've just watched the grossly over-the-top Madonna half-time show on Youtube and now need a bucket. Granted, Like a Prayer is a bit of a tune and for a woman in her nineties she looks good, but who cares? That was disgusting. I hate Nicki Minaj and I hate LMFAO and I hate Madonna trying to appease people her boyfriend's/daughter's age by appearing with these people.

American Football is the worst sport ever anyway. It's basically how Wimbledon used to play in the '80s and '90s in our humble little game of Football (watched and loved by everybody except most of North America), only with stopping the clock every two seconds. Get the ball up-top a.s.a.p. and a big lad up there will do the rest with a few shoves.


Eurgh!!

Anyway, besides the fact that it's a terrible sport with no real discernible point, American Football's major event, The Superbowl, is one disgusting reflection of the ugly, cynical and daft World we happen to inhabit in the West. The half-time show, then, is its coup de grace on Mankind as a whole. The WWE calls itself 'Sports Entertainment', which it is, meaning it's some athleticism with a bit of showmanship and storyline etc. That's fine, I like wrestling because of that. I know what I'm getting. American Football, and especially the Superbowl, is just a fraud.

Madonna's show was a joke. M.I.A.'s petty rebellion - boring. Cee-Lo Green - one trick pony. Nicki Minaj - worthless. LMFAO - what? 'World Peace' in big gold letters on the pitch of the major sporting event of the World's biggest war-mongerers since my ancestry decided to go on a colonisation binge under Vicky - just a bit fucking stupid.

Nuttah!!!!

What was the point of all that pseudo-ancient Rome nonsense? Whose idea was it to have Madge cartwheeling in a mini-skirt? The whole thing was just really ugly and shameless and, yes, I've seen the Clint Eastwood advert. What a piss-take. A multi-millionaire telling America to get off its arse basically - kill me now.