Music I Want My Child To Listen To - Political Passions

Not so much a specific band for me this week, but a concept that transcends genres. Inspired by the political mood of the nation this week I'd like to instil a passion for politics in my children and music has been such a powerful tool in communicating political messages throughout the decades. From the Sex Pistols to Chumbawumba to Ani DiFranco to Faithless, many bands and artists have woven political statements into their music and some have even inspired entire generations to action.

I'd like my son to appreciate the concept of political music, even if he can't relate to the themes, messages or genres that have influenced me. I'd like him to give them a chance though, maybe feel some sense of continuity with the passions of days gone by, though I desperately hope there won't be repeats of the riots of the 1970s and 80s, or of the global political events of the last 10 years, but I dare say the raw essence of the issues will repeat themselves: People against the actions of the state.

I don't know what the political mood will be like in 10 to 15 years time, when my son is discovering his own generation's music for the first time. I do know that there will still be musicians writing about it though and I promise not to condescend my son's choices with statements that begin "In my day..." Maybe he will be able to show me something new that we can share.

I tried to think of something more current as an example for this, but drew a blank. I kept coming back to Self Evident by Ani DiFranco, a song about 9/11 and its aftermath. It's a song that still deeply moves me and this issue is undoubtedly the single most important one of my generation, the political actions that led to those terrorist attacks and the ramifications of them still echo across the globe today and will for years to come. So I leave you with a fan-vid set to Ani's beautiful and powerful poetry.

Add your own blog for this meme this week to the Linky here: Alexander Residence

Give Me A Cure For Political Apathy

I don't normally listen to radio phone ins. They drive me bonkers. For some reason, the members of the public that the shows producers pick to speak on air are almost universally ignorant peasants. Often the supposedly "expert" guests are no better. However, on Friday, my husband and I were on a long car journey and were listening to BBC Radio 5 Live in the run up to Nick Clegg's speech on the Alternative Vote (AV) referendum. It was the usual rubbish, exactly what you would expect from a political phone in. People speaking who had no idea what they were talking about, a hill-billy type who was calling for a general election every 12 months in order to shake things up; someone who only wants to vote UKIP and doesn't want to pansy about with numbers on the ballot paper and so on.

But one woman really got my goat. She was given the opportunity to speak in favour of AV, she sounded really positive, if a little naive and said it was about time there was an opportunity for change and she wants to be able to put a tick on her ballot paper instead of a cross (AV doesn't work like that, there are no ticks or crosses required, just numbers). But generally she was upbeat and inoffensive. Then she was asked about political apathy and why people today often don't exercise their right to vote (around 40% of people don't vote in general elections in this country, turnout for local and European elections is even worse). Here she lost me. She said that she didn't vote, that all politicians are the same and that no amount of reform would change that. Sigh.

I really cannot stand political apathy in and of itself, but what I really dislike is the hypocrisy of political apathy coupled with complaint. I don't approve of compulsory voting. I think people have as much right to abstain as to cast a vote and that in some cases abstaining in itself makes a point. It is this very fact that has brought us to the point of even having a referendum on reform, the people who have been not voting in droves have been listened to by the Liberal Democrats and other political reformists and they want to find a way to engage those people with the political process again.

BUT, if you don't vote, then in my opinion you do relinquish your right to bitch to yourself, your friends, the internet etc about the decisions that politicians make. If you haven't voted and have no intention of ever voting or campaigning in any way for changes that you believe would be better for our country, then you have absolutely no right to whinge about the decisions that get made. You have chosen not to exercise your right to vote, you have chosen to disengage from the political process so when politics has a negative impact on your life, be it because of cuts to benefits or a rise in taxes, or cuts to the NHS that mean your local doctor's surgery can no longer run a drop in surgery, or school class sizes soaring to 35, whatever it is, shut up. Or get off your backside and do something about it.

Contrary to popular opinion, not all politicians are carbon copies of one another. Local MPs and councillors are often very approachable and engaged with their constituents. There are service user forums and committees to join, petitions to sign, letters to MPs to write stating what you do and do not approve of. The government IS accountable to the people and it DOES listen, sometimes it takes a lot of voices shouting in unison and the big things are very difficult to change, but you do have a voice and if you choose not to use it then follow your own precedent, and keep quiet if you don't like what comes of it.

Music I Want My Child To Listen To

So, I just encountered this meme for the first time and thought "Hell yeah! I wanna join in!" Music is where my heart has always been. I guess it's taken a bit of a backseat for a couple of years but I regret that and I'm hoping this will give me the incentive to get back into music. Recently I've been listening to some old favourites while I write, partly to help inspire my writing but also taking a trip down memory lane, following the recent photo storm among my old school friends on Facebook.

But I can't really start there, I have to go further back. Where did my love of music really take root? Easy, in the folk festivals my parents took me to as a small child. Most of the time spent at these folk festivals I was off playing with other kids, exploring and occasionally curled up asleep on, or sometimes even under a chair, while my parents watched the bands and artists perform. However, distraction and sleep both became impossible whenever Spirit of the West came on stage.

I remember the way the tiny platforms that formed a stage at some venues would shake under the thump of the bass drum and the weight of the lead singer jumping around. The whole floor would erupt with energy and enthusiasm, with otherwise stationery crowds leaping from their seats to dance to this high-energy band. Once, I even got sung to directly, having requested my favourite song (what band can't resist a cute 6 year old girl with pigtails who loves their music?!)

Spirit of the West are a Canadian folk band, who still occasionally do the rounds of folk festivals in North America. Their album Save This House still warrants the odd airing in my house now, twenty-odd years after it's release and the last time I saw them live.

Home For A Rest is one of my all time favourite songs, though obviously I didn't understand it as a child! Amid the frantic flute play, chaotic chords and lyrics about being drunk for a month there is an understated poetry, especially in the line "The spirits we drank are now ghosts in the room".

Here's a clip so you too can savour these Canadian delights. Enjoy.