Music to their ears

Being the holiday season many of the feature articles are written before Christmas whilst journalists ready themselves for the festivities, and then are published whilst the self-same authors are working off the turkey in the local gym. Yesterday's Western Mail article on the music that inspires Assembly politicians is one such piece and it shows.

It is difficult to know what question the politicians in question were asked of course so it is unlikely to be their fault that the final result comes across as a bit of a parody of such end-of-the-year pieces.

Labour's John Griffiths for example was inspired by John Lennon’s Working Class Hero and Imagine and he wore Rock Against Racism and Nuclear Free Wales badges on his denim jacket, alongside a Che Guevara patch. I wonder whether he also went by the nickname of 'Wolfie'.

Mike German tells us that his political stance was influenced by Shostakovich’s seventh symphony, written and performed during the World War II siege of Leningrad. He said: “It gave me a sense of the resistance and defiance of totalitarianism which has strengthened my political creed that none shall be enslaved by conformity, and the pursuit of freedom which is such a pillar of Liberal Democracy.”

Whilst Jenny Randerson 'salutes the genius of the Beatles’ Eleanor Rigby. She said: “It’s all about the impact of loneliness and isolation.” Bethan Jenkins is invigorated by the Manic Street Preachers and is a particular fan of their song Socialist Serenade, whilst Joyce Watson says she has never forgotten the moment during the 2000 Labour Conference when Nelson Mandela made a surprise appearance and Gabrielle performed her hit Rise.

Hats off to Mick Bates though who treats the piece with the levity it deserves. He tells the reporter that on a desert island, he would hope to be able to listen to Bob Dylan, Elvis Presley, the Sex Pistols, Tito and Tarantula, and Pink Floyd. When feeling “miserable” and in need of sympathy he listens to Bob Dylan’s Tangled up in Blue. He turns to Dylan again when he needs to “go on the attack” and plays Hurricane, which depicts the arrest of black middleweight boxer Ruben Carter.

Maybe my problem is that I am tone-deaf, listen to loud raucuous rock music to help me stay awake on long journeys and have no musical soul whatsoever. I have certainly never been inspired to political action by a piece of music nor has a concert or rendition been linked in my mind with any momentous event.

In fact when it comes to great cultural feasts I have the attention span of a flea and need to digest great works in small chunks. This could be why I was not asked to participate in this survey.