Gillian Welch - "The Harrow and the Harvest"

[Rob Hall]

This was the other thing that bothered me about Stewart Lee's piece - I couldn't figure out the logic of his position: when I next hear someone praising the work of Robert Johnson or the Beatles, do I assume that they are somehow expressing tacit approval of Tony Blair?

[will vine]

Interesting topics.
1) Assumptions made about people's musical tastes based upon their political viewpoint (real or perceived), and/or their personality (real or perceived).

It seemed to be so much simpler back then in the days of the tie-dyed tee shirt. We were all in favour of love and peace and working toward some great socialist utopia. "We're all in this together," and it's always stayed with me that music lovers, at least those who strayed from the path of daytime pop, were politically domiciled in at least the soft left. That was obviously a false assumption.

2) To what extent are you, as a fan, affected by the artist's political viewpoint?
or his or her personal lifestyle?

Always shocked by performers declaring support for the tories, normally coloured by issues surrounding tax, - and stuff like Rick Wakeman being a card carrying tory and a mason....fergodsake!
It used to make me laugh that Muddy Waters would run his band by giving one or two of them a good smack now and then but I never did go much on the well publicised wife beaters in the musical world.


3) Can the artist choose his audience?

Frank Zappa, high intellect guitar hero and purveyor of challenging musical arrangements, (and smut) was,I presumed, looking to develop a sophisticated audience, when asked who he thought his core audience was, replied "mainly 14 year old boys."

I've occasionally enjoyed modern jazz, a music I've always associated with freewheeling left of centre attitudes, in the company of charming and amusing, but decidedly right wing characters.
.......................................................................................................
I used to care....but things have changed.

[uiwangmike]

But you have to draw a line somewhere. I never listened to Merle Haggard again after I found out Richard Nixon was also a fan.

[Con Murphy]

This all seems a bit arse-about-face to me. I can just about understand people judging musicians by the artist's own political views because I can see how that might colour interpretation of their lyrics, outlook etc. But to do so merely on the politics of one or two public figures who share your liking for the artist*? Utterly bizarre. Thus, it appears I completely misread Stewart Lee's piece, enjoying it in a self-hating lefty kind of way as a satire on such reactions. Where's Chris Morris when you need him?


* I can understand when a politicised following might reach some kind of critical mass whereby liking for an artist becomes intolerable (the Oi! movement springs to mind), but our bulbous-faced PM and his fragrant underling? That's setting the bar far too low, surely?

[matt m]

I think it's time Gillian and Dave did an all-traditionals album.

Get their mojo back.

Despite all the rave reviews in the inkies, I'm not the only one who thought the Harrow & the Harvest was a lifeless husk of an album. (And I say that as a big, big fan of the pair.)

[john poole]

I think it's time Gillian and Dave did an all-traditionals album.

Get their mojo back.

Despite all the rave reviews in the inkies, I'm not the only one who thought the Harrow & the Harvest was a lifeless husk of an album. (And I say that as a big, big fan of the pair.)

I've not listened to it as much as the previous albums, so it's probably my least favourite of the five, but I certainly didn't find it "lifeless". I wouldn't disagree about the traditional album.