Saturday, February 09, 2008

Mixing Pop and Politics (5)

Obscure Factoid of the day.

It's hard to believe but - to the best of my knowledge - Style Council's 1985 album, Our Favourite Shop, was . . . . sod it. I'm too embarrassed to admit it on the blog . . . though I've probably mentioned the shame of it on the blog before. Can't remember.

Might come clean about it tomorrow.

7 comments:

Reidski said...

Come on, what the hell is the obscure factoid?

Reidski said...

Wait, has it something to do with Lenny Henry making an appearance and him being a Celtic fan?

Will said...

...was one of the best albums released in the whole of the 80s

Will said...

And the wiki entry has a rather good description:

"ur Favourite Shop is the second album from the band The Style Council. The majority of the album's material was released (with different sequencing and packaged in an entirely different cover design) in the USA as Internationalists by Geffen Records.

Lyrical targets include racism, excessive consumerism, the effects of self-serving governments, the suicide of one of Weller's friends and what the band saw as an exasperating lack of opposition to the status quo. All of this pessimism is countered with an overarching sense of hope and delight that alternatives do actually exist -- if only they can be seen."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internationalists

Imposs1904 said...

*red face*

I understand that it was the last album to be reviewed in the pages of the Socialist Standard. I hope I'm wrong, btw.

A generally positive review, but think about of all the good political albums down the years since then that could have been reviewed in the pages of the Socialist Standard:

No Public Enemy. No Steve Earle. No Chumbawumba. No Robert Wyatt. No Le Tigre. No The Coup. No Attila the Stockbroker. No Anti-Flag. No Billy Bragg. No Manic Street Preachers. No S Club 7.

Shocking when you think about it.

Even Socialist Appeal probably has a better record of reviewing music within its pages.

Reidski,

Lenny Henry's a Celtic fan? Still think he's an unfunny *sea with three stars*.

Will,

yep, brilliant album. My second favourite album of 1985.

Always thought that 'Luck' and 'Down In The Seine' were underrated Paul Weller songs.

Phil said...

That is shocking. I even recall Socialist Worker reviewing What's the Story Morning Glory? a very long time ago. They have their finger on the pulse of the nation's yoof you see.

Imposs1904 said...

The CWI press does album reviews? I'll have to check it out more often.

Yep, it is a bit shameful that the impossibilist press can't bring itself to do more album reviews. Especially when there is a fair share of musicians within the Party ranks.

Anyway Phil, you're only gloating 'cos Jyoti Mishra aka 'White Town' was a member of your tendency in the 80s. ;-)