Where’s the anger kids?

As the 80’s revival gathers pace with a right wing government , savage cuts in all areas of public spending high unemployment and the now a royal wedding to try and distract everyone away from whatever television show is sedating them at the moment I’m left wondering where are the righteous young men with guitars?

As the likes of Cameron insist that everyone is in it together (though with his millions in the bank I reckon he’s not quite in it like many others) and then some Lord Toff actually says “you’ve never had it so good” all I seem to see kids being bothered about is who gets voted off the pantomime that is X Factor and I fear the worst.

Now I’m aware as much as anyone that nostalgia’s not what it used to be but while I seethed at Thatcher and her cronies dismantling all around me at least I had my music to help me see I was not alone. “You’ve never had it so good – the favourite phrase of those who’ve always had it better “raged the Redskins on the classic 45 ‘bring it down’ and that single scarped into the top 40 when you had to sell more than 16 copies to do so.

We had Weller and The Jam/Style Council all tutoring us in the ways of righteousness with many politically charged tunes such as ‘little boy soldiers’, going underground’, walls come tumbling down’ and many more.

We had Billy Bragg whose whole purpose was seemingly political and we had many more bands all railing against the system. The Housemartins were Smash Hits regulars but their songs were all about sexism, racism and general socialist principles. Right through the 80’s there was a feeling that everything was political and even at the height of the whole Madchester shenanigans bands like The Stone Roses and The Farm were still singing about issues that affected us all.

I suppose what I’m trying to say is that at that time it seemed like there was still some genuine anger about what was happening and I just don’t see that these days. Maybe The Housemartins were right in ‘think for a minute’ when they sang that apathy always wins without a fight?

So come on kids turn your tellies and your x stations off and get off your arses and make some noise!

Here’s Tom with the weather…..