The Bad Shepherds played Ireby.
Ireby, Nr Wigton in Cumbria has plenty of shepherds who wrestle a living out of raising sheep despite the vagiaries of Cumbrian weather, the current economic climate and the price of Diesel. But last night they hosted Adrian Edmondson and the self proclaimed Bad Shepherds play punk songs on folk instruments and were the headline act at the opening night of the Ireby Festival.
They went down a storm in the middle of a storm that had threatened to wash the Festival away.
Fusion is of course the flavour of the month.
Whether it is food or music or politics. Recipes and whole Menus constructed around bringing unusual culinary bedfellows together in the same meal. Sometimes suprising, sometimes conflicting, sometimes hugely successful, setting our taste buds zinging as we munch on the usual suspects of lemon grass, Thai red or green spice, Polenta and celeriac.
Politically of course we are experiencing a fusion government, a coalition of unlikely bed-fellows driven by whatever motivation drives politicians to make their deals. So we have a Tory led Government imbued with Liberal principles which frustrates the right wing of the Tory Party and equally frustrates the left wing of the Liberal Democrats.
The coalition is variously described and you can tell where people's sympathy's lie when they use phrases like, Tory Led or Con-Dem.
The coalition is a year old. Four years to go, unless for any reason (and any reason will do), an election is called earlier.
But it is clear that so much that it is essential to a civilised society is being eroded or diminished by policies which contradict the rhetoric of 'We're all in this together', 'Social Mobility', 'Fairness', 'Protecting the NHS'.
Clearly there are problems to be addressed but where is the evidence that the policies currently being produced in any shape or form assist the poorest or the least able in society to improve their situation?
And where is the evidence that the culture which was responsible for the problems that the last labour administration was addressing are being addressed any better by the con-dem coalition?
Debt is the best form of social control and was woven into the social fabric by earlier Tory adminstrations. We have all seen the wording on the bottom of the Mortgage offer about your home being at risk if you fail to pay. Last month my mortgage was not paid, not through a banking error but because it transpires that the the mortgage company have a manual system and there was an 'administrative error' but imagine what anybody's first thought would be when you realise that suddenly you are in, that dreaded word, 'arrears'.
The Bad Shepherds set started badly with the sound system proving somewhat unsound and Ade Edmondson walking off having roundly abused the sound desk.
Ten minutes later the rousing opening Uillean Pipe Drone with Edmondsons wild and aggressive Mandolin playing (it was that kind of night really) led into the opening song Anarchy in the UK managing to drown out the sound of the rain on the Marquee roof.
There was a certain delicious irony in a former member of The Young Ones celebrating anarchy having rounded on the sound desk for causing anarchy of their own by plugging various leads into various instruments presumably in an anarchic fashion, given that no sound came out.
But once the sound anarchy had been banished and real anarchy celebrated in song, it was on into a feast of Sex (Pistols), Clash, Jam, Talking Heads, XTC (apparently no Damned Songs) and Stranglers, played on a fiddle, two Mandolins (but never at the same time) and whistles, flutes, pipes and a balalaika. The set included two of my favourite Punk Anthems, dear old Wreckless Eric (I'd go the) Whole Wide World, whilst it must be said that nostalgia is not what it used to be, this was wonderful and was matched with a marvellous version of Have You Ever fallen in Love (with someone you shouldn't have fallen in love with?) giving the Buzzcocks a well deserved name check.
The set ended with White Riot, originally a Clash song.
It was fascinating to see this largely middle class, largely northern audience, with their cans of lager and plastic beakers of red and white wine, with their young families next to them, mouthing Joe Strummers words:
All the power's in the hands / Of people rich enough to buy it / While we walk the street
Too chicken to even try it / Everybody's doing / Just what they're told to / Nobody wants / To go to jail!
White riot - I wanna riot / White riot - a riot of my own
Not sure whether it was the fusion music or the fusion food, Thai Green Curry with Sweet Potato and Chickpea, or Cumberland Sausage on Ciabetta Bread or the rain, or maybe, just maybe they were making another connection entirely ........
Ireby, Nr Wigton in Cumbria has plenty of shepherds who wrestle a living out of raising sheep despite the vagiaries of Cumbrian weather, the current economic climate and the price of Diesel. But last night they hosted Adrian Edmondson and the self proclaimed Bad Shepherds play punk songs on folk instruments and were the headline act at the opening night of the Ireby Festival.
They went down a storm in the middle of a storm that had threatened to wash the Festival away.
Fusion is of course the flavour of the month.
Whether it is food or music or politics. Recipes and whole Menus constructed around bringing unusual culinary bedfellows together in the same meal. Sometimes suprising, sometimes conflicting, sometimes hugely successful, setting our taste buds zinging as we munch on the usual suspects of lemon grass, Thai red or green spice, Polenta and celeriac.
Politically of course we are experiencing a fusion government, a coalition of unlikely bed-fellows driven by whatever motivation drives politicians to make their deals. So we have a Tory led Government imbued with Liberal principles which frustrates the right wing of the Tory Party and equally frustrates the left wing of the Liberal Democrats.
The coalition is variously described and you can tell where people's sympathy's lie when they use phrases like, Tory Led or Con-Dem.
The coalition is a year old. Four years to go, unless for any reason (and any reason will do), an election is called earlier.
But it is clear that so much that it is essential to a civilised society is being eroded or diminished by policies which contradict the rhetoric of 'We're all in this together', 'Social Mobility', 'Fairness', 'Protecting the NHS'.
Clearly there are problems to be addressed but where is the evidence that the policies currently being produced in any shape or form assist the poorest or the least able in society to improve their situation?
And where is the evidence that the culture which was responsible for the problems that the last labour administration was addressing are being addressed any better by the con-dem coalition?
Debt is the best form of social control and was woven into the social fabric by earlier Tory adminstrations. We have all seen the wording on the bottom of the Mortgage offer about your home being at risk if you fail to pay. Last month my mortgage was not paid, not through a banking error but because it transpires that the the mortgage company have a manual system and there was an 'administrative error' but imagine what anybody's first thought would be when you realise that suddenly you are in, that dreaded word, 'arrears'.
The Bad Shepherds set started badly with the sound system proving somewhat unsound and Ade Edmondson walking off having roundly abused the sound desk.
Ten minutes later the rousing opening Uillean Pipe Drone with Edmondsons wild and aggressive Mandolin playing (it was that kind of night really) led into the opening song Anarchy in the UK managing to drown out the sound of the rain on the Marquee roof.
There was a certain delicious irony in a former member of The Young Ones celebrating anarchy having rounded on the sound desk for causing anarchy of their own by plugging various leads into various instruments presumably in an anarchic fashion, given that no sound came out.
But once the sound anarchy had been banished and real anarchy celebrated in song, it was on into a feast of Sex (Pistols), Clash, Jam, Talking Heads, XTC (apparently no Damned Songs) and Stranglers, played on a fiddle, two Mandolins (but never at the same time) and whistles, flutes, pipes and a balalaika. The set included two of my favourite Punk Anthems, dear old Wreckless Eric (I'd go the) Whole Wide World, whilst it must be said that nostalgia is not what it used to be, this was wonderful and was matched with a marvellous version of Have You Ever fallen in Love (with someone you shouldn't have fallen in love with?) giving the Buzzcocks a well deserved name check.
The set ended with White Riot, originally a Clash song.
It was fascinating to see this largely middle class, largely northern audience, with their cans of lager and plastic beakers of red and white wine, with their young families next to them, mouthing Joe Strummers words:
All the power's in the hands / Of people rich enough to buy it / While we walk the street
Too chicken to even try it / Everybody's doing / Just what they're told to / Nobody wants / To go to jail!
White riot - I wanna riot / White riot - a riot of my own
Not sure whether it was the fusion music or the fusion food, Thai Green Curry with Sweet Potato and Chickpea, or Cumberland Sausage on Ciabetta Bread or the rain, or maybe, just maybe they were making another connection entirely ........
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