Love his music but he's a RWNJ

[cilla4progress]

Van Morrison - he's Irish.

https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/music/story/2021-05-10/van-morrison-latest-record-project-antisemitism-coronavirus?_amp=true

Just deleted his music from my music app. It hurt.

Yep - cancelled!

[AZSkiffyGeek]

1. I won't stop loving his work through 1975 or so

But he'll never see another dime of mine.
He's also coming back to Phoenix for the first time in 15 years, wonder if because of our Governor's politics...

[cilla4progress]

2. Saw him in person with Dylan and Joni maybe 15 years

ago.

Expected Dylan to be aloof, moody, and Van to be fun..because of their musical styles.

Was just the opposite!

Joni was great but it was a bad venue for her.

[AZSkiffyGeek]

5. That show I saw 15 years ago...

They made a big deal about how it would start at EXACTLY 7:30.
Which it did. He walked on at 7:30, played exactly 90 minutes with no encore and left at 9. Didn't look or speak to the audience.
But he played great - not as many deep cuts as I wanted, but it was still great.

[cilla4progress]

8. Same here!

Not... the Gorge?

[AZSkiffyGeek]

9. Nah, this was in Phoenix.

Everyone around me was pretty upset at the way he acted, but it sounds like that's just him. A lot of people were also upset because it started on time - it was a big amphitheater and there were still a lot of people in the parking lot when he went on. Honestly I don't have too much sympathy for that, mostly because I hate people trying to find their seats after the show has started.

[LisaM]

3. I think he's more of a libertarian nut job.

Those people trouble me as much as the RWNJs,.to be fair.

[Tetrachloride]

4. I don't know the politics of singers too much.

3 well known RW got the axe from my music collection.

Movies and actors are a harder call. For some, I have hope of redemption.

[AZSkiffyGeek]

6. There are 4 I won't support anymore

Clapton, Morrison, Nugent (of course), and Morrissey. I still love at least 1 song by each though.

I know Ian Anderson from Jethro Tull is right wing, but he's not nuts.

[Anon-C]

7. We just cancel, huh.

[cilla4progress]

11. You

do you!

[Tom Kitten]

10. That sucks

I only have one album of his, "Them" featuring "Gloria". But I'm hanging on to it.
I collected 60s garage and psychedelic rock albums.
I had the first two Amboy Dukes albums (the only ones worth having I thought) but got rid of them a couple years ago...i just couldn't tolerate that supreme a-hole Nooge anymore, even though he doesn't "sing" on them. I figure I hadn't listened to them in years plus I got some pretty good money for them. Used some of it to buy a Laura Nyro album.

[Claire Oh Nette]

14. Still some of the best music of it's time

Listened to this and Jackson Browne when my mother died.
Have to separate the art form the artist.

[highplainsdem]

12. Don't confuse the art with the artist. And keep in mind that almost any

record you buy, just like any film you go to, or any TV show you help support via streaming service or whatever, is the result of MANY people working together.

The album you decide not to buy might have songs by songwriters whose politics you agree with completely.

The producer, who might be getting a percentage instead of a flat fee, could share your politics.

The same thing is true of the backing musicians, and so on.

And think of all the people who work on TV shows and films.

Conversely, if you decide to support an artist for views you like, you could also be helping support people that artist works with whose views you WOULDN'T like and would never want to support.

I have a relative who's a RWNJ but whose favorite author is an outspoken liberal who donates, a lot, to Democratic candidates. That relative still buys her books because they're GOOD books. She'd be happier if that author was RW, but she isn't giving up her favorite fiction.

[cilla4progress]

13. Interesting perspective.

Last edited Fri May 20, 2022, 08:37 PM - Edit history (1)

Thanks, highplainsdem.

[highplainsdem]

15. You're welcome, and I want to add that I can also see your perspective, how

there might be an immediate reaction that would lead someone to want to cancel an artist.

But if you look at an OP and the first reply there that I posted today about Joe Cocker's first album

https://democraticunderground.com/10181664809

it gives some idea of how many other people are usually involved. And you may have as many different songwriters on an album as there are songs. As well as all the people working in offices rather than the studio. If you're talking about concerts, then there are roadies whose jobs depend on those.

Of course, if you simply can't enjoy the music (or the film or the TV show or the book) any more, then I can understand doing without it.

But if you still enjoy the art, yet think you should cancel the artist to punish them financially, then it might help to consider everyone who's involved.

[cilla4progress]

16. Yes, this is my conundrum.

I love Van's music. But I hate his message.

Have you heard his new song "Dangerous"?

[highplainsdem]

17. So don't listen to, let alone buy, the songs whose message you don't like.

I just listened to "Dangerous" -- hadn't listened to it before.

Music's okay, not great. His lyrics are boring and silly IMO. Pompous and didactic.

Lots of better music on his old albums. Which I will not stop enjoying just because he's being an ass now.

"Dangerous" being mediocre with a dumb message doesn't stop his old classics from being classics.

[SharonClark]

18. I have most of his albums except for those

of the last 10 years because they’re just uninteresting to me. I won’t buy his new ones but there is no way I’ll stop listening to the classics.