Time to clear the Campbell Ipod

While the Campbell re-election campaign in BC seems to be staying on track, musically things are falling apart for the governing Liberal party of BC. The Liberals who apparently have not studied past musicalogical miscues, had taken to using Bruce Springsteen's "Glory Days" on the campaign trail, the catchy up beat sound of the Boss and the E streeters apparently just the sound the government had been looking for to showcase it's re-election platform. Only problem is nobody listened to the lyrics, actually Glory Days is about looking back at better times and examining things that didn't quite turn out so good, somehow you would think the Liberals would be all about the future.

From whistle stop encounter to money shovelling announcement, the Boss was there in full volume hailing the great times, while the Liberal boss would bask in the glow of another vote sought.

Alas all good times must come to an end and quicker than you can say cease and desist Glory Days will be no more on the happy Liberal trail.

Past political types that have tried to usurp the Springsteen catalogue have quickly learned that the Boss' legal types don't take kindly to having their music used to bolster a campaign. Especially when the man who champions the struggles of the working man and woman, the dispossessed and those that have been give a raw deal from the powers that be, finds out that those people are not the candidates target audience.

Ronald Reagan ran into the wrath of Springsteen in the 80's, when he tried to take Born in the USA from the charts to the campaign trail. Twenty years later Tony Blair found that just using U2 music doesn't quite amount to an endorsement by Bono, the Edge and the rest of the gang.

Campbell too now finds himself in the same spot. He wasn't well served by his political advisors with the selection of Springsteen, besides the already mentioned dislike of the politicians who take his songs for their own advancement, there is the matter of his new album. Devils and Dust, which in the spirit of the Ghost of Tom Joad and Nebraska sessions, explores themes of those left behind by society. Not exactly the target audiene of the current regime in BC.

So it's on to plan B for the BC Liberals, another click on the Ipod and up pops REM, Shiny Happy People the song for all occasions, for now. One wonders how long Michael Stipe will take to call in the legal team, Stipe who actually has spent a fair amount of time in Vancouver recording his music, also is of a rather socially conscious bent. He like Springsteen, may not appreciate having the Liberal message put to an REM soundtrack.

One wonders what's next on that Campbell Ipod,for surely it won't be long before someone calls to say "push delete". The answer my friend is blowing in the wind, the answer is blowing in the wind.