30 Day Song Challenge - day 07

day 07 - a song that reminds you of a certain event

May 9th, 1998, London.

Conway Hall packed to the rafters with the Ken Livingstone Fan Club and Socialist Register subscribers to mark the 150th anniversary of the publication of the Communist Manifesto (. . . and sundry European revolutions from that same year.)

Speakers and performers on the night included Sheila Rowbotham, Harriet Walter, Julie Christie, Tony Garnett . . . and the woman who played Michelle Fowler's landlady in Eastenders.

It was all going swimmingly until this song kicked and 800 bemused souls couldn't work out if they were supposed to sing the Billy Bragg version or the original lyrics. I just mumbled along in a half-hearted fashion, whilst the bloke next to me raised his fist like it was 1899.

Sadly, none of us on the night could swing it like Tony Babino does:

I think I've found my new ringtone . . .

From the closing credits of Michael Moore's "Capitalism: A Love Story', Tony Babino belts out what is now my favourite version of The Internationale:

"Speed it up", indeed.

Addendum

Interesting article by Len Wallace about the history of The Internationale that first appeared in the pages of The Industrial Worker back in 2006:

The Most Dangerous Song in the World - A Rewrite

Don't Cry*

If it's meant as political commentary, it's more 'Belfast Child' era Simple Minds than Hendrix's 'Star Spangled Banner'. If it's meant as a joke, it's more Bad News than Spinal Tap, but the Chinese heavy metal band, Tang Dynasty', knock Billy Bragg** off the top stop for the worse updated version of workers' classic, 'The Internationale'.

Still, they're better than Van Halen, I guess.

Hat tip to Wis[s]e Words blog place for jotting down random thoughts.

*Guns 'N' Roses

**In fairness to the Bard of Barking, his and Dick Gaughan's version of 'The Red Flag', which happens to be on the same album where he does a musical Krondstadt on Eug癡ne Edine Pottier classic, is one of my all time favourite songs.