The political power of Oliver Anthony’s, ‘Rich Men North Of Richmond’ vs Shane Jones Ballard of Northland
The speed with which Oliver Anthony’s Ballard of working class pain has sped around the internet is proof positive of the incandescent rage of the working classes left behind by a rigged capitalism that benefits the wealthy.
The middle class woke clutch at their pearls and cry fat phobic at Oliver Anthony’s song of pain and anger at a neoliberal free market system he can never beat.
The middle class woke fear his words because the power of them challenge the same neoliberal free market middle class comfort they enjoy, the way the Wellington Maoists screamed Nazi at the Parliament Lawn Protestors.
Anthony strikes the same chord as Tennessee Ernie Ford’s 16 Tons or Johnny Paycheck’s Take This Job And Shove It or Billy Bragg’s Which Side Are You On?
Compare the raw working pain against the rigged game of the rich channeled by Oliver Anthony’s Ballard with our own great Waa Waa of the North, Shane Jones…
Watch: Shane Jones appeals to voters with rendition of rock classic
NZ First candidate Shane Jones has posted a TikTok belting out a rock classic.
Appealing to Northland voters, Jones sings Journey’s Don’t Stop Believing, swapping the original lyrics to focus on him and his achievements.
“I took the PGF (Provincial Growth Fund) then gave the funds to our people,” sings a disembodied Jones floating above a Northland landscape.
Jones managed the $3 billion Provincial Growth Fund during his tenure as Minister for Regional Economic Development.
“I took a billion trees and planted everywhere,” he sings.
“Croatian Māori, from Awanui.
“I’m back and making Northland great again,” closing his eyes as the music swells.
“Shane Jones! Believing!” he belts, giving Journey’s lead singer a run for his money.
“Taking Far North to the ceiling,” he sings raising his finger to the sky.
“Put the K back in the iwi, oh yeah!”
The video has received over 500 likes and 50 comments in the seven hours since it was uploaded.
…y-e-a-h.
Not the incandescent rage of the working class so much as the smug hand in pocket contempt for anyone under the age of 60 stylings of a man who refers to himself in the third person so much he has become 3 dimensional:
“Shane Jones is very Shane Jones about being so Shane Jones”, said Shane Jones.
Look at the pain and the emotion of Oliver Anthony’s Ballard with the graceless imitation of a NZ First candidate whose casual half arsed attempt is somehow cultural mana from heaven.
Nothing manages to sum up where we are in the West better than the juxtaposition between those two songs and the ocean of need and desperate anger in between them at a rigged system of capitalism the working classes have no power to change.
Rich Men North Of Northland and woke wets south of Wellington.
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I don’t think there were any “Wellington Maoists screaming Nazi” at Parliament House, because there’s probably about three actual supporters of Mao left in all of Wellington Province.
Back when the headquarters of the pro-Mao Communist Party was still based in Wellington, the members would probably have quite enjoyed ‘Rich Men North Of Richmond’, much like how they lauded ‘Reedy River’. But mass politics doesn’t really exist in Wellington today; it is a thoroughly elitist and mostly Third Way Liberal affair, with barely any public participation (beyond election day).
Very Seinfeld from Jones…”Shane’s getting frustrated!”
And sorry where has the fat phobia angle come from? I saw that on the RNZ website. “People living in larger bodies”. Some, granted by no means all, weren’t originally living in larger bodies. They got there by letting things go ( speaking from personal experience), and simply going for a walk can make a huge difference.
Nice post Martyn.
North of Richmond is a brilliant song and a fine contrast to the worthless tripe pumped out by Hollywood.
In the USA this resonates with Trump’s base, because despite his personal failings, Trump was in it for the working class like neither the Democrats and Republicans were.
the irony that the working class would turn to a wannabe grifter like Trump is definitely lost on me – would you like fries with that?
I’m sure the dude who gave Saudi Arabia and other Arabian nations a $8,100,000,000 weapons deal, despite the rest of government vetoing it, and passed a tax break that screwed working people while benefiting the top 1% is really looking out for the average guy. Don’t defend a war criminal man.
Landlords are the enemy.
Jones is a pompous twat and has no class. none. nada. zilch.
Fucking great song, so powerful and so poignant.
Let the pompous muddle class woke shake and shudder in there shoes by the virtues of this little tune.
That could become an anthem if a political part could get behind it.
It is a fair enough whinge from Mr Anthony–he does not propose class left organising though, and even finds time for a bit of good ol’ Bennie bashing…
“And the obese milkin’ welfare
Well, God, if you’re 5-foot-3 and you’re 300 pounds
Taxes ought not to pay for your bags of fudge rounds
Young men are puttin’ themselves six feet in the ground
‘Cause all this damn country does is keep on kickin’ them down”
Sure it is a fine line really, working class people in this country have been encouraged to resent beneficaries also–until they turn 65 and then are transformed into pensioner heroes of the nation.
Anyone can bleat, it is about the way forward from a class position.
Oliver Anthony’s song is trying to turn the working classes against those on Welfare. He and his knuckledragging buddies need to realise that if we dont have a welfare system, wages and conditions would be way worse than they are now.
Exactly millsy, some Americans do tend to be a bit dim.
The key question for the working class for ever has been “who is the main enemy?” hint: it is not other working class or vulnerable people–it is the ruling class elite and their enablers.
Agreed he knows this and that’s why he talks about the rich man’s $ is worth shit and taxed to the max. He talks about this if you listen carefully to his song. He is talking about the elite.
The lyrics about beneficiaries and obesity were unnecessary but other than that Oliver’s song is actually kinda based
Saying, “it’s aiming in the right direction but gets the details wrong” could not be more insufficient. Fascism proper grew out of the workers’ movement; therefore, to fail to separate bastardisations that only(!) fail the final hurdle is to confuse reaction with progress.
Agreed he knows this and that’s why he talks about the rich man’s $ is worth shit and taxed to the max. He talks about this if you listen carefully to his song. He is talking about the elite.