Introduction

This introduction presents an overview of key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book is about politics and popular music. It is about attempts by politicians and the politically-motivated to interact with popular music, to change its course, to shape it, mould it and modify it, avowedly for the benefit of the citizens of the UK. put the author's fascination on hold for four years while the author immersed himself in a Politics BA and Political Philosophy MA at the University of York. The author then had the opportunity of undertaking a PhD and decided that wanted to return to pop and politics. Popular Music and the State in the UK charts some of those changes through an examination of the history of popular music and politics in the UK since the arrival of rock and roll, concentrating on the relationship between state and art form. In doing so, a number of arguments will be forwarded.