Blur And Pink Floyd Unite Against The BNP's Music Compilations

Bands such Pink Floyd and Blur are set to launch a campaign to stop the BNP making money off of music they are selling through their website.

The political party sells compilation albums which feature artists who have no way of stopping the music from appearing on them.

In a letter to The Times, Billy Bragg joined forces with Dave Rowntree (Blur) and Nick Mason (Pink Floyd) plus the Musicians' Union and Featured Artists' Coalition to object to the BNP using the music.

They wrote: "In the lead up to the European elections, it has come to our attention that the BNP is selling compilation CDs through its website in order to raise funds for campaigning.

"Many of the musicians featured on these ... have no legal right to object to their music being used in this way. We would, on behalf of our joint membership of over 31,000 members, like to have our opposition to the BNP's politics and morals formally noted."

The CDs feature such titles as Rule Britannia and Proud Heritage while an album written by BNP leader Nick Griffin claims its aim is "to incorporate folk and more upbeat tempos to deliver a powerful message of how British people have been dispossessed".

Nigel McCune, of the Musicians' Union, added: "There is nothing as it stands to stop the BNP from acting in this way and there is nothing that the performers can do to prevent it. If a moral right came in you would then be able to test how far you could stretch it.

"Billy Bragg, for example, could find his track New England for sale on a BNP website raising money for something that he has spent his entire musical life campaigning against. We would like to think that there should be a framework in this country sufficient to prevent something like that happening."

(by Daniel Melia)

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