Why? Why? Why? Delilah. Or to be more accurate, why not? And there are many good reasons why not.
While those among us who favour the oval ball are celebrating Scotland’s recent rugby renaissance, the Welsh authorities have vetoed the traditional singing of the Tom Jones hit before matches in Cardiff.
The ballad tells of the murder of a courtesan, stabbed to death by a jealous paramour when he realises that he is not the only one to share her favours.
The Welsh Rugby Union banned the song in the midst of allegations that the governing body had a toxic culture of misogyny, sexism, and homophobia. Such were the claims that the WRU’s chief executive, Steve Phillips, resigned, so banning the song was a no-brainer.
For whatever reason, probably the same reason I’m Forever Blowing Bubbles is the West Ham United anthem and You’ll Never Walk Alone is Liverpool’s, the song became hitched to Welsh rugby.
If I’m being honest, I’m not sure why, because to my mind a song about the murder of a sex worker doesn’t really sit well with a national sport.
And it’s not as if you can switch it off if you don’t want to listen to it, as we all do with our radios from time to time. If you’re in the stadium and 75,000 people are singing it, all you can do is stick your fingers in your ears.
But here’s the rub.
Ban Delilah by all means – and in this context, that’s probably a good thing. But what next? God Save the King? Remember the verse about rebellious Scots to crush? Happily that hasn’t been sung at Hampden or Murrayfield for aeons, and quite right too.
Mick Jagger and the Rolling Stones took the decision to drop the massive hit Brown Sugar from their set list because of its slavery references. Fair point. And it’s their song, which they wrote and perform – so it’s entirely in their gift to choose whether to play it or not.
Music is full of songs about taking drugs and drinking alcohol, illicit sex and shooting the occasional sheriff, if not the deputy. Ban rap because it glorifies gangsters? Country and western, folk music and the blues are full of historical heartache and hubris. Censor them?
And should we ban Shakespeare because the Merchant of Venice may tempt us to lob a pound of flesh off someone who owes us a few quid, or Romeo and Juliet because it may prompt young people to take their lives? So where do you stop?
Let’s get real. The cancel culture cannot be allowed to dictate with impunity. After all, as the bard once said, all the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players.
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