The Guardian Song.
Media: planned to be online, TV, radio
Role: Group Creative Director
Agency: BBH London/CDs: Joakim Borgstrom, Carl Broadhurst
Ok, this didn’t run. But back in 2015 big plans were afoot to create a huge forum at The Guardian to host its members, a place where they could discuss the big topics of the day and have it live streamed to an audience. I wrote a song with that in mind, with a plan to set it to a choreographed dance with stock motion characters. My plan for a career writing musicals was cut short when The Guardian pulled the whole initiative, but I still quite like this early test (though admittedly it needed work). Listening to it years later it actually feels like the news hasn’t changed too much…
Lyrics
Is Mars worth the trouble? How much money should we spend?
Are long range drones immoral? Or do they save lives in the end?
Is the NHS lost already? Is ebola coming back?
How many producers can you punch before you get the sack?
Do you like debates on tele? Or do they seem a bit rehearsed?
Will the climate really kill us or will the robots kill us first? Will the robots kill us first…?
Questions…questions…questions that need answers (repeat)
Do you have a point of view, because I haven’t got a clue
I’m here and I need your mind, so tell me what you’re thinking…it’ll give me peace of mind.
What’s the deal with sugar? Is caffeine good or bad?
Do blueberries make you happy? Does sunblock make you sad?
What’s your take on fracking? Where did the tsunami money go?
Why do oligarchs buy in Mayfair? It’s not that great you know…
Has Merkel lost her mettle? Has Putin lost the plot?
How much tax must you evade if you want to own a yacht? If you want to own a yacht…
Questions, questions, questions seeking answers (repeat)
Where do they all go, does anybody know, running round our heads…
We should put our heads together and put these things to bed.
Are we still headed for a Brexit? Do we know what that would mean?
Are paedophiles pure evil even if they find a gene?
Will we ever know the truth about Guantanamo?
Is Brucie still alive? Where did Gordon Ramsay go?
Is all our data up for auction? Or are we being paranoid?
Why does talking about religion get atheists so annoyed? Get atheists so annoyed…
Questions, questions, where can we find answers? (repeat)
We need a place to get together, that’s protected from the weather
They’ve been running round our heads, but now we can release them.
Because The Guardian’s built this great big shed! (repeat)
The song was going to play on soundcloud with every lyric linked to a relevant Guardian article about that topic.
