Portal de Periódicos da CAPES

Alco‐pop? The Use of Popular Music in Glasgow Pubs

2008; Taylor & Francis; Volume: 31; Issue: 1 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1080/03007760601061902

1740-1712

Alasdair Forsyth, Martin Cloonan,

Cultural Industries and Urban Development

Abstract In recent years popular music studies has witnessed a turn towards concentrating on music at a local level (Cloonan Cloonan, Martin. 2005. “What is Popular Music Studies? Some Observations.”. British Journal of Music Education, 22(1): 1–17. [Google Scholar]) and its use in what DeNora DeNora, Tia. 2000. Music in Everyday Life, Cambridge: Cambridge UP. [Crossref] , [Google Scholar] calls everyday life. In a separate, but overlapping, development there has been a growing interest in the night‐time economy. At an academic level this has included some interest in the role popular music plays in that economy (e.g. Bennett Bennett, Andy. 1997. “‘Going Down the Pub!’ The Pub Rock Scene as a Resource for the Consumption of Popular Music.”. Popular Music, 16(1): 97–108. [Crossref] , [Google Scholar]; Björnberg and Stockfelt Björnberg, Alf and Stockfelt, Ola. 1996. “Kristen Klatvask fra Vejle: Danish Pub Music, Mythscapes and ‘Local Camp.’”. Popular Music, 15(2): 131–47. [Google Scholar]) and at the UK governmental level it has included responses to “binge drinking” (Home Affairs Select Committee Home Affairs Select Committee. Anti‐Social Behaviour, Fifth Report, London, The Stationery Office [Google Scholar]; Prime Minister's Strategy Unit Prime Minister's Strategy Unit. Alcohol Harm Reduction Strategy for England, London, Strategy Unit [Google Scholar]; Scottish Executive Scottish Executive. 2002. Review of Liquor Licensing Law in Scotland, Edinburgh: Scottish Executive. [Google Scholar]) and to licensing.1 1. In 2005 the UK parliament introduced new legislation to liberalize licensing regulations and, subject to certain conditions, to allow pubs to remain open longer. See . But there has been less attention paid to the role that music plays within a key part of that economy—pubs. In this article we examine the use of music in city centre pubs in Glasgow, Scotland. We include the role of music in attracting customers to pubs, the different types of clientele attracted, the relationship between music and alcohol sales, and the ways in which music can act as both a trigger for disorder and a means of preventing it. We develop a typology of uses of music and explore the implications for popular music studies. Acknowledgments Thanks are due to Peter Doyle, Katie Hunter, Sarah Menzies, Tony McKee, and Steve Parkin (all University of Glasgow) for conducting the field observations of pubs described in this paper, and also to the eight anonymous interviewees from these pubs. This research was funded by a grant from Greater Glasgow NHS Board. The views expressed in this paper are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the funding body. Notes 1. In 2005 the UK parliament introduced new legislation to liberalize licensing regulations and, subject to certain conditions, to allow pubs to remain open longer. See . 2. The UK alcohol industry's social responsibility “watchdog” the Portman Group Portman Group. Code of Practice: On the Naming, Packing and Promotion of Alcoholic Drinks. 3rd edn, London, Portman Group [Google Scholar]'s code of advertising practice states that (among other things) the “naming, packaging and promotional material pertaining to alcoholic drinks… should not in any direct or indirect way…suggest any association with sexual success” or “encourage…immoderate consumption such as binge drinking.” 3. In this context the term “cheesy” refers to songs of dubious musical merit (i.e. kitsch) that most listeners would prefer not to admit to liking (i.e. guilty pleasures), though with the lowering of inhibitions brought about with alcohol consumption this view changes. In practice many of the “cheesy classics” observed here were songs from movie soundtracks such as Grease, Dirty Dancing, or There's Something about Mary. 4. Celtic and Rangers are the main football clubs in Glasgow (and Scotland). The former is associated with a largely Catholic following, the latter with a Protestant one. To lower the potential for trouble, their home games are generally held on alternate weekends. 5. The term “on the pull” is used here to describe those visiting a pub in search of a casual sexual partner for the evening, the act of which is known as “pulling.” Premises where such activity is commonplace are described as “meat markets.” 6. It also seemed to work in deterring one of our observers from ever going back to the Railway—“the bloody music was a constant source of irritation for me and as such I doubt I would return through choice.”