The Ties That Bind - Part 1
Paul Weller (the legendary frontman of The Jam, not the former Burnley player) once said that music and football are the post-war British belief systems, superseding traditional religions. An astute observation coming from the not-particularly-football-inclined Modfather – and one that is undeniably true.
But why? On the surface level, the differences between the two are stark: music is a creative process with an untethered gestation and limitless possibilities, while football – or specifically a football match – is both tactical and spontaneous.
As the cliché goes, it only takes a second to score a goal that can affect the mood of players, coaches, and managers and may even determine a club's fate. Musicians' spontaneity, barring those that happen in the studio, is limited to the live arena and therefore cherished by a select few.
Yet the relationship between the two runs deep. Back in the early 1960s, when post-war Britain was taking shape, pop music, as we understand it, was formulating and The Beatles were conquering all before them while the two teams from their hometown of Liverpool were dominating top-flight football.