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Showing posts from May 28, 2008

Winehouse v Dylan v Raleigh

English students at Cambridge University have been asked to analyse lyrics by singer Amy Winehouse in a final-year exam. They were asked to contrast aspects of Winehouse's "Love is a Losing Game"" with Bob Dylan's Boots Of Spanish Leather", Billie Holiday's "Fine And Mellow" and Sir Walter Raleigh's "As You Came from the Holy Land" in an examination question. A university spokesman said English students had always been asked to compare writers of different times. He said the question was "interesting, but not news". I agree. The lyrics of these songs show how language changes over long periods of time, but essentially show that the nature of human emotion and feelings is the same. An excellent way to engage anyone (especially young students ) in the discussion and analysis of language, I think. When the Primary Music curriculum first introduced the music of the 60's and in particular John Lennon, I was at first a l