Daveportivo's Cultural Evaluation Facility

So this isn't exactly your standard Radiohead single, it's not the first taste of their new album, and it's probably not worth reading into this track at all, because this is a charity single. As you've almost certainly gathered from the photo and from the title track is a tribute to Harry Patch, the last of the "Tommy's" the last British soldier left alive from World War One, he was also the oldest man alive in the country prior to his death. Radiohead decided to celebrate his life with a goregous noble ballad, with a huge string arrangement, it feels like a cross between In Rainbows vocally and a beautiful classical musical score. I don't really want to dwell on the track too much as this single is hardly about the music, it's about the memory of a man, and of a brutal war.

The First World War remains the most scarring event on the British pshyche. We don't do national celebration, no one cares about St. George's day, we don't have an Bastille Day or an Independence day, the closest thing we have to a celebration is Guy Fawkes day and that's the celebration of rebelious spirit rather than national unity. And lets be honest hardly anyone dwells on the poignacy of the celebration their more interested in the pretty fireworks. The only truely national event we have is Remembrance day, the 11th of the 11th, when we all wear poppies, we all stand silently and we all reflect and remember. It's an interesting statement about British society that the one thing that brings us together is reflective sorrow. So rather than say whether this song is good, great or a pointless throwaway, I instead urge some personal reflection. If you fancy giving some money to a good cause all profits go to The British Legion and it only costs a pound, so if you want some new music and like the idea of give some money to a good cause head to this site: http://download.waste.uk.com/Store/did.html